Young Gun

This is where you will find all of The Rugby Paper’s Young Gun news, interviews, reports, opinion and other content.

Young Gun: Harlequins lock George Hammond

25 November 2018 1 comment

GEORGE HAMMOND HARLEQUINS LOCK As one of the youngest members of Harlequins’ senior academy, George Hammond has plenty of developing to do. However, having been […]

Young Gun – Sale Sharks fly-half Kieran Wilkinson

25 October 2018 0 comments

… A fly-half named Wilkinson

Young Gun – Wasps scrum-half Will Porter

26 April 2018 0 comments

The on-loan Rotherham back talks Wasps and his hopes of making the England U20 World Cup squad this summer

Young Guns: Leicester Tiger scrum-half Harry Simmons

1 December 2017 0 comments

The Tigers youngster talks to TRP about his work with mentor Ben Youngs

Young Gun: Rhys Carre – Cardiff Blues loosehead

29 September 2017 0 comments

Rhys Carre already has the size and power to play senior rugby but he is fully aware his technique has to improve is he is […]

Young Gun: Fraser Dingwall – Northampton centre

22 September 2017 0 comments

Biding his time is not the easiest thing to do for Fraser Dingwall who is desperate to break into professional rugby but he understands patience […]

Young Gun: Kaleem Barreto – Glasgow scrum-half

15 September 2017 0 comments

Kaleem Barreto is not sure which version of the game he will be playing this season just yet but one thing is for certain he […]

Young Gun: Ben Jones – Wales U20s fly-half

25 August 2017 0 comments

Ben Jones is after game time in his first season at senior level and with three sides to play for he should not be in […]

Young Gun: Billy Scannell – Munster hooker

18 August 2017 0 comments

This year will live long in the Scannell household’s memory with Niall and Rory making their international debut for Ireland and younger brother Billy fully […]

Young Gun: Matt Worley – Racing 92 full-back

11 August 2017 0 comments

It was a PR stunt that took Matt Worley from Hong Kong to Racing 92, but two years later the young full-back is on the […]

Young Gun: Matt Cornish – Ealing Trailfinders hooker

4 August 2017 0 comments

There are many roads to professional rugby but Matt Cornish has taken it to the extreme going from London 1 to the Championship in the […]

Young Gun: George Stokes – Glasgow flanker

14 July 2017 0 comments

Growing up in Spain, George Stokes always faced an uphill battle to make it as a rugby player without the professional pathways that exist in […]

Young Gun: Jacob Atkins – London Irish fly-half

7 July 2017 0 comments

Mistakes can be costly in professional rugby but fly-half Jacob Atkins reckons embracing his is the reason behind his storming season for London Irish. Being […]

Young Gun: Marcus Street – England U20s prop

23 June 2017 0 comments

Marcus Street is still only 18 and making his Exeter and U20s debut by February already made for a successful season – so to play […]

Young Gun: Josh Bayliss – Bath flanker

9 June 2017 0 comments

Making his first team debut seemed an unachievable goal for fresh-out-of-school Josh Bayliss at the start of the season, but his dream came true in […]

Young Gun: Ali Crossdale – England U20s full-back

2 June 2017 0 comments

Ali Cossdale is living the dream by training with the best team in Europe every day and has learned that rubbing shoulders with the likes […]

Young Gun: Josh Gray – Barnard Castle No.8

26 May 2017 0 comments

Josh Gray was just 12 when his brother Alex led England U20s to the Junior World Cup final in 2011 and that was the moment […]

Young Gun: Sam Grahamslaw – Leicester prop

19 May 2017 0 comments

Switching from the back row to prop is no easy feat fresh out of school, but Sam Grahamslaw will not have to look far for […]

Young Gun: Cameron Redpath – England U18s centre

12 May 2017 0 comments

Given his name, Cameron Redpath was always going to have a head start in rugby but he is determined to prove he is worthy of […]

Young Gun: James Lasis – Loughborough Students lock

5 May 2017 0 comments

James Lasis started the season as a loosehead but it is at lock that he is looking to turn professional next season. The unconventional switch […]

Young Gun: Rory McMichael – Scotland U18s centre

28 April 2017 0 comments

The journey to professional rugby can be a treacherous one for youngsters trying to break through, but Rory McMichael will take it to new horizons […]

Young Gun: Aaron Hinkley – England U18s flanker

14 April 2017 0 comments

Aaron Hinkley is fully aware making it at senior level will not be a walk in the park but he reckons being part of the […]

Young Gun: Jamie Barden – Cranleigh School

7 April 2017 0 comments

A broken leg cost him his place in the Harlequins academy but Jamie Barden proved he is full of resource by helping Cranleigh school retain […]

Young Gun: Dominic Morris – England U20s

31 March 2017 0 comments

Being injured at the start of the season, Dominic Morris would not have expected to have made his Saracens debut, won the Six Nations and […]

Young Gun: Will Jones – Wales U20s captain

17 March 2017 0 comments

Enjoying the student life while trying to become a professional rugby player is not easy but Wales U20s captain Will Jones is proving anything is […]

Young Gun: Max Coyle – Harlequins full-back

10 March 2017 0 comments

Concussion may have cut his U18s Premier-ship final appearance short but Max Coyle is determined to create long-lasting memories from his final months as a […]

Young Gun: Ben Loader – England U18s full-back

3 March 2017 0 comments

Breaking into senior rugby ranks is high on Ben Loader’s agenda but for now his focus is on ending his schoolboy career with a Red […]

Young Gun: Will Butler – England U20s centre

24 February 2017 0 comments

Will Butler faced a race against the clock to be fit for the Six Nations but he is now looking to pick up where he […]

Young Gun: Nick Isiekwe – England U20s lock

17 February 2017 0 comments

Nick Isiekwe wants to play at the highest level and he only needs to look at Saracens teammate Maro Itoje to know dreams can quickly […]

20 Questions: Laurence May – Cornish Pirates fly-half

15 February 2017 0 comments

Big game against London Scottish? It is but we’re preparing it like any other game really. The weather forecast is giving downpours of rain so […]

Young Gun: Josh Basham – Wellington College captain

10 February 2017 0 comments

Leaving Wellington College having made history is no easy feat but that is what Josh Basham is already certain to do after he became the […]

Young Gun: Ben Vellacott – Gloucester scrum-half

3 February 2017 0 comments

It is only three weeks into 2017 but, as far as Ben Vellacott is concerned, it is already a year he’ll never forget. It all […]

Young Gun: Jack Nay – Saracens flanker

27 January 2017 0 comments

Jack Nay grew up watching Schalk Burger playing for the Springboks on television so to actually train with him took a while to get used […]

Young Gun: Tom Dodd – Scotland U20s back-rower

20 January 2017 0 comments

Tom Dodd went to school in England and he’s playing his club rugby in Worcester but it was also a “natural choice” to throw his […]

Young Gun: Declan Sinclair – Tonbridge School lock

13 January 2017 0 comments

Given he was barely a year old when John Eales won his second World Cup, it is no surprise Declan Sinclair had to google the […]

Young Gun: Richard Capstick – Exeter back row

30 December 2016 0 comments

Richard Capstick will not join the Exeter academy full-time for another year but he is not going to wait until then to start conducting his […]

Young Gun: Callum Hunter-Hill – London Scottish lock

23 December 2016 0 comments

Callum Hunter-Hill is not sure how long he will stay in London but he is looking to make the best of his time in the […]

Young Gun: Dylan Moss – Wellington College full-back

16 December 2016 0 comments

Dylan Moss might have a confidence-boosting contract with the Ospreys awaiting for next season but he is under no illusion the step up to senior […]

Young Gun: Justin Clegg – Worcester lock

9 December 2016 0 comments

Justin Clegg might be out of sight but he is determined not to be out of the minds of the Worcester coaches. The giant lock, […]

Young Gun: Ollie Dawe – Bristol prop

2 December 2016 0 comments

As a young prop Ollie Dawe knows full well the journey to the Premiership will be a long one so he had no qualms about […]

Yougn Gun: Jake Polledri – Hartpury College flanker

11 November 2016 0 comments

Jake Polledri admits he is a late developer but linking up with talent-spotting guru Alan Martinovic at Hartpury College has rekindled his fire. After leaving […]

Young Gun: Alex Mitchell – Northampton scrum-half

4 November 2016 0 comments

A knee injury prevented him from playing in a home World Cup, but Alex Mitchell is back and desperate to put on the England U20s […]

Young Gun: Ewan McQuillin – London Scottish prop

28 October 2016 0 comments

Ewan McQuillin knew he would need his passport to get to his next game but little did he know that it would be at Murrayfield […]

Young Gun: Ross Graham – Yorkshire Carnegie hooker

21 October 2016 0 comments

Yorkshire Carnegie have a proven record in nurturing young hookers so it is no surprise Scot Ross Graham jumped at the opportunity to cross the […]

Young Gun: Will Talbot-Davies – Dragons full-back

14 October 2016 0 comments

Will Talbot-Davies might have grown up in England and gone to Solihull school but he is as Welsh as they come so it is no […]

Young Gun: Conor Eastgate – Wasps fly-half

7 October 2016 0 comments

Between Danny Cipriani and Jimmy Gopperth, Conor Eastgate could not ask for better mentors, but as a young fly-half playing is the best thing for […]

Young Gun: Simon Uzokwe – Newcastle flanker

23 September 2016 0 comments

Not being offered a contract by Northampton was tough to take for Simon Uzokwe, but in the space of three years he fell back in […]

Young Gun: Tom Willis – Wasps No.8

16 September 2016 0 comments

As a young player, Tom Willis is like a sponge when it comes to soaking up all the advice on offer, and with a world […]

Young Gun: Sam Thomson – Glasgow lock

9 September 2016 0 comments

Sam Thomson is back in Glasgow and he is desperate to prove he has what it takes to follow in the footsteps of his old […]

Young Gun: Will Attfield – England Sevens

2 September 2016 0 comments

When one door shuts another opens and that is what happened to Will Attfield who, in the space of a few days, went from the […]

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