Sports
Jake Ball: Wales and Scarlets lock retires aged 34
Born in Ascot, but raised in Australia from the age of 16, Ball arrived in Llanelli in 2012 from Super Rugby side Western Force.
In a nine-year stint, Ball was part of the Scarlets squad that won the Pro12 league title in 2017 and reached the European Champions Cup semi-final the following year.
Ball left Scarlets in 2021 to return to Australia and had a playing spell in Japan before returning to Wales.
“The Scarlets supporters here are an awesome bunch, their passion for the team is incredible and they have been amazing to me and my family,” said Ball.
“There have been some incredible highs, the lead-up to winning the championship in 2017 and Europe the following year.
“That was a special time with a special group of players. I will always remember the friendships, the people who have made my time here so memorable.”
Ball, who qualified for Wales through his father who is from Colwyn Bay, made his Wales debut in 2014.
He was part of the Grand Slam-winning side in 2019 and a World Cup semi-finalist that same year.
The no-nonsense lock formed an international partnership with Alun Wyn Jones, although the pair were infamously involved in a training ground scuffle during the 2021 Six Nations campaign.
Ball played his final Test in the victory against Italy in Rome in March 2021 with Wales going onto to win the Six Nations title that season.
He is the latest Grand Slam-winning Wales international to announce their retirements following former Scarlets trio Liam Williams, George North and Leigh Halfpenny.
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While Europe’s bigger nations have their own in-house resources, countries like Northern Ireland share staff with clubs, which can bring its own challenges in an extended window.
“We don’t carry full-time doctors, full-time physios and full-time sports scientists,” O’Neill added.
“Other countries are the same, but all our staff work at clubs and we need agreement from the clubs.
“That’s a challenge to be able to staff it properly and keep the level of professionalism.
“The big countries don’t have that, they have full-time staff and an army of staff to be able to do these things.”
O’Neill also has to consider how much to rotate this squad. It’s a fine balance between keeping key players fresh, but also how much exposure to give his young squad.
Of the 26-man squad, 17 of the players are aged 25 or under and only three – Josh Magennis (36), Paddy McNair (31) and Dion Charles (30) – are over the age of 30.
Arsenal’s Ceadach O’Neill, Everton’s Braiden Graham and Kieran Morrison, who is on loan at Sheffield Wednesday from Liverpool, are the three teenagers in the squad.
“I don’t want to put too many young players on the pitch in a game like that where they’re untried and untested at that level,” O’Neill said.
“We want to bring the younger players in to give them the best chance to be able to do well and to build their confidence and to build their reputation. That’s the challenge for us.”
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