Carwyn Leggatt-Jones has been tipped for big things
Scarlets director of rugby Nigel Davies believes there is a mixture of Stephen Jones and Rhys Priestland in teenage outside-half Carwyn Leggatt-Jones.
The 18-year-old is widely regarded as one of the finest prospects in Welsh rugby and will make his first senior Scarlets start against Benetton in Treviso on Friday night.
Davies has a superb track record of developing young Welsh talent, having played a key role in the development of Wales centurion Jones and the talented Priestland when they were young men at the Scarlets.
He has urged people to be patient with Leggatt-Jones but is confident the Wales U20s playmaker has a bright future.
“All players are different,” said Davies.
“Stephen Jones was mentally very tough and had a good skill set.
“Priestland was fantastic in terms of his skillset but mentally was where he needed to work. He eventually got that part of his game.
“I think with Carwyn we will see where he is when we see him in action on the weekend. All the signs are really positive.
“He’s a combination of probably both of those at this moment in time.
“He’s hugely skilled, he plays with his head up and he understands the game; that is very clear.
“But how he is actually going to fare under pressure we will see but we will work with him and I’m very excited about where he can get to.
“But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. This is the first game he is going to play at a high level starting in a men’s game.
“It’ll definitely be a learning experience for him but he’s got all the qualities to be a great 10.”
With Sam Costelow and Joe Hawkins both away with Wales, Davies had to call in Rygbi Gogledd Cymru outside-half Billy McBryde on a one-game loan deal.
But Llandovery College pupil Leggatt-Jones will wear the number 10 shirt and will start what has all the making of being a positive career.
The 18-year-old from Carmarthen is an extremely gifted playmaker who is a triple threat player with x-factor who can light a game up.
But the challenge will be his game management against a strong Benetton outfit. JOIN OUR WALES RUGBY FACEBOOK PAGE! Latest news, analysis and much more
“He’s been around the players for quite a while now,” said Davies.
“What’s great about it is he’s not scared to chirp up, which is what you want from your tens.
“He’s confident as a young man which is exactly what you want from your tens. There’s no doubt it is going to be a challenge for him this weekend but I think he’s ready for it.
“He’ll have a lot of experience around him and there’s a lot of experience on them and the pack to give him a platform to play off.
“If he has that I’m confident we are going to see someone who will potentially have many years as a rugby player.”
