A NEW name is set to be added to the Welsh men’s open-age scene when the JES Rugby League Conference returns in the spring.
West Wales Jets will represent the region west of Swansea, giving players and others the chance to enjoy the sport after a hiatus of several years.
The new outfit, which will be based in the Amman Valley in Carmarthenshire, is being launched as a new ‘arm’ of the highly-successful South Wales Jets who, after being formed in 2023, have reached two successive Welsh Grand Finals – winning the first – with only two defeats suffered.
South Wales added a junior structure last year, registering nearly 200 players of whom 60 percent were new to Rugby League.
West Wales will operate as a separate entity to South Wales and will build on a history of Rugby League stretching back to the 1940s and 1950s when the likes of Amman Valley and Llanelli played in a short-lived Welsh League.
More recently, Dinefwr Sharks ran in Ammanford from 2006-12 and the Gwendraeth Valley Raiders, based in Mynydd y Garreg, replaced them in 2014, winning WRL junior titles before turning semi-professional as West Wales Raiders for a few years.
Jets’ chairman Liam Price said: “I’m really happy to be taking the Jets to where I grew up in the Amman Valley.
“The talent available in that area is amazing and with the help of the community and the right organisation, Rugby League in the region can thrive.
“The idea is to strengthen the player pool in the area. It’s all about bringing new players in, both senior and junior, giving them the chance to play a new sport and also of course to take the Jets brand further west.
“We need a semi-professional Rugby League club back in South Wales and that’s going to take time.
“We don’t want to rush into things, we’ve seen the errors of the past, but strengthening our player pool and brand will certainly help our case in the future.”
Price concluded: “For now, it’s about giving men, boys and girls in Carmarthenshire the chance to play a fantastic sport, plus we’ve not ruled out a women’s or wheelchair side either should the call for those arise.
“We will certainly be putting out expressions of interest for all players, all ages, all genders and we’ll go from there.”