Torfaen Tigers wheelchair rugby league team have built a successful season around a small but effective group of players featuring a father and son duo, Jason and Jamie Reynolds.
IT’S been a good domestic season so far for father and son duo Jason and Jamie Reynolds.
Not only have they scored many of the tries for Torfaen Tigers, and in 19-year-old Jamie’s case, the goals too, they’ve also had some matches in England for Hereford Harriers.
The Tigers, with 44-year-old Jason captaining the side, are on the brink of the WRL Wheelchair Invitational League Grand Final, after a club record win in late August, cruising 74-8 against Swindon St George at New College, Swindon.
It means that the unbeaten Torfaen would have to lose heavily in their final three games, all being played in October, to not partake in the showpiece event in Wrexham on Saturday, 25th October.
Torfaen have a points difference of plus 204. North Wales Crusaders and Cardiff Blue Dragons can still both overtake them, if Torfaen fail to win any of their last three matches, but for Cardiff to do so, it will need an almighty turnaround as they are currently on a points difference of minus 106.
The Tigers have done all of this with the smallest squad in the four-team league, with just ten players registered and only eight having made appearances.
The Reynolds duo are two of the ever-presents, along with Scott Trigg-Turner and Leighton Morris, whilst two people, 13-year-old Parker Golden and player-coach Rob Davies, have missed just one match.
Jason got involved in the sport after a nasty accident in work left him with just one and a half legs.
“I lost my left leg below the knee due to having between four and five tonnes of steel falling from the back of a trailer onto the back of my legs,” he remembers.
“Below my knee, it was smashed to smithereens. So, they said that the easiest outcome would be to chop part of the left leg off and to reconstruct my right.
“At the time, my main thing was I wanted to be back up walking, watching my boy on the rugby field, and to go back to work.
“The latter didn’t materialise, but as one door shut, another door opened and now I’m able to play a sport now with my son with me who pushed me all the way.
“I initially played the other version of Wheelchair Rugby but I then went up to North Wales where Steve Jones and the Crusaders introduced us to our game. They offered us that day to get in the chair and have a push around and we absolutely loved it from there on.
“I never thought I’d say it, but I prefer rugby league now to rugby union.”
Appointed captain of Torfaen Tigers this year, after being awarded Coach’s Player of the Year last year, Jason is pleasantly surprised about how it’s all progressed.
Torfaen lost nearly half of their squad to Cardiff in the post-season, but as Kelly Clarkson once sang, ‘what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger’.
“At the start of the season we were thinking we might be wrapping up and calling it a day because we just didn’t have the players,” he admits. “But we’ve rallied around and we’ve a hardcore of seven or eight, which is very little compared to the others in the league.
“But I think this is working better because everybody’s playing regularly and are all outstanding in every game. We’re playing with smiles on our faces.”
In addition to Torfaen Tigers, Jason and Jamie have played a few games for Hereford Harriers in the RFL Championship and together, helped them reach the play-offs, where they eventually lost in the semi-finals to Castleford Tigers.
“Whenever we were free, we were up to Hereford and playing, which we’ve enjoyed, and I think that has helped Jamie and I, as we get more game time,” Jason said.
“We can’t always be available for them as Jamie also plays local running rugby union, and I support him as he supports me.
“We’re always in touch with their captain Gary Preece and head coach Alan Caron and they’ve always said that whenever we can come back, they’d like us there. We weren’t able to make their semi-final unfortunately, but hopefully we’ll back with them again in 2026.”
The Tigers scored 15 tries against Swindon St George in their last game, with Jamie, who is the league’s top try scorer, scoring five of them, giving him 19 for the season. He also converted seven times, taking him to 128 points for the season, again leading the way in league stats. Jason is also not doing too badly, he’s fourth highest try scorer in the league, and fifth for points.
Jason is hoping that this form may win them a recall to the Wales side as the World Cup in Australia approaches in late 2026.
“We played for Wales together a few years ago and that was absolutely fabulous,” he said. “We both really enjoyed it.
“Not long after that, I went off the rails a bit after I lost my mum, who was a massive feature in my life, so I lost my way a bit.
“This year, I’ve pulled myself together, been on a strict diet and really got my weight off and I’m enjoying life again.
“We’ve been up training with Wales and playing with Hereford and Torfaen. Alan is Welsh coach as well and he’s asked us into the training squad. So, when there’s the next open session with Wales, Jamie and I will be there.
“I hope everybody from our club just goes up and experiences it, because that’s where everyone should want to be at.
“We’d both love to be on the plane to Australia. I definitely would, but Jamie also has his rugby union and his ambitions there.
“But if selection comes round, we’ll be giving one hundred percent like we always do. First of all though, we’ve got Tigers to think about as we want to be helping them to a trophy this season.”
There are three regular season matches left for Torfaen Tigers, all of which will be played in October. On Sunday, 5th, they face Cardiff at USW in Treforest. A week later, they face Swindon St George in Wrexham, before ending their regular season against North Wales Crusaders, in what looks like will be a Grand Final warm-up, at Cwmbran Stadium on the 19th.
After that, it’s who knows what for the Reynolds duo as they aim for Welsh glory for club and country.
First published in Rugby League World magazine, Issue 513 (October 2025)