Sam Costelow (born 10 January 2001) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a fly-half for United Rugby Championship club Scarlets and the Wales national team.[1][2]
| Date of birth | 10 January 2001 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Place of birth | Llantrisant, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 88 kg (194 lb; 13 st 12 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Oakham School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Club career
editBorn in Llantrisant and raised in Pencoed,[3] Costelow spent time with the Ospreys youth teams before moving on to Leicester Tigers in 2018.[4] Having twice won the Academies League,[5] Costelow earned a place with the Tigers' development squad and went on to make a loan move to Championship side Ampthill.[6]
In March 2020, Costelow signed with Scarlets.[7] He made his first appearance on 16 October 2020, in a friendly against the Dragons, scoring a try.[8] His competitive debut came on 8 November 2020, off the bench in an 18–17 win over Zebre.[9]
During the 2022–23 United Rugby Championship season, Costelow became first choice outside half for the Scarlets. He was named as Player of the Match in their 39–7 win over Bayonne in the Challenge Cup.[10] He earned another Player of the match award in the quarter-final against Clermont, scoring a try and kicking the match-winning conversion three minutes from full-time.[11]
Costelow was named Breakthrough Player of the Year by the Scarlets Supporters Trust.[12]
International career
editA Wales youth international at under-16 and under-18 level, Costelow stood out during the 2020 Six Nations Under 20s Championship putting in a Man of the Match performance against England.[13]
Costelow was named in the Wales squad for the 2022 Autumn series.[14]
Following a late team change, Costelow was named on the bench against New Zealand on 5 November 2022, coming on in the second half to make his test debut.[15]
On 1 May 2023, Costelow was called up to the Wales 54-man training squad ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup.[16]
In November 2024, Costelow replaced the injured Mason Grady on the wing for Wales 24-19 2024 Autumn Nations Series loss against Fiji. After the game, Wales head coach Warren Gatland claimed this was a mistake with Costelow replacing Grady despite the team having trained for Ellis Bevan to replace the winger should the injury arise. Prior to the fixture, Costelow had never played a professional game of rugby on the wing before.[17]
References
edit- ^ "Sam Costelow". Welsh Rugby Union. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ "Sam Costelow". It's Rugby. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
- ^ "Costelow hoping to be next Pencoed international star". Welsh Rugby Union. 20 October 2022. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ "Sam Costelow, the young Wales rugby player everyone's talking about". 7 March 2020.
- ^ "Sam Costelow (Fly-half)".
- ^ "Loan players add to senior experience". Leicester Tigers. 8 November 2019. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ "Dazzling Wales prospect Sam Costelow signs for Scarlets".
- ^ Thomas, Simon (16 October 2020). "Scarlets thump Dragons in Welsh derby encounter". WalesOnline. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ "Scarlets scrape past battling Zebre". BBC Sport. 8 November 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ "Costelow shines in Bayonne win". Scarlets Rugby. 13 December 2022. Retrieved 20 December 2022.
- ^ "Super Scarlets reach Euro semi-final". Welsh Rugby Union. 7 April 2023. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
- ^ @Crys16_Trust (30 March 2023). "Llongyfarchiadau to Sam Costelow who was presented with our Baz Lewis Breakthrough Player Award for 22/23 after the Sharks game" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Wales U20s beat England by a single point with last-gasp drop goal". 7 March 2020.
- ^ "Wales autumn rugby squad announcement as Wayne Pivac names five uncapped players". Wales Online. 18 October 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2022.
- ^ "Wales 23-55 New Zealand: Rampant All Blacks outclass hosts with eight-try show". BBC Sport. 5 November 2022. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
- ^ "Hawkins left out of Wales World Cup squad". BBC Sport. 1 May 2023. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ James, Ben. "Mason Grady ruled out of autumn as Wales wing to undergo surgery". Yahoo Sport. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
External links
edit- Sam Costelow at ESPNscrum
- Sam Costelow at ItsRugby.co.uk
- Sam Costelow at Welsh Rugby Union
- Leicester Tigers profile
- Scarlets profile
