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The signings of Tom Bowen and Steffan Emanuel this summer always felt that little bit sweeter because of where they were brought back from.
Cardiff snapped up the two youngsters from England, bringing them both back to the Welsh capital. Wing Bowen returns from Bristol, while centre Emanuel came back from Bath.
Both had initially come through Cardiff’s pathway, with their return hailed as a “major statement” earlier this year. Understandably so, given how often the narrative is around young Welsh players heading the other way over the Severn Bridge.
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At a time when the default line is that Wales isn’t producing enough players, there’s not really any doubt about the production line in the Welsh capital. Keeping hold of it is the bigger issue.
If you look at the two best wingers to have come out in Cardiff in recent years, one is playing for England and the other is playing another sport entirely. Even before Immanuel Feyi-Waboso and Louis Rees-Zammit pulled on the red rose and Jacksonville Jaguars helmet respectively, neither had played their senior rugby in Wales.
That pull from across the border, with all that the education system over in England has to offer, is why bringing back Bowen and Emanuel was so significant. And it’s probably why hype surrounding the pair built fairly rapidly upon their return.
Of course, things such as Bowen outscoring all of his team-mates in the Bronco fitness test and Emanuel scoring a fine try against Ealing in pre-season only ramp that up. But, after a year of being forced to throw in youngsters through necessity, Matt Sherratt has bided his time with the young pair this season.
Both featured for Cardiff RFC in Super Rygbi Cymru, impressing in the new-look development competition. But it was only when the Challenge Cup rolled around, after seven rounds of United Rugby Championship action, that the pair were handed their senior debuts.
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Away to Lyon, Emanuel became the youngest player to feature for the Blue and Blacks in Europe, while Bowen made his debut a week later – crossing for a try against the Cheetahs in front of his dad, former Scarlets fly-half Gareth.
“I wanted two things out of this competition,” said Sherratt after the win against the Cheetahs. “We’d love to get a home game at the Arms Park in the knockout stages at some point. And we wanted to grow the squad.
“So I think you can, rather than chucking them all in tonight, putting Tom in a backline with Cam and Josh around him, or Steffan last week with Rey, it’s just giving them that first experience.
“It probably shows how important the SRC has been too. They’ve been playing regularly in the SRC so when they do step up, they’ve got games in their legs. We’re chuffed for both of them.”
Both, it’s fair to say, impressed on their debuts.
“Steff was excellent last week,” said Wales wing Josh Adams, who crossed for a try in France after some deft hands by the young centre. “He’s someone who is very mature for his age.
“His rugby understanding is very good for a young man. There were a couple of situations in the game that, if you’ve watched rugby for a long time, you’d see how his touches are very mature.
“How he sees things is excellent.”
A week later, it was Bowen doing the ground-work for Adams – creating a try for the Lions star with a rapid break from deep, before crossing himself.
“I think he had a couple of glimpses tonight where you could see how electric he is, like Road Runner,” added Adams of his fellow wing. “He’s very quick and has got a great future. He did exceptionally well tonight.
“I’m really chuffed for him and his family. His parents are great people and it’s a lovely evening for them.
“He’s a calm kid. It hasn’t really flustered him to be honest. He’s taken most of it in his stride.
“I think he was a little bit emotional when we presented him with his jersey and his mum and dad were there. That was nice, because it shows he cares and it meant something to him.”
It was Adams who presented Bowen with his jersey, a week after former Wales centre Tom Shanklin had been the one to pass on the honour to Emanuel.
“He’s been great,” added Adams on Bowen. “He’s had a good run with the Rags.
“He’s scored some nice tries. He had some good exposure tonight and played against a pretty tough South African team. He got stuck in and that’s exactly what you want on your debut.
“He took it all in his stride and went for it. We tried to give a platform to showcase his talent, because he’s got bags of it. I’m sure you’ll see plenty more of Tom.”
Crucially, in the cases of Bowen and Emanuel, neither have been rushed through. A week after making his debut, Emanuel was featuring for Wales U20s against Scotland – scoring a try in the win in Merthyr.
Had Bowen not been making his own European debut, he probably would have featured too. There’s no suggestion that either will be flogged across the festive derbies – although injuries out wide could hand Bowen more chances.
Instead, Sherratt will likely remain patient with their development, as he has since they re-signed this summer.
Just to prove the conveyor belt of talent hasn’t stalled, 15 of the 23 in the Wales U20s squad in Merthyr came through the Cardiff pathway. Crucially, an appointment made last week should only strengthen that pathway.
A ground-breaking new role in Wales was announced by the Arms Park side last week, with Cardiff becoming the first Welsh club to create the role of Emerging Player Programme/Under-16 District Lead. It was an announcement that went a little under the radar, with former Gloucester foundation phase manager Stuart Bradfield getting the job.
His role will involve overseeing more than 450 players at Under-15 level, while driving standards and alignment across Cardiff’s Dewar Shield sides.
“What I hope you can see is what I’ve spoken about the last 12 to 18 months is trying to grow the foundations of the club,” said Sherratt. “That’s still ticking away.
“A really important appointment this week was someone to lead on that 14-16 age-group, to try keep the best talent we’ve got in Wales.”
When it came to losing talent to England, Sherratt admitted earlier this year that Welsh rugby could no longer “be victims”. That appointment is a strong step away from that.
And a big one towards retaining talent, something the current crop of players readily recognises is there.
“I think the academy group we’ve got here is excellent,” said Adams. “A lot of them train with us and it’s pretty tough to keep up with at the minute. Long may that continue, because it’s great for the club.”