The 1994 Five Nations was a landmark occasion; including the Home Nations Championship which preceded it, this was the 100th Northern Hemisphere rugby union championship.
It turned into a memorable competition for Wales, who lifted the trophy outright for the first time since 1979 (having shared it with France in 1988) after a string of fine displays.
They began with a convincing 29-6 win over Scotland in Cardiff before edging past Ireland 17-15 in Dublin, Neil Jenkins scoring all of the visitors’ points.
A 24-15 win over France set up a trip to Twickenham with it all to play for. Wales were looking for an historic Grand Slam while England knew victory by 16 points or more would win them the first Championship to be decided by points difference if win-loss records were identical.
As it transpired, neither side was totally satisfied. England won 15-8, enough to deny Wales the Grand Slam but not enough to overturn the points difference.
Wales could therefore celebrate a first outright Championship success for 15 years – here is what the XV that began that match at Twickenham have been up to since…
15. Mike Rayer
The 1994 Five Nations campaign marked the highlight of the full-back’s international career. He came on as a replacement – in an era when that was still relatively rare – to score twice against Scotland in the opener before starting against France and England.
A Cardiff Blues legend, he moved to Bedford Blues in 1996 before returning to the Welsh capital two years later.
His coaching career has followed the same path; having begun at Cardiff, he became Bedford’s director of rugby in 2005 – a position he still holds at the Championship club.
14. Ieuan Evans
Wales’ captain in 1994, Evans’ try against Scotland in the opener was one of 33 he scored for his country during a superb international career.
A three-time Lions tourist, Evans retired in 1998 and has been a regular presence analysing the game in the media since.
Evans has also sat on the board of the Ministerial Advisory Group on the Economy and Transport, the Wales Tourist Board, Visit Britain, Ryder Cup Wales and has chaired the Nominet Wales Advisory Group.
In August 2020, Evans launched his bid to stand for a seat on the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) council.
13. Mike Hall
The centre played all four matches in the victorious 1994 campaign and captained Wales at the World Cup the following year, after which he retired from international rugby.
Hall moved into punditry to begin with, appearing on Scrum V until the end of the 2004/05 season, and has made a success of his work in the property development industry.
Hall was heavily involved in the development of the Cardiff City Stadium and is the managing director of PMG Developments.
12.Nigel Davies
The Llanelli legend, who made 498 appearances for the club, won three of his 29 Wales caps in the 1994 Five Nations campaign.
His last international appearance came in 1997 and he moved in to coaching, taking caretaker charge of Wales after the 2007 Rugby World Cup until the arrival of Warren Gatland.
Davies went on to spend four years in charge of Scarlets before crossing the border to lead Gloucester between 2012 and 2014.
He returned to Wales to coach Ebbw Vale and Merthyr and, like Ieuan Evans, has now applied to sit on the WRU Council. His son, Sam Davies, represents Dragons and has won eight Wales caps.
11. Nigel Walker
The Olympian who became a rugby international, Walker scored against France and England in the 1994 Championship.
The wing represented Team GB in the 110m hurdles at Los Angeles in 1984 before switching sports in 1992, scoring 12 tries in 17 appearances for his country.
Since retiring, Walker has remained active in both sports – being player development manager at the WRU, Head of Sport at BBC Wales, the National Director at the English Institute of Sport (EIS) since 2010 and was appointed to the board of Cardiff Blues in July 2020.
10. Neil Jenkins
The leading points scorer in the 1994 Championship, Jenkins’ reliable boot was key to helping Wales end their wait for a title.
He remains Wales’ all-time leading Test points scorer – and the third highest on the global list – and played his final international in 2002.
In 2004, Jenkins was back with Wales in a coaching capacity having taken on the role of kicking skills coach to help develop the next generation of fly-halves, with James Hook one of several beneficiaries.
He served as skills coach for Wales under both Gareth Jenkins and Warren Gatland and took on the role of specialist kicking coach on the Lions tours of 2009 and 2017, as well as assistant coach in 2013.
9. Rupert Moon
Born in Birmingham, Moon qualified for Wales through the residency rule having played for Neath and Llanelli.
The scrum-half was an ever-present in the 1994 campaign and has gone on to have an eventful post-rugby career.
From 2012 to 2016, Moon was General Manager of the North Wales Rugby development region, while he is also Strategy Director for the RNF Property Group, an ambassador of GB wheelchair rugby, a trustee of the Welsh Rugby Charitable Trust for injured former players and a patron of Tenovus.
Moon has also performed in pantomimes, playing the Baron in a production of Buttons Undone.
1. Ricky Evans
Formerly with the British Army, Evans arrived late into top level rugby and didn’t make his Wales debut until he was 33.
He excelled, playing a key role in the 1994 triumph, but injury cut short his international career shortly afterwards.
Evans is a keen traveller and, since working as a firefighter in west Wales, has lived in Uganda, Lebanon and Dubai, where he currently resides. He has also found faith in the form of Buddhism.
2. Garin Jenkins
The most capped Welsh hooker in history until surpassed by Matthew Rees in 2014, Jenkins played 58 times for his country over an 11-year international career.
He has a claim to fame as the last miner to play international rugby for Wales and since retirement he worked as a cover manager at a British Oxygen Gas & Gear shop in Port Talbot, while also contributing to the BBC’s Guinness Six Nations coverage.
3. John Davies
The prop played throughout the 1994 campaign and went on to star for Richmond and Scarlets before retiring in 2007.
Eleven years later, Davies pulled his boots back on to play for Crymych against Felinfoel in Division One West of the Welsh National League.
He combines coaching duties at Crymych with work as a farmer.
4. Phil Davies
A consistent performer in the Welsh pack for a decade, Davies has enjoyed a rich and varied coaching career since hanging up his boots.
He was director of rugby at Leeds Tykes for ten years from 1996 before returning to Wales to take on roles at Scarlets, Cardiff Blues and Wales Under-20s.
Davies took charge of Namibia in 2015, leading them to two World Cups, and is currently back where his coaching career began as he tries to revive the fortunes of Yorkshire Carnegie.
5. Gareth Llewellyn
Wales’ most-capped player until Gareth Thomas, Llewellyn earned 92 caps in an international career which spanned three decades and saw him play under eight coaches.
His post-playing career took him into coaching, with roles at Tonmawr, Thornbury and Neath, where he departed in February 2018 after two-and-a-half seasons in the role.
6. Emyr Lewis
The Carmarthen-born back row was another ever-present in 1994 and earned 41 Wales caps in all.
Lewis currently works in the photocopying industry as an accounts manager and his children have followed in his sporting footsteps; his son, Jacob, is a flanker for Llanelli RFC and his daughter, Medi, plays volleyball for Wales.
7. Mark Perego
Known as the fittest Welsh player of his generation, a training session for the colourful flanker would typically include running in a cold mountain stream or chopping wood in the forest and he was nicknamed Oddball for his eccentric nature.
He won four of his nine Wales caps in the 1994 Championship and has worked as a fireman since the conclusion to his playing days, while his nephew Kirby Myhill plays for Cardiff Blues.
8. Scott Quinnell
A Wales legend who represented his country in both codes of rugby, Quinnell also toured twice with the British & Irish Lions.
Since retiring in 2005, he has been an influential voice in the media, regularly working with Sky Sports on their televised games and presenting the show School of Hard Knocks.
He had a recurring role on TV series Stella, playing himself, while he owns Quinnell Candles with his family and his book ‘Leader On The Pitch’, which Quinnell co-wrote with psychologist Paul Boross, was released in 2017.
