Almost 12 months later and Jones is now a core member of the Wales Sevens squad: still only 19, but a year older and wiser. “It’s nuts to think it was a year ago I made my debut in Dubai,” says wing Jones. “Last year I was fresh to it all, with no idea what to expect. It was just pure excitement driving me on. Now I’ve got a deeper understanding of the game and I’m raring to get back on the pitch.”
Staking a claim to be on that pitch at the Sevens Stadium in the desert next weekend has meant regular 6am starts for training, which has been the norm since the end of August. Not that Wales haven’t been able to throw in a little competitive rugby along the way, having enjoyed a run-out in Alicante earlier this month.
“The tournament in Elche was useful for us, what with all the new boys coming in. They did a really good job adapting from 15s to sevens in such a short space of time. It allowed us to set standards for the forthcoming season and figure out what we need to work on for Dubai.”
Being able to boast of one international athlete in your social circle is impressive, but in his, Jones is just one of a group of bright Cardiff-bred sporting prospects. Close friends Rabbi Matondo and Ben Cabango are making waves for Schalke 04 and Swansea City respectively, whilst the former has already featured for the national side on a number of occasions.
In fact, paths crossed recently when the national football team – who, like their rugby counterparts, train at the Vale Resort – turned up at the WRU’s National Centre of Excellence. “I saw Rabbi not long ago, just before Wales went to Azerbaijan. It was raining all day so they came into the Barn for a kickabout before they got on their flight, so I got to catch up with him.
“Ben made his league debut earlier in the week against Huddersfield too. It’s great when you see your friends doing so well.”
Jones, who attended secondary school at Plasmawr and later Glantaf, is fast making a name for himself in the sevens game – something he’ll look to continue in Dubai, where Wales will face New Zealand, Canada and Samoa.
Naturally, with a new man at the helm in the form of former Bath Rugby coach Darren Edwards, things are different this season. As Jones describes it: “There have been changes to our preparations. We’re focusing a lot on mindset, making us think differently and focusing a lot on little things including how we are in training and off the field. It’s working really well for the boys.”
He describes his gratitude to former head coach Richie Pugh, now with Ospreys, in no uncertain terms “I definitely owe Pughie a lot. He brought me in from the U18s Sevens programme and gave me my shot. Without him I wouldn’t be playing sevens.”
What did he make of his first World Series experience last time out in Dubai? “It’s an amazing atmosphere. My abiding memory was after my last game. I took a look into the crowd to actually take in what was happening. There were all these fancy dress costumes and so much noise, but what stood out was a dinosaur chasing a pirate. It was really bizarre, but great.”
A new season often means a new hairstyle, and that’s certainly true in Jones’s case. Gone are those distinctive dreadlocks in favour of something more closely cropped. “It’s a fresh cut for 2019/20,” Jones says. “It was out of boredom more than anything. Going into pre-season I wanted a change, so I cut the locks off.”
Jay Jones 2.0 is ready for Wales duty. ​
