Kemsley Mathias (born 29 July 1999) is a Welsh professional

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

player who plays as a

prop A prop, formally known as a (theatrical) property, is an object actors use on stage or screen during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinct ...

for

United Rugby Championship The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. For sponsorship reasons the league is known as the Vodacom United Rugby Championship in ...

club

Scarlets The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby c ...

and the Wales national team.

Club career

Amateur

Mathias first played tag rugby for Llangwm RFC, before stepping up to

Narberth RFC Narberth RFC are a Welsh rugby union club based in Narberth in Pembrokeshire. They are members of the Welsh Rugby Union playing in the WRU Championship and are a feeder club for the Scarlets. The Otters have won the Pembrokeshire County Cup co ...

, where he played alongside future Scarlets teammate

Ryan Conbeer Ryan Conbeer (born 5 February 1999) is a Welsh rugby union player who plays for the Ospreys in the United Rugby Championship as a winger. He had previously played for the Scarlets and Llanelli RFC Professional career Conbeer first played fo ...

. Mathias joined the Scarlets academy, and was also registered to local clubs

Carmarthen Quins RFC Carmarthen Quins Rugby Football Club () are one of two Welsh rugby union clubs based in Carmarthen in West Wales, the other being Carmarthen Athletic. They currently play in the Super Rygbi Cymru and are a feeder club for the Scarlets regiona ...

and

Llandovery RFC Llandovery RFC () is a Welsh rugby union club based in Llandovery, Carmarthenshire, Wales. The club is an inaugural member of the Welsh Rugby Union, currently play in the Super Rygbi Cymru and is a feeder club for the Scarlets, a Pro14 club. L ...

Scarlets

Mathias was named in the Scarlets first-team squad for the

2020–21 Pro14 The 2020–21 PRO14 (also known as the ''Guinness PRO14'' for sponsorship reasons) was the twentieth season of the professional rugby union competition originally known as the Celtic League. It was the fourth season to be referred to as the ''P ...

season. Originally slated to make a possible debut off the bench along with fellow academy product Iestyn Rees in the

EPCR Challenge Cup The EPCR Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union competition organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the second-tier competition for clubs based in European leagues behind the European Rugby Champions Cup. From its inception i ...

match against

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on 18 December 2020, Mathias was forced to wait, as the match was called off due to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

cases. He finally made his Scarlets debut in Round 11 of the

against

Cardiff Blues Cardiff Rugby () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms Park. Originally formed in 1876, from 2003 to 2021 the first team was known as the Cardiff Blues before rebranding back ...

. On 29 May 2021, Mathias signed his first professional contract with the Scarlets. In 2021, Mathias completed a degree in Exercise and Sport Science at

University of Wales Trinity Saint David The University of Wales Trinity Saint David () is a public university with three main campuses in South West Wales, in Carmarthen, Lampeter and Swansea, a fourth campus in London, and learning centres in Cardiff, and Birmingham. The university ...

, while pursuing his rugby career. Mathias scored his first try for the Scarlets on 27 January 2023, in the 37–28 win over the

Bulls Bulls may refer to: *The plural of bull, an adult male bovine * Bulls, New Zealand, a small town in the Rangitikei District Sports *Bucking bull, used in the sport of bull riding *Bulls (rugby union), a South African rugby union franchise operated ...

. Mathias signed a contract extension with the Scarlets on 20 April 2023, along with fellow prop Sam Wainwright. On 30 April 2025, Mathias signed a further contract extension.

International career

Wales U18 and U20

While attending Sir Thomas Picton School, Mathias was selected for Wales U18 on their tour to South Africa in 2017, starting against England and scoring a try in the win. The following year, Mathias was first selected for Wales U20, and made 11 appearances for the side over two seasons. Mathias was part of the team what beat New Zealand U20 in the

2019 World Rugby Under 20 Championship The 2019 World Rugby Under 20 Championship was the twelfth edition of the premier age-grade competition for rugby. The tournament was held in Argentina for the second time, having been hosted there in 2010. Defending champions France won the u ...

Wales

On 1 May 2023, Mathias was called up to the

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

54-man training squad ahead of the

2023 Rugby World Cup The 2023 Rugby World Cup () was the tenth men's Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national rugby union teams. It took place in France from 8 September to 28 October 2023 in nine venues across the country. The opening game ...

. Mathias made his debut on 12 August 2023, coming off the bench against England in the

2023 Rugby World Cup warm-up matches 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious and cultural significance in many societies ...

. Mathias was named in the Wales squad for the

2024 Six Nations Championship The 2024 Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Men's Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) was a rugby union competition that took place in February and March 2024, and featured the men's national teams of England national rugby union tea ...

, and came off the bench in the final match against Italy.

References

External links

*
Kemsley Mathias
at

Welsh Rugby Union The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU; ) is the governing body of rugby union in the country of Wales, recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby. The WRU is responsible for the running of rugby in Wales, overseeing 320 member clu ...

Scarlets profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mathias, Kemsley 1999 births Living people Rugby union players from Haverfordwest Rugby union props Scarlets players 21st-century Welsh sportsmen Welsh rugby union players Wales international rugby union players