Rhys Oakley (born 16 September 1980 in

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymout ...

) is a former professional

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the Comparison of rugby league and rugby union, two codes of ru ...

footballer who played as a number eight. Oakley began his professional career with

Bristol Rugby Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 18 ...

, before moving to the

Newport Gwent Dragons Dragons RFC ( cy, Dreigiau) are one of the four professional rugby union regional teams in Wales. They are owned by the Welsh Rugby Union and play their home games at Rodney Parade, Newport and at other grounds around the region. They play in t ...

Leeds Tykes Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1. The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...

Northampton Saints Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. They were formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. James", ...

, and

CS Bourgoin-Jallieu CS Bourgoin-Jallieu is a French rugby union club currently competing in the third level of the French league system, Nationale. The club have been runners-up in the French championship and the French Cup competitions, and have won the Challen ...

. During the final years of his career, Oakley spent time as a player-coach for Plymouth Albion R.F.C. and Hartpury University R.F.C. Oakley is a

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

international and represented Wales Sevens at the

2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006 ( Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm 2006'' or ''Naarm 2006''), was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth held ...

Club career

Oakley first played for Thornbury RFC, and attended

Marlwood School Marlwood School (founded 1606) is a state-funded secondary school currently part of the CSET academy chain. Located at Alveston, South Gloucestershire, it is situated on the B3561 on the outskirts of the south-west of the village. Marlwood Scho ...

where he played for the school's team. Oakley played for North Bristol RFC and Clifton RFC, before joining the

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city i ...

U21 side, and ultimately gaining a first team contract. Oakley played in the Premiership for Bristol Shoguns, where he made 19 starts for the club. He was named as man of the match on his second appearance, a

Heineken Cup The European Rugby Champions Cup (known as the Heineken Champions Cup for sponsorship reasons) is an annual rugby union tournament organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the top-tier competition for clubs who compete in a pre ...

match against Clermont. Following Bristol's relegation from the top-flight in 2003, he joined

and made 50 appearances for Newport. At the end of the 2005–06 season, Oakley and teammate

Leigh Hinton Leigh Hinton (born 21 February 1979 in Birmingham) is an English former rugby union footballer. His usual position was at full-back, although he could also play at centre or on the wing. Hinton joined Leeds on a two-year deal along with team- ...

were released by Newport Gwent Dragons, and joined

on a two-year deal, for the start of the

National Division One The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men’s English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, when ...

2006–07 season, making his debut against

London Welsh London Welsh Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Cymry Llundain) was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons ...

Headingley Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingl ...

on 3 September 2006. Following Leeds' relegation at the end of the 2010–11 Premiership season, Oakley used a release clause to exit his contract with the club, and joined French club

. Oakley spent one season with the side, before returning to the Premiership with

. Oakley played for the Saints for one season, and joined

RFU Championship The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men’s English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, whe ...

team Plymouth Albion R.F.C. as a player-coach in 2013. In 2015, Oakley suffered a leg fracture while playing for Plymouth, ending his season and coinciding with the club's relegation from the Championship. Oakley departed Plymouth Albion in 2015, and joined Hartpury University R.F.C., again as a dual player-coach. While with Hartpury, Oakley was appointed as team captain, and helped the club gain promotion from National League One to the Championship. In 2018, Oakley was diagnosed with cancer, putting his playing career on hold. He successfuly recovered, but retired from playing, remaining active as a coach.

International career

Oakley attained two Welsh caps in August 2003, making his debut for against in the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...

warm-up games in the back row alongside former Tyke

Richard Parks Richard David Parks (born 14 August 1977) is a former Wales international rugby union player turned extreme endurance athlete and television presenter. In rugby he represented Newport RFC, Pontypridd RFC, Celtic Warriors, Leeds Tykes, Perpig ...

. Oakley was selected for Wales Sevens for the

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

, following an injury to Dragons teammate

Jamie Ringer James Edward Ringer (born 18 January 1976) is a retired Wales international rugby union player. He is currently the defensive coach for Merthyr RFC and Sales Director for Cornerstone Commercial Finance. Domestic career A flanker, capable of pl ...

. Oakley scoring a try in the plate final, helping the team to a 28–24 victory.

Coaching career

Oakley's first coaching role came as a player-coach with Plymouth Albion, working as their forwards coach. After departing Plymouth, Oakley worked as head coach at

Lydney RFC Lydney Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Lydney, Gloucestershire. The club currently play in Regional 1 South West at the fifth tier of the English rugby union system following their promotion after the 2021-22 season. History ...

while playing for Hartpury, before leaving the role to focus fully on Hartpury, becoming their defence coach in 2017. Oakley rejoined Lydney in 2022, once again serving as head coach.

Personal life

Oakley's parents were born in Wales, and moved to Plymouth for work, where he was born. Oakley moved to Bristol at age four, and attended Marlwood School. In 2018, while playing for Hartpury, Oakley was diagnosed with cancer. After undergoing chemotherapy andf surgery, Oakley successfully recovered in 2019.

References

External links

Leeds profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oakley, Rhys 1980 births Living people Bristol Bears players British expatriates in France Commonwealth Games rugby sevens players for Wales CS Bourgoin-Jallieu players Dragons RFC players Expatriate rugby union players in France Leeds Tykes players Rugby sevens players at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Rugby union players from Plymouth, Devon Wales international rugby union players Welsh expatriate rugby union players Welsh rugby union players