The 27-year-old has never played full-back for his country but that could soon change

Tom Rogers celebrates the Ospreys’ win over the Dragons(Image: Kian Abdullah/Huw Evans Agency)

In the 150 Tests between Leigh Halfpenny’s first Welsh start in the 15 jersey and his retirement after the 2023 World Cup, either him or Liam Williams started at full-back in over 80 per cent of those matches.

For a dozen years, one of those two Welsh greats would start in four out of five Tests – 124 out of 150, to be precise. In the 30 Tests since the World Cup in France, the Welsh full-back jersey has been shared around a little.

Only four men have worn it, with one of those being the now-retired Williams.

Cameron Winnett started there nine times, although the Cardiff full-back has since fallen out of favour. Louis Rees-Zammit was given a run there in the Six Nations, but his best position is clearly on the wing.

Which leads us to the man who has been there the most, Blair Murray. Having been a constant through much of 2025, Murray reclaimed the jersey this summer.

But, there’s still a sense that the position hasn’t been nailed down. There’s other candidates, but no one has really made a pressing case so far.

Ellis Mee has been mentioned as a possible full-back, but he plays predominantly on the wing. Jacob Beetham is a more natural 15, but he also gets his minutes out wide.

Tom Rogers would have been in that bracket too, with his 13 Welsh caps to date all coming on the wing. That prompted a move to the Ospreys in the summer, with playing full-back top of the agenda. You can read his reasoning here.

Almost a year ago, the 27-year-old was crossing for a hat-trick of tries on the wing against New Zealand, joining a very exclusive club to achieve that feat against the All Blacks.

Having not featured in a Test since, he narrowly missed out on a place in Wales’ Nations Championship squad this summer following a below-par outing against the Barbarians.

For their lack of full-backs, Wales are currently fairly well-stocked with wings. And that would appear to give Rogers a way back in to Steve Tandy’s plans.

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Having started on the wing in his first two competitive outings for the Ospreys, Rogers was handed the 15 jersey for the first time against the Dragons on Friday night.

Based on his performance at full-back, it could be his to keep for the remainder of the campaign.

In a man-of-the-match effort, Rogers carried more than any other player in the high-scoring Welsh derby – showing his running threat from kick returns.

He was also brave on the other side of the ball, forcing a knock-on from Dragons No. 8 Harri Keddie as the last line of defence.

Perhaps the best indication of his performance was that Ospreys head coach Mark Jones shifted centre Evardi Boshoff to the wing, rather than Rogers, when Wallabies star Marika Koroibete was forced off half-an-hour into his debut.

“I thought Tom Rogers did a great job in the backfield, bringing back loose kicks and getting us back into the half, putting us on the front-foot,” said Jones.

“Probably the tactical thing (when Koroibete went off injured) would have been to put Lawson (Creighton) to full-back and move Tommy to the wing. But I thought Tom was going so well in his position, it would be silly to move what was probably our best player.”

Afterwards, Jones insisted Rogers was as much a wing as a full-back, saying: “We signed him as a hybrid. I had a good conversation with Tom before he came about how he saw himself.

“He said he played full-back as a young player before going to the wing. I see him playing both positions equally well.

“I thought Iestyn Hopkins did a really good job for us last year when Jack Walsh wasn’t playing. I thought it was the right thing to reward him, he had a good pre-season.

“I said to Tom that you’ll get an opportunity, it’s up to you to make the most of it. As a coach, you want to pick the best players because it gives you the best chance of winning.

“He staked a good claim tonight with his quality. Obviously the standard has been set.

“He did a great job, but he’s getting pushed pretty hard by the other boys. There’s some options there, which is great.

“I’m just pleased for Tommy. He’s come to a new club and the boys love him.

“I really loved the way that he beat the first man almost every time to get us on the front foot,” said Jones.

“Other than one speculative chip, his decision-making about when to bring it back and when to kick it was spot on.

“I loved the way he worked in the backfield and filled space. He has made a great start in that position and it will be interesting to see how the others respond.”

It will be just as interesting to see how Tandy responds. Earlier this year, the former Scarlet admitted he’d “love” to wear the Welsh 15 jersey.

Having been desperately close in the summer, with some sources suggesting Wales would have brought him to Argentina and South Africa had there been an extra spot on the plane, the positional switch could well be the difference to making the autumn squad or not.

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