 Beard representing Wales during the Six Nations Championship | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Full name | Adam James Beard | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 7 January 1996 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Swansea, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 116 kg (256 lb; 18 st 4 lb) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Neath Port Talbot College | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Adam James Beard (born 7 January 1996) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays as a lock for United Rugby Championship club Ospreys and the Wales national team.
Beard made his debut for the Ospreys in 2012 having previously played for their academy team, Aberavon RFC and Birchgrove RFC.
In May 2017 Beard was named in the Wales senior squad for the tests against Tonga and Samoa in June 2017 [1] He made his debut for Wales against Samoa in Apia on the 2017 summer tour, coming on as a replacement, and then made his first start in the home victory over Georgia five months later. His 6 Nations debut came in the win over France in Paris in 2019 – his ninth straight win in a Wales shirt. He went on to start in four of the Grand Slam matches in the 2019 championships, and come on as a replacement in the other, as he extended his unbeaten run in a Welsh shirt to 11 matches up to 1 August 2019.[ citation needed ]
Beard was called into the British & Irish Lions squad for the 2021 tour to South Africa. This followed the temporary withdrawal of tour captain Alun Wyn Jones following a shoulder injury. [2] On 7 July Beard made his Lions debut in the Provincial game against the Sharks. [3] Beard would go on to make his Lions test debut in the third test against the Springboks.[ citation needed ]
Beard is in a relationship with Chelsea Lewis, the Wales netball international. [4] [5]
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In 2017, the Wales national rugby union team's summer tour saw them play test matches against Tonga on 16 June and Samoa on 23 June. The match against Tonga was played in Auckland, New Zealand, due to concerns over the state of Teufaiva Sport Stadium in Nukuʻalofa. Wales won the match 24–6, before beating Samoa 19–17 in Apia. A veteran of the 2009 and 2013 Lions tours but unselected for their 2017 tour to New Zealand, centre Jamie Roberts captained Wales on this tour, which also saw lock Adam Beard make his international debut; Beard went on to play for the Lions on their 2021 tour to South Africa.
Wales squad – 2019 Rugby World Cup fourth place | |
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