Elliot Dee gets rare chance to face Wales in Barbarians colours

Elliot Dee will start for the Barbarians against Wales in an uncapped match at the Allianz Stadium in Twickenham on Saturday. The Dragons hooker, a 55-cap Wales international, will line up against a national side he still hopes to represent again.

The fixture carries an unusual emotional edge for Dee. He is preparing alongside George North, who is also in the Barbarians squad and is set to end his professional career this weekend from the replacements bench. Dee’s family are expected to attend, and the anthem moment could be especially significant for a player facing many former team-mates.

Dee’s selection comes after a disrupted 2025-26 season in which he missed more than half the campaign through injury before returning for the final three months. He was not included in Steve Tandy’s summer Wales squad, where Dewi Lake, Ryan Elias, Liam Belcher and Evan Lloyd were named as hooker options.

For Dee, the Barbarians invitation offers both a lifelong rugby experience and a timely platform. He was part of the side beaten 80-31 by South Africa in Cape Town last weekend, and now joins a squad captained by Faf de Klerk, who has switched into Barbarians colours after being involved with the Springboks group that defeated them.