Cymru have today announced that Matty Jones will be the new mens under 21s head coach. The Llanelli born 42 year old joined the Leeds youth academy as a 14 year old in 1994 later being sold to Leicester City in 2000 where he stayed for 4 years that included a brief loan spell with Nottingham Forest. After a stint away from playing, he later joined his hometown club, Llanelli, between 2007 and 2009 where he made 23 appearances. Jones also made 13 appearances for Cymru between 1999 and 2003.
Jones joined the academy coaching squad at Swansea City in 2015 before leaving to become Cymru under 18s Manager in 2020.
Jones said of his new role “I’m really grateful to everyone at the FAW for this opportunity and to all those who have supported me along this journey. It’s hard to contain the emotion that comes with this appointment because it’s not just a job but a sense of pride, passion and love.”
Matty Jones will take charge of Cymru U21s for the first time in a friendly against Austria later this month and has named a 26-player squad, with 21 travelling to Vienna. The match will take place on Tuesday 27th September and form part of Cymru’s preparations for the UEFA U21 EURO 2025 qualifiers which begin next year.
Cymru U21 Squad to face Austria
Cian TYLER (Coventry City), David ROBSON (Hull City), Ed BEACH (Chelsea), Evan WATTS (Swansea City), Fin STEVENS (Swansea City – on loan from Brentford), Ollie DENHAM (Cardiff City), Owen BEVAN (Yeovil Town – on loan from Bournemouth), Matt BAKER (Stoke City), Owen BECK (Bolton Wanderers – on loan from Liverpool), Iestyn HUGHES (Leicester City), Luca HOOLE (Bristol Rovers), Zac ASHWORTH (West Bromwich Albion), Oli HAMMOND (Nottingham Forest), Tom SPARROW (Stoke City), Eli KING (Crewe Alexandra – on loan from Cardiff City), Oli EWING (Leicester City), Charlie SAVAGE (Manchester United), Ryan HOWLEY (Coventry City), Jordan JAMES (Birmingham City), Jadan RAYMOND (Crystal Palace), James LANNIN-SWEET (Arsenal), Ed TURNS (Brighton & Hove Albion), Pat JONES (Huddersfield Town), Josh FARRELL (Juventud de Torremolinos CF – on loan from Granada FC), Josh THOMAS (Swansea City), Joe TAYLOR (Peterborough).
Words: Adam Williams