6 Young Rugby Stars Set to Explode in 2015

The average rugby fan holds a natural interest in knowing the who's who of which players sit highest among the sport's elite but knowing the biggest talents of tomorrow is another point of intrigue.

Year upon year, there sits an underlying race to find out which rising talents will dominate the scene next, with 2015 holding particular promise for several assets who possess the potential to become world beaters.

Examining their challenges next year with special attention, we've picked out a selection of youngsters—all aged 21 or below—who are primed to take the sport by storm.

Some are already well known in the public sphere, but the next 12 months will provide them with new exposure, crafted by their own prodigious talents.

1. Anthony Watson

Age: 20

Club: Bath

In 2011, Anthony Watson showed brilliant promise in becoming the youngest player ever to feature for London Irish in a Premiership fixture. Three years later, the speedster's star is still on a steady rise.

So often do we see starlets display huge potential but fall off the wagon, either through bad fortune in fitness or a struggle to cope with the pressure mentally. No such obstacles are getting in Watson's way.

Now at Bath for more than a year, the winger-cum-fullback is a key piece of Mike Ford's star-studded line-up at The Rec, where his versatility across the back three has aided his value to the team.

Having made his full England debut off the bench during a 24-21 defeat to New Zealand this past autumn, it would appear Stuart Lancaster has taken note.

Come next October, we may see Watson still among the national team setup, hoping to weave his way further into Lancaster's ranks, a doable task given the uncertainty on England's flanks.

Pace is a common trait in rugby, but what Watson has under his bonnet that comes as slightly rarer is stunning footwork and the ability to utilise it while running at full pelt.

The wing wizard is in the right place to develop at club level, with Bath one of the burgeoning teams to watch at present. He's already making big moves both domestically and internationally but just wait and see how Watson follows such a bright start up in 2015.

2. Tevita Li

Age: 19

Club: Blues

The only teenager to make our list, Auckland native Tevita Li has been brought into the Blues' ranks early and thrust into the spotlight of Super Rugby.

His maiden campaign among the big boys of the southern hemisphere wasn't dazzling, mainly due to the fact the franchise itself had a 2014 season to forget.

That being said, the responsibility on Li's shoulders should grow as he enters his second Super Rugby season a far wiser character for the knowledge gained over the past 12 months.

Though young in years, the 19-year-old utility back is built like many of the veterans he faces on a weekly basis; he is another New Zealand starlet showing all the physical signs of a future All Black.

Having already featured for the under-20s, Li is on his way to claiming full honours, but a bounce-back campaign under Sir John Kirwan requires a stronger team performance in order for him to shine.

3. Jonny Gray

Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

Age: 20

Club: Glasgow Warriors

Standing at 6'6" and weighing in at just under 120 kilograms, it's difficult to believe that Jonny Gray doesn't turn 21 for another three months.

They obviously know how to eat well at the Gray household, too, as Jonny—younger brother to Castres lock Richie—is fast catching up on his elder sibling in every regard.

Scotland head coach Vern Cotter has already taken to utilising the pair as a second-row partnership in the absence of an injured Grant Gilchrist, with 20-year-old Gray responding well to the tutelage he's receiving.

The same can be said for his growth at club level, where growing power Glasgow Warriors are providing the youngster with a stable first-team experience, but one that's also highly competitive.

Gray is sure to play a role in Scotland's Six Nations campaign, the question of how much depending on Gilchrist's recovery, while the bigger vision is to see himself into a Rugby World Cup berth under Cotter.

Physically, he's a tremendous specimen, but it's the maturity he's showing so early that's most promising for those who have invested time in his rise.

4. Teddy Thomas

Age: 21

Club: Racing Metro

Those who kept a watchful eye over France's fortunes in the autumn international series will be familiar with Teddy Thomas, the boy who grabbed four tries in his first two games for Les Bleus.

That included a debut hat-trick against Fiji—the other score coming against Australia. After paying his dues at Biarritz, Racing Metro are now the Top 14 side capitalising upon his potential.

The one threat that befalls all aspiring starlets is indiscipline, a differential between mental fortitude and the obvious physical traits that a player might possess.

Thomas was dropped for France's loss to Argentina after such a strong start to his international career, having missed a training session in the wake of his surge to fame.

Racing Metro's ranks remain as strong as ever, but it will be a case of all those star components achieving cohesion that then leads to results, as is the case with numerous Top 14 spenders.

Should the Parisian outfit succeed in that pursuit, it will likely lead to a big year of club and international rugby for Thomas in particular.

5. Handre Pollard

Age: 20

Club: Bulls

It's not every 20-year-old who can boast the starting spot in a Tier 1 nation's No. 10 slot, having already racked up more than 1,000 minutes of Super Rugby and a win over the All Blacks to their name.

Handre Pollard is not "every 20-year-old." South Africa are pinning a lot of hope on the Bulls prodigy fulfilling his very clear potential, with Heyneke Meyer seemingly set on getting him ready for starting duties at next year's World Cup.

Holding off the competition of Pat Lambie and Morne Steyn would be a difficult task for any fly-half, never mind a man who's just completed his first season of Super Rugby and wasn't long ago studying in the under-20 ranks.

Pollard captained that unit of Springboks up-and-comers at the 2014 Junior World Championship, starring in a try-scoring win over the Baby Blacks and notching 10 points during their 21-20 defeat to England in the final.

In recognition for his prolific record and the talents on display, Pollard received the 2014 Young Player of the Year award and arguably sits as the youngster in world rugby with the biggest burden on their shoulders.

In terms of the hype created by his own skill and the dire need his nation has of him to thrive, no other player has more expectations upon their shoulders than him.

6. Ardie Savea

Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images

Age: 21

Club: Hurricanes

They must know how to feed a man at the Savea household, where 21-year-old Ardie, younger brother to New Zealand's Julian, continues to make the right moves in following his sibling's example.

Having now played for two seasons around the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, Savea is nearing the stage where his ambitions to feature as a more prominent member of the squad are advancing.

In 2013, the 21-year-old joined his brother and rest of the All Blacks on their Northern Hemisphere tour, not as a member of the playing staff but more in an apprentice capacity.

That experience—and the value of another Super Rugby campaign—should see the flanker take the next step in his career next year, at a point in his playing days that Julian also started to make his big surge.

The younger Savea is, like his brother, a well-built specimen among the Wellington ranks, situated among the right people if he's to mature as is expected.

While Julian makes his impact felt in the back line, Savea takes pride in doing more of the dogged work in the pack. He has been evolving as the months role on and is now coming upon a time that should see him soar in development.