Nael Salhi

At just 17 years of age, Nael Salhi is one of the youngest names associated with Castres Olympique, a French flanker at the very beginning of his rugby journey. Born on 17 September 2008, he represents the emerging talent coming through in the Castres system, a club known for developing forwards suited to the physical demands of the Top 14. As a back-rower, Salhi's game is oriented around the fundamentals of loose-forward play: defensive work rate, presence at the breakdown, and the appetite for contact that the position requires. Given his age, his focus naturally falls on development, building the physical foundation, technical detail, and game understanding needed to bridge the considerable gap between age-grade and senior professional rugby. His role within the pack is centred on the contact areas, learning to tackle, contest rucks, and support ball-carriers against increasingly demanding opposition. Players at this stage face a long developmental path, and Salhi's progress will depend on patient growth and consistent improvement over the coming seasons. For now, he stands as a prospect to watch within the Castres setup, with the raw attributes of a flanker still to be moulded into the finished article.