Exclusive Interview: New Wales star Dylan Lawler enjoys the rise of club and country meteors and continues to impress with Cardiff City’s new look youthful team
2025 was a whirlwind for 19-year-old Care Philly-born centre half Dylan Lawler.
Roller made his senior debut at the end of February when Cardiff City faced Aston Villa in the FA Cup. Fast forward seven months, he is both an integral part of the horrifying defense that he saw a new-looking youthful Cardiff team ascend to League One Summit and Full Wales International.
The rise of Roller’s meteors concluded last week with Astana, and he produced a man of the match performance to remember the Welsh debut in a 1-0 victory in Kazakhstan. His great show on the National Team went on to start with all six matches in Cardiff’s League One Game, but Roller is so honest that he admits that his meteor rise may not have happened at all because his meteor rise did not halt due to a bit of niggle in January.
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“You can’t predict these things, that’s football,” said the newly created young player for the EFL in August. “I enjoy it and walk around everything.”
Rather than studying half of the Cardiff City centers you can tell, Roller spent his childhood imitating the wonders from Wayne Rooney. The Bluebird has recognized a lonely goal (penalty) in his first six league games, and is the only unbeaten team in the division with the youthful defense mainstay, Roller, and is recognised for his own fantastic display.
By his own approval, Roller doesn’t boast the attributes you’d expect from a typical League One defender. He may be incubated more than command, but Rocosful Lawlor cited his own way of outfoxing the department’s best penalty box predators without getting caught up in the physical wars others long for.
“You’re playing against players on bigger profiles, etc.” Roller explains when asked about his challenge in the senior ranks ever. “It’s definitely something I’m trying to agree with: physicality. I’m not as big as some of the strikers I play against, so I’m trying to change the way I play.
“I’m not a 6’5 defender. I’ll put that in my mind and kick it like your old school. So, rather than going into a physical battle with them, I’m going to beat my agility and speed like that.”
Whatever the formula was, the roller hit the gold. His appearance is the latest success story from the academy, with an impressive gold track record in the field of player development. The club’s aspects have helped to alleviate the stab wounds of relegation when negotiating the first campaign in tier 3 time since 2003.
Joining the club as a seven-year-old, Lawler is a illustrious example of how the club entrusted its country’s talents to lead the Renaissance under the guidance of new head coach Brian Barry Murphy. The Irish people are brought to lead the club’s next generation cultural reset, with the early results encouraging. Ronan Cupakio, Joel Colwill and Cyan Ashford are some of the academy products that caught their eye alongside Roller for the flying bluebird in the opening week of the campaign.
The ultimate goal of Barry-Murphy and Cardiff is to make their way into League One a fleeting time. Grander Club uses the pain of relegation to make a more powerful reconstruction, and the recovery of green photography has already been shown in the Welsh capital.
“It’s obviously a big negative to be appointed, but I think it’s a bit positive,” adds Lawler. “We’ve been demoted, but I think there’s even more buzz about being an academy player. When I came (age rank), the academy and development were always really good, but we didn’t break into the first team.
“The boys at the academy on the first team are now seeing the reward for it. The biggest change in attitude that positivity and (Barry Murphy) brought about was the biggest. His tactical views and his game are clearly incredible.
Cardiff is not just leaning against the academy after relegation. This is a formula that others have adopted in the past with exemplary results. Last season, the players developed by the EFL academy made 265 professional debuts, playing more than 244,000 minutes. Charlton Athletic, who won promotion to the championship in the playoffs last year, consistently fielded an average of two academy alumni per 90 minutes during their successful campaign.
Roller, who played regularly with Ashford, Colwill and Cupakio, added: “They’re also a great academy age group.” “It’s great to be able to play with friends.
The reward for the new three-year contract was caught between Roller’s great start to his domestic campaign and his appeal to the Welsh team. Roller, drafted into Craig Bellamy’s team after retreat, finished the night in Kazakhstan with an AA accuracy of 97.6% and the most clearance (5).
His show deserves special accolades from Bellamy after the match, with former Welsh captain Ashley Williams, who starred as his country’s centre-back for nearly a decade, already tilting the rollers to become a fixture for the national team.
However, don’t expect the roller to get an idea on top of your station. After seeing him play in the Euro 2016 in his youth, the youngster who admits it’s “surreal” to play with Ben Davis, knows that the real challenge is ahead of him even if he allows himself to taste the fact that he is now on the other side of the line after attending a long-standing Welsh game with his family.
That applies to Cardiff as well. No one will win the league in September, but I have high confidence.
“Make your national team debut is something you dream of,” says Lawler when asked to identify the highlights of Big 2025 so far. “For me, I have to keep my head down and continue working. Personal level (the goal) plays as many games as possible this season, and anything that comes from it.
“At the team level, it’s about asking more for each other to maintain this momentum and ensure that our performance is still moving forward.”
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