Georgia is known for its ability to produce outstanding front rankers, and Nikoloz Khatiashvili has been heralded as one of the most powerful scrummagers to emerge from Tbilisi. A product of Rugby Club Jiqi in Georgia’s Didi 10 League, he was initially signed by Aurillac, where he spent four impressive seasons in France’s Pro D2. So imposing was Nikoloz, that when the Sunwolves knew that they needed considerable front row pedigree for the 2018 Super Rugby season, he was the man that they turned to.

Khatiashvili returned to Pro D2 in the colours of Soyaux-Angouleme, before being recruited by exciting Russian outfit Enisei STM for their 2019/20 European Rugby Challenge Cup campaign. Equally comfortable on either side of the scrum, the capped Georgian international is reaching the prime of his career, with many seasons ahead of him. When Nikoloz is not dominating the set piece, he can be found gaining valuable yardage as a yard-gaining ball-carrier or putting in crunching defensive hits.