Rhys Gabe
Encyclopedia
Rhys Thomas "Rusty" Gabe (22 June 1880 - 15 September 1967) born as Rees Thomas Gape, was a Welsh rugby union
player who played club rugby for Llanelli
, London Welsh and Cardiff
and gained 24 caps for Wales
, mainly as a centre.
, Gabe started his rugby career with Llangennech
before making his debut with Llanelli at the age of seventeen. In 1901 he moved to London to study at Borough Road Training College and joined London Welsh, where he was moved to centre. After qualifying as a mathematics teacher, he took a teaching post in Cardiff and joined the Cardiff
club, where he formed a devastating centre combination with Gwyn Nicholls
for both club and country. He played for Cardiff between 1902–03 and 1909–10, captaining the club in the 1907-08 season. He scored 51 tries for Cardiff in 115 appearances.
Gabe won his first cap for Wales against Ireland
in 1901, playing on the left wing. His 24 caps for Wales included the famous 1905 victory against New Zealand
, and he captained Wales in the 1907 match against Ireland. He toured Australasia
with the British Isles
team of 1904. He played in all four test matches, including the three victories over Australia.
Gabe was an impressive try scorer and scored 11 tries during his Welsh career. In his first game against England in 1902 he scored a memorable try when John Strand-Jones
deceived the entire English pack and passed the ball to Gabe. With only the English full back Gamlin to beat, Gabe raced to the try line and rounded Gamlin but took a heavy blow to his solar plexus. Gabe managed to carry on, cross the line, score the try, only then passing out.
His most remarkable try was probably one scored against England
at Bristol
in 1908. The match was played in thick fog, and Gabe and his team mate Percy Bush
found a loose ball outside England's 25. Gabe won the tussle for the ball and set off in the direction of the line, while Bush ran off in the opposite direction to confuse the opposition. Eventually the referee and the other players arrived at the line to find Gabe waiting with the ball.
Gabe retired in 1908, but still appeared occasionally for Cardiff. He was a fine club cricketer and played occasionally for Glamorgan. He also captained Radyr Golf Club, and played at Cardiff Golf Club well into his eighties. He died in Cardiff in 1967.
British Isles 1904, 1904, 1904 1904
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player who played club rugby for Llanelli
Llanelli RFC
Llanelli Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club founded in 1875 and its senior team is one of the leading club sides in Wales. The club began the 2008-09 season at their historic home ground of Stradey Park in Llanelli, but moved in November 2008 to the new Parc y Scarlets in adjacent...
, London Welsh and Cardiff
Cardiff RFC
Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union football club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, but soon relocated to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since...
and gained 24 caps for Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
, mainly as a centre.
Rugby career
Born in LlangennechLlangennech
Llangennech is a village in the area of Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, West Wales, United Kingdom.It is governed by Carmarthenshire County Council and Llanelli Rural council. It falls in the Llanelli parliament Constituency. Llangennech is also the name of an electoral ward coterminous with the village...
, Gabe started his rugby career with Llangennech
Llangennech RFC
Llangennech Rugby Football Club are a Welsh rugby union club based in Llangennech in Carmarthenshire, Wales. Llangennech RFC is presently a member of the Welsh Rugby Union playing and is a feeder club for the Llanelli Scarlets....
before making his debut with Llanelli at the age of seventeen. In 1901 he moved to London to study at Borough Road Training College and joined London Welsh, where he was moved to centre. After qualifying as a mathematics teacher, he took a teaching post in Cardiff and joined the Cardiff
Cardiff RFC
Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union football club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, but soon relocated to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since...
club, where he formed a devastating centre combination with Gwyn Nicholls
Gwyn Nicholls
Erith Gwyn Nicholls was a Welsh rugby union player who gained 24 caps for Wales as a centre. Nicholls was known as the "Prince of Threequarters"....
for both club and country. He played for Cardiff between 1902–03 and 1909–10, captaining the club in the 1907-08 season. He scored 51 tries for Cardiff in 115 appearances.
Gabe won his first cap for Wales against Ireland
Ireland national rugby union team
The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
in 1901, playing on the left wing. His 24 caps for Wales included the famous 1905 victory against New Zealand
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
, and he captained Wales in the 1907 match against Ireland. He toured Australasia
1904 British Lions tour to Australia and New Zealand
The 1904 British Isles tour to New Zealand and Australia was the sixth tour by a British Isles team and the fourth to New Zealand and Australia...
with the British Isles
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
team of 1904. He played in all four test matches, including the three victories over Australia.
John Strand-Jones
John Strand-Jones was a Welsh rugby union player, who represented the Wales national rugby union team on five occasions in 1902 and 1903.-Life:...
deceived the entire English pack and passed the ball to Gabe. With only the English full back Gamlin to beat, Gabe raced to the try line and rounded Gamlin but took a heavy blow to his solar plexus. Gabe managed to carry on, cross the line, score the try, only then passing out.
His most remarkable try was probably one scored against England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
at Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
in 1908. The match was played in thick fog, and Gabe and his team mate Percy Bush
Percy Bush
Percy Frank Bush was a Welsh rugby union player who played international rugby for Wales on eight occasions. Playing at fly-half, Bush is regarded as one of the most talented Welsh players before the first World War.-Rugby career:...
found a loose ball outside England's 25. Gabe won the tussle for the ball and set off in the direction of the line, while Bush ran off in the opposite direction to confuse the opposition. Eventually the referee and the other players arrived at the line to find Gabe waiting with the ball.
Gabe retired in 1908, but still appeared occasionally for Cardiff. He was a fine club cricketer and played occasionally for Glamorgan. He also captained Radyr Golf Club, and played at Cardiff Golf Club well into his eighties. He died in Cardiff in 1967.
International games played
Wales 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908 1908 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908 1905 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1907, 1908 1906British Isles 1904, 1904, 1904 1904