Rugby union in Wales
Encyclopedia
Rugby union
is the national sport
of Wales
and is considered a large part of national culture. Rugby is thought to have reached Wales in the 1850s, with the national body, the Welsh Rugby Union
(WRU) being formed in 1881. The national team
play at the WRU-owned Millennium Stadium
, and compete annually in the Six Nations Championship
, as well as having competed at every Rugby World Cup
. Wales are ranked as a tier-1 nation by the International Rugby Board
(IRB). The main domestic competition in Wales is the Magners League, in which Wales have four sides in the competition which is also contested by Irish and Scottish clubs and from 2010-11 Italian
teams. Top-level Welsh teams also compete in the Europe-wide Heineken Cup
and European Challenge Cup
and alongside the teams of England
's Guinness Premiership
in the Anglo-Welsh Cup. Wales also competes as one of the 12 "core teams" in the annual IRB Sevens World Series
, and won the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens
.
Beneath the Magners League, club rugby is represented by over 200 WRU affiliated clubs who play in the Welsh Premier Division
and the lower Welsh Divisional leagues. Historically the four major Welsh club teams that have shaped the Welsh national team have been Cardiff
, Newport, Swansea
and Llanelli
, though other clubs which have fought for prominence and provided national sporting heroes during the last 120 years include Bridgend, Neath
, Pontypool
, Pontypridd
, and England exiles London Welsh. Six of the 12 Premier Division clubs compete in the British and Irish Cup
, a competition for semi-professional and developmental sides from Great Britain and Ireland.
being played for centuries. Rugby seems to have reached Wales in 1850, when the Reverend Professor Rowland Williams brought the game with him from Cambridge
to St. David's College
, Lampeter
, which fielded the first Welsh rugby team that same year.
Rugby initially expanded in Wales through ex-pupils of the Welsh colleges settling, or students from English colleges and universities returning to the larger industrial hubs of South Wales. This is reflected in the first clubs to embrace the sport in the early to mid 1870s, with Neath RFC
widely recognised as being the first Welsh club. The strength of Welsh rugby developed over the following years, which could be attributed to the 'big four' South Wales clubs of Newport (who lost only seven games under the captaincy of Llewellyn Lloyd
between the 1900/01 and 1902/03 seasons), Cardiff
, Llanelli
(who lost just twice in 1894 and 1895) and Swansea
. With the coming of industrialisation and the railways, rugby too was spread as workers from the main cities brought the game to the new steel and coal towns of south Wales. Merthyr
formed in 1876, Brecon
in 1874, Penygraig
in 1877; as the towns adopted the new sport they reflected the growth and expansion of a new industrial Wales.
In the 19th century as well as the established clubs there were many 'scratch
' teams populating most towns, informal pub or social teams that would form and disband quickly. Llanelli, as an example, in the 1880s was home not only to Llanelli RFC, but also to Gower Road, Seasiders, Morfa Rangers, Prospect Place Rovers, Wern Foundry, Cooper Mills Rangers, New Dock Strollers, Vauxhall Juniors, Moonlight Rovers and Gilbert Street Rovers. These teams would come and go, but some would merge into more settled clubs which exist today, Cardiff RFC was itself formed from three teams, Glamorgan, Tredegarville and Wanderers Football Clubs.
The South Wales Football Club was established in 1875 to try to incorporate a standard set of rules and expand the sport and this was proceeded by the Welsh Football Union
which was formed in 1881. With the forming of the WFU (which would become the Welsh Rugby Union in 1934), Wales
began competing in recognised international matches, with the first game, against England
, also in 1881
. The first Welsh team although fairly diverse in the geography of the clubs represented, did not appear to truly represent the strength available to Wales. The team was mainly made up of ex-Cambridge and Oxford university graduates and the selection was heavily criticised in the local press after the crushing defeat by England.
By the end of the 19th century, a group of exciting Welsh players began to emerge, including Arthur Gould, Billy Bancroft
and Gwyn Nicholls
; players that would be regarded as the first super-stars of Welsh rugby and would usher in not only the first golden era of Welsh rugby, but would also see the introduction of specialised positional players.
in 1893, but between 1900 and 1914 the team would win the trophy on six occasions, and with France joining the tournament (unofficially in 1908 and 1909) three Grand Slams
.
With the introduction of specialised players like hooker George Travers
, the WFU could no longer choose the 'best players' to represent Wales, they needed to think tactically and choose people who could do a specific job on the pitch. This period of Welsh rugby would see the grip of the 'Big Four' clubs providing the bulk of national players, slip slightly. The WFU still tended to turn to the likes of Swansea and Newport to supply the skillful back players and usually kept club half-back pairings together such as Jones
and Owen
of Swansea. But it was the introduction of the 'Rhondda Forward' which saw men who worked day in day out in the coal, iron and tin mines enter the Welsh front row. Chosen for their strength and aggressive tackling, players such as Dai 'Tarw' Jones from Treherbert
and Dai Evans
from Penygraig added muscle to the front row.
Although a progressive time for international rugby, this period initially saw regression for many of the club sides in the form of the temperance movement
. In the early 1900s, rugby was seen as a wicked temptation to the young men of the mining and steel communities, leading to violence and drink, and the valley areas in particular were part of a strong Nonconformist Baptist movement. The religious revival
saw some communities completely reject rugby and local clubs, like Senghenydd
, disbanded for several years. It wasn't until the 1910s that the social view of rugby would change the other way, fostered by mine owners as a great social unifier; and like baseball in America would be portrayed as a '...source of community integration because it installed civic pride'.
Unlike the game in England, rugby union in Wales was never seen as a sport for gentlemen of higher learning. Although this was fostered in the first international Welsh team, the fast absorption of the sport into the working class areas appeared to sever the link of rugby as a sport for the middle and upper classes.
As rugby became linked with the hard working men of the industrialised areas of Wales, it should also be noted that the sport did not escape the hardships of the industries. In 1913 five members of the Senghenydd team were killed in Britain's worst colliery disaster
and many more lost their lives in the 'slow drip' of deaths caused by the industries. Far worse was to follow during the conflict of World War I when many teams lost members, including Welsh internationals like Charlie Pritchard
and Johnnie Williams
.
Suddenly the call of the professional league was a very strong draw to men who could not claim money for playing union. Between 1919 and 1939, Forty-eight capped Welsh rugby union players joined league rugby. The fact that the equivalent of three full national squads left the sport can only allude to the number of trialists and club members that also left the sport. Exceptional players lost to the league game included Jim Sullivan of Cardiff, William Absalom of Abercarn
and Emlyn Jenkins
of Treorchy
.
The other side of the depression was linked to those people that stayed behind. In homes where men were the only earners, the decline in heavy labour areas resulted in very stark choices in where the household money could be spent. It was difficult to justify paying to watch rugby when there was little money for food and rent. With crowds dwindling clubs were forced to drastic measures in the hope of survival. Loughor
which had produced five internationals in the 1920s were by 1929 begging door to door for old kit. Haverfordwest
disbanded from 1926–29, Pembroke Dock Quins were reduced to 5 members by 1927 and in the valleys the Treherbert, Llwynypia
and Nantyffyllon clubs had vanished before 1930. Even clubs of the size of Pontypool
were not spared; in 1927 they were playing and beating the Waratahs
and the Maoris
, by 1930 they were £2,000 in debt and facing bankruptcy.
Another reason for the fall in the Welsh union game can be placed on the improvement of football in Wales. Traditionally seen as a game more associated with North Wales, the success of Cardiff Football Club
in the 1920s was a strong draw for many supporters. With two F.A. Cup Finals in 1925 and 1927, Cardiff were making the once unpopular sport of 'soccer' very fashionable, for fans and sportsmen alike.
During the 1920s the one team that appeared to be unaffected by the double threat of soccer and debt was Llanelli. The Scarlets had an unswerving loyalty shown by their home supporters, who were repaid by exciting, high scoring matches. During the 1925/26 season the club were unbeaten and the next season they had achieved the unprecedented feat of defeating Cardiff on four occasions. This success would later be reflected in the growing number of Llanelli players that would represent their country in the 1920s, including Albert Jenkins
, Ivor Jones
and Archie Skym
.
Apart from a few sporadic victories from the national team, there appeared little to cheer about in the 1920s for Welsh rugby at club or country level; but the seeds of recovery were being planted during the same decade. On June 9, 1923 the Welsh Secondary Schools Rugby Union was established in Cardiff. Founded by Dr R Chalke, head of Porth Secondary School with WRU members Horace Lyne
as president and Eric Evans
as secretary. Its aim was to promote rugby at school level in an attempt to regain 'the glorious days of Gwyn Nicholls, Willie Llewellyn
and Dr E.T. Morgan
'. In April 1923, at the Arms Park
, Wales played their first secondary schools fixture led by future international Watcyn Thomas
, who would progress to captain the very first Welsh University XV in 1926. Over the coming years, schools such as Cardiff High School
, Llanelli County School, Llandovery and Christ College, Brecon
fostered a generation of players which would fill the Welsh ranks over the coming years. Wales had in effect begun to mimic the systems adopted by England and Scotland, that rugby should be nurtured from youth, through adolescence to adulthood.
The 1920s closed with the formation of the West Wales Rugby Union, an event that initially appeared to be a positive indication of growth, but in fact the union was formed by western clubs to wrest control away from the WRU. The West Wales clubs had become disenchanted in decisions made by their parent body and believed the Union had no interest in the lower tier clubs, allowing them to become mere feeders for the bigger clubs.
Wales beat Ireland at Ravenhill
in a bruising affair that not only gave Wales the title but denied Ireland the Triple Crown. This may have signaled a change in fortunes in Welsh rugby but underneath the same problems that dogged Wales throughout the 1920s still remained. Wales was still suffering the effects of the depression and club rugby was struggling to survive. Even the WRU had problems, as it faced the fact that it was the only home union without their own ground. The Cardiff Arms was leased and St Helens
was on loan.
From what at first appears to be yet another decade of turmoil for Welsh rugby, is actually regarded as a period of revival. The economic situation began turning from 1937, the WSSRU was bringing many exciting backs through the school system, North Wales embraced the game and the national team won two morale lifting games against England in 1933 and the All Blacks in 1935.
From a statistical point of view, the Welsh national team appeared to be winning roughly the same number of games throughout the 1930s as the poor 1920s period, but Wales were actually improving. In the 1920s most Welsh victories were against France
, then the weakest team in the Five Nations Championship; but in 1931 France were excluded from the tournament over accusations of professionalism at club level and were not readmitted until after the 1939 tournament, just before international rugby was suspended because of the Second World War. Welsh victories were now coming against the more established home nation teams. During this period, Wales won three Championships, but its greatest victory happened during the 1933 tournament
when they finished last. Since its first international game in 1910, Wales had failed to beat England at Twickenham
in nine attempts. Now dubbed the 'Twickenham bogey', it took the self confidenece of Cardiff's Ronnie Boon
to break the losing streak as he scored a try and a drop goal to take the match 7-3. The game also saw the debut of two players who would become Welsh greats, Wilf Wooller and Vivian Jenkins
.
Wales played host to two touring Southern Hemisphere teams in the 1930s, first came Bennie Osler
's South Africa
followed by Jack Manchester
's All Blacks
. The South Africans
were rampant in Wales, winning the test match and all six club matches, though gained few supporters due to the kicking tactics Osler employed. The New Zealander's received a better welcome, and after the previous tour
where the tourist went unbeaten the Welsh press were hoping for a return of the spirit that won the first encounter in 1905. Before the match with Wales, New Zealand were to face eight club teams over six games. After winning the opening three English county matches and then beating a joint Abertillery
and Cross Keys
the All Blacks were showing the same form shown in their first two tours, but then stumbled against Swansea. Swansea were not in a period of particular growth and the only two players showing any flair were Wales Schoolboy players Willie Davies
and Haydn Tanner
. During the game Merv Corner could not contain the attacking bursts from Tanner, the New Zealand flankers were drawn in which in turned allowed Davies the freedom to run which Claude Davey
finished off with two tries. Jack Manchester's response to the Swansea win was to ask the New Zealand press "Tell them we have been beaten, but don't tell them it was by a pair of schoolboys". This win gave Swansea the honour of being the first club team to have beaten all three major Southern Hemisphere touring teams. The All Blacks were unbeaten in the next twenty matches, but lost to Wales in a classic game which Wales managed to win in the last ten minutes of the game after the Welsh hooker, Don Tarr
, was stretchered off with a broken neck.
and New Zealand was beaten for the last time that century.
The decades following on from the Second World War were a boom time for Welsh rugby, though it took until the 1950s for the benefits to be seen on the playing fields. Although Britain was suffering from a post-war slump, attendance figures at club grounds saw an increase as rugby was again embraced as a spectator sport. Towns and villages which had seen their club disbanded during wartime saw their teams re-established. The WRU had 104 member clubs during the 1946-47 season; by the mid fifties there were 130, even though the Union had done nothing to relax its strict membership regulations.
By the 1950s Britain and Wales were beginning to benefit from improved economic conditions. This saw growth in consumer power and spending, which drew many people away from traditional spectator past times, such as sport and the cinema. With a new found wealth the populace began switching from social pursuits to home entertainment, with the biggest draw being the availability of television. From the mid-fifties there was a significant drop in gate receipts as television became more and more popular. During the 1955 Five Nations Championship
, the Scotland
v. Wales match was televised live; at the same time an Aberavon v. Abertillery game which would normally draw a crowd of 4000 was unable to muster 400. This created a situation whereby rugby in Wales was gaining in popularity due to the number of people who could now watch the international matches, but support at club level declined. This forced club committees to adopt different strategies to keep their clubs afloat. Many teams set up 'coupon funds' to allow clothing rations to be contributed by members to buy kit. With careful management and thrift most clubs not only survived but grew. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, with little money, many clubs were able to build new facilities or even own their grounds and club-houses for the first time in their history. In 1951 Glamorgan Wanderers purchased the Memorial Grounds in Ely and in 1952 Llanelli were able to purchase the rugby portion of Stradey Park
. Similarly, 1954 saw Blaina
construct a new stand while Llanharan
were able to build their first changing rooms procured from RAF surplus units. These events were typical of club expansion through the 50s. It was around this time that club social activities were extended including the introduction of ladies’ committees.
Clubs also took matters into their own hands to promote themselves and their sport. 1947 saw the first unofficial club championship, won by Neath in its inaugrial year, but dominated by Cardiff and Ebbw Vale
until the 1960/61 season. In 1954 Welsh rugby sevens
had their own tournament with the introduction of the Snelling Sevens
competition, while Glamorgan County RFC introduced the Silver Ball Trophy
in 1956 for the promotion of second tier clubs in the region.
The national team, after unconvincing displays during the 1940s, found unexpected success in the early 1950s winning the Grand Slam twice; in 1950
and 1952
. The 1950 win came after a disastrous 1949 campaign, which saw Wales collect the wooden spoon; but after an opening win over England, the team finished the last three matches conceding only three points. The tournament saw the emergence of Welsh record breaking player Ken Jones as a world class wing; who is most remembered for his late try against the 1953 touring New Zealand team. The 1950 championship is also remembered for the tragic events following the away win to Ireland when a chartered flight, returning from the Triple Crown winning match, crashed at Llandow
. Seventy five Welsh fans and five crew died in the accident, at the time it was the world's worst air disaster
.
, Gareth Edwards
, Phil Bennett
and JPR Williams. Wales won four consecutive Triple Crowns. All of these players are considered amongst the best players of Welsh rugby, especially Edwards who was voted the greatest player of all time in a players poll in 2003 and scored what is widely regarded as the greatest try of all time in 1973 for the Barbarians
against New Zealand
.
Many attributed Welsh success to the fact that their forwards were toughened by manual work, according to the theory when Welsh industry declined and players started to be drawn from 'soft jobs' the team suffered. The strong Pontypool
front row of Graham Price
, Bobby Windsor
& Charlie Faulkner
were all manual workers, and Robin McBryde
was formerly the holder of the title of Wales's strongest man.
The 1980s and early '90s were a difficult time for Welsh rugby union when the team suffered many defeats. Harsh economic times in the eighties meant that players such as Jonathan Davies and Scott Gibbs
were tempted to 'go North' to play professional rugby league
in order to earn a living.
In 2003/4 the Welsh Rugby Union
voted to create five regions to play in the Celtic League and represent Wales in European competition. This soon became four when the Celtic Warriors
were liquidated after just one season. The WRU have announced their hopes of developing a fifth region in North Wales
in the long run; the team at the centre of this plan is now known as RGC 1404.
and the four regional franchises Cardiff Blues
, Scarlets, Newport Gwent Dragons
and the Ospreys from the Neath
-Swansea
region.
Wales' four professional rugby regions play in the Magners League and take part in the Heineken Cup
and European Challenge Cup
. Since 2006 they have also competed in the LV Cup against clubs from the English
Aviva Premiership.
There is also a Welsh league
and Welsh Cup
competed for by Wales' traditional club teams. Starting in 2009–10, the four Home Unions have instituted the British and Irish Cup
, an annual competition for semi-professional teams throughout Britain and Ireland; the WRU enters six clubs in that competition. A regional rugby franchise, originally known as Rygbi Gogledd Cymru (Welsh
for "Rugby North Wales") and now known as RGC 1404, has been established in North Wales; current plans call for the side to enter the Welsh Premier Division as early as 2010–11 and eventually the Magners League. RGC 1404 has also announced a partnership with Rugby Canada
by which the franchise would have a secondary role of developing players for that country's national team
, at least until enough local players are developed to fill a complete competitive squad.
tournament.
The first proof of Wales as a nation embracing the sport of rugby union is reflected in the rapid growth of rugby clubs in the late 19th century. Within a period of 25 years, from 1875 to 1900, most towns and villages in South Wales were represented by at least one team, though it would take until the 1930s for the North of Wales to set up their own leagues.
Although difficult to prove popularity, two events that took place early in the history of Welsh rugby illustrate its growing influence on the people of Wales. The first was the Gould Affair, when a testimonial fund was set up for Welsh international Arthur Gould, instigated by a local newspaper. From an initial fund of one shilling the public response saw the amount reach into hundreds of pounds, mainly from working class families with little spare money. The second incident was during the Tonypandy Riot
of 1910, when the striking coalminers attacked the shops and premises in the town centre. 80 police officers and 500 civilians were injured and one person died. Over 60 establishments were attacked and looted, with only two buildings avoiding damage. One was a jewelers which had roller shutters, the other was the chemist shop owned by Willie Llewellyn
, which despite the chaos of the events was spared due to his services to Wales on the playing field.
For the match against Scotland in 2005, 40,000 Welsh people went to Edinburgh to watch the game. Over 10,000 gathered on "Henson
Hill" to watch a big screen of Wales v. Ireland that gave Wales its first Grand Slam since 1978. The result was greeted well amongst fans and was even used to explain a sudden economic surge.
The choral tradition of Wales manifests itself at rugby games in singing. Popular songs among the fans are 'Delilah' by Tom Jones
, 'Cwm Rhondda
' and 'Calon Lan
' and in part replace the normal chanting of other Rugby supporters.
, Wales has 239 rugby union clubs; 2321 referees; 28,702 pre-teen male players; 21,371 teen male players; 19,000 senior male players (total male players 69,073) as well as 1,000 teen female players; 1,056 senior female players (total female players 2,056).
and rugby league
over the issue of money, Wales for the most part stayed loyal to the union game. There were some attempts to run professional rugby league
sides in Wales but the heartland of Welsh rugby was simply too far from Yorkshire
and Lancashire
for this to be sustained.
There has always been an element of class warfare
to rugby union in Wales. In 1977 Phil Bennett
's pre-game pep talk before facing England produced a memorable quote:
The Welsh valleys north of Cardiff
produced so many quality number tens that it was often referred to as 'The Outside Half Factory' immortalised in a song by Max Boyce
. Boyce's humour refers to rugby union very often and he has written many songs about the trials and tribulations of following the game as a fan e.g. 'Asso Asso Yogoshi', 'The Scottish Trip', 'Hymns and Arias'.
that has been held, and achieved their best result in the 1987 tournament
, when they finished third. The national team play at the Millennium Stadium
, built in 1999 to replace the old National Stadium
. Wales play in scarlet jerseys, white shorts and green socks, with the jersey sporting the Prince of Wales's feathers
as their official badge. Every four years the British and Irish Lions
go on tour with players from Wales as well as England, Ireland and Scotland.
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...
is the national sport
National sport
A national sport or national pastime is a sport or game that is considered to be an intrinsic part of the culture of a nation. Some sports are de facto national sports, as baseball is in the U.S., while others are de jure as lacrosse and ice hockey are in Canada.-De jure national sports:-De facto...
of Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and is considered a large part of national culture. Rugby is thought to have reached Wales in the 1850s, with the national body, the Welsh Rugby Union
Welsh Rugby Union
The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Wales, recognised by the International Rugby Board.The union's patron is Queen Elizabeth II, and her grandson Prince William of Wales became the Vice Royal Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union as of February 2007.-History:The roots of the...
(WRU) being formed in 1881. The national team
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...
play at the WRU-owned Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...
, and compete annually in the Six Nations Championship
Six Nations Championship
The Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
, as well as having competed at every Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
. Wales are ranked as a tier-1 nation by the International Rugby Board
International Rugby Board
The International Rugby Board is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. It was founded in 1886 as the International Rugby Football Board by the unions of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. England refused to join until 1890. The International Rugby Football Board changed its name to the...
(IRB). The main domestic competition in Wales is the Magners League, in which Wales have four sides in the competition which is also contested by Irish and Scottish clubs and from 2010-11 Italian
Rugby union in Italy
Rugby union was introduced to Italy in the early 1900s. The Super 10 competition is the main national club competition. The two professional teams in the country are active in Pro12 and also participate in the Heineken Cup. Four italian clubs from the national championship compete in the European...
teams. Top-level Welsh teams also compete in the Europe-wide Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
and European Challenge Cup
European Challenge Cup
The European Challenge Cup, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Amlin Challenge Cup, is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup. The cup was known as the Parker Pen Shield from 2001 to 2003 and Parker Pen Challenge Cup from 2003 to 2005. The European...
and alongside the teams of England
Rugby union in England
Rugby union is one of the leading professional and recreational team sports in England. A popular myth is that Rugby was created in England in 1823, when William Webb Ellis picked up the ball and ran with it during a football match at Rugby School. In 1871 the RFU was formed by 21 clubs and the...
's Guinness Premiership
Guinness Premiership
The English Premiership, also currently known as the Aviva Premiership because of the league's sponsorship by Aviva, is a professional league competition for rugby union football clubs in the top division of the English rugby system. There are twelve clubs in the Premiership...
in the Anglo-Welsh Cup. Wales also competes as one of the 12 "core teams" in the annual IRB Sevens World Series
IRB Sevens World Series
The IRB Sevens World Series, known officially as the HSBC Sevens World Series as of the 2010-11 season, through sponsorship from banking group HSBC, and also sometimes called the World Sevens Series, is a series of international rugby union sevens tournaments organised for the first time in the...
, and won the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens
2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens
The 2009 Rugby Sevens World Cup was the fifth edition of the Rugby sevens world cup. The International Rugby Board selected Dubai in the United Arab Emirates as the host venue for the tournament ahead of bids from four other countries. The format included nine direct qualifiers and a further...
.
Beneath the Magners League, club rugby is represented by over 200 WRU affiliated clubs who play in the Welsh Premier Division
Welsh Premier Division
The Welsh Premier Division is a rugby union league in Wales first implemented by the Welsh Rugby Union for the 1990–91 season.-Competition history:...
and the lower Welsh Divisional leagues. Historically the four major Welsh club teams that have shaped the Welsh national team have been 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...
, Newport, Swansea
Swansea RFC
Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premier Division. Its home ground is St Helens Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea. The team is sometimes known as The Whites because of the primary colour of the team strip...
and 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...
, though other clubs which have fought for prominence and provided national sporting heroes during the last 120 years include Bridgend, Neath
Neath RFC
Neath Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club which plays in the Welsh Premier Division. The club's home ground is The Gnoll, Neath. The first team is known as the Welsh All Blacks because of the team colours: black with only a white cross pattée as an emblem...
, Pontypool
Pontypool RFC
Pontypool Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in the town of Pontypool. Pontypool RFC has a long history within Welsh rugby and is one of the most notable clubs, being present at the formation of the Welsh Rugby Union in 1881, but disbanding before the turn of the 19th century...
, Pontypridd
Pontypridd RFC
Pontypridd Rugby Football Club, known as Ponty, are a rugby union team from Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, currently playing in the British and Irish Cup, Principality Premiership, and are the current SWALEC Cup champions....
, and England exiles London Welsh. Six of the 12 Premier Division clubs compete in the British and Irish Cup
British and Irish Cup
The British and Irish Cup is a semi-professional northern hemisphere rugby union competition. It took place for the first time in the 2009/10 season...
, a competition for semi-professional and developmental sides from Great Britain and Ireland.
The growth of rugby in Wales 1850-1900
Rugby-like games have a long history in Wales, with games such as cnapanCnapan
Cnapan is a Celtic form of medieval football, vaguely resembling some modern versions of rugby football, played in Wales until the nineteenth century. It may be a forerunner to modern rugby union...
being played for centuries. Rugby seems to have reached Wales in 1850, when the Reverend Professor Rowland Williams brought the game with him from Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
to St. David's College
University of Wales, Lampeter
University of Wales, Lampeter is a university in Lampeter, Wales. Founded in 1822 by royal charter, it is the oldest degree awarding institution in Wales and may be the third oldest in England and Wales after Oxford and Cambridge...
, Lampeter
Lampeter
Lampeter is a town in Ceredigion, South West Wales, lying at the confluence of the River Teifi and the Afon Dulas.-Demographics:At the 2001 National Census, the population was 2894. Lampeter is therefore the smallest university town in both Wales and the United Kingdom...
, which fielded the first Welsh rugby team that same year.
Neath RFC
Neath Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club which plays in the Welsh Premier Division. The club's home ground is The Gnoll, Neath. The first team is known as the Welsh All Blacks because of the team colours: black with only a white cross pattée as an emblem...
widely recognised as being the first Welsh club. The strength of Welsh rugby developed over the following years, which could be attributed to the 'big four' South Wales clubs of Newport (who lost only seven games under the captaincy of Llewellyn Lloyd
Llewellyn Lloyd
George Llewellyn Lloyd was a Welsh international half-back who played club rugby for Newport and county rugby with Kent. He won 12 caps for Wales and captained the team on one occasion against Scotland....
between the 1900/01 and 1902/03 seasons), 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...
, 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...
(who lost just twice in 1894 and 1895) and Swansea
Swansea RFC
Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premier Division. Its home ground is St Helens Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea. The team is sometimes known as The Whites because of the primary colour of the team strip...
. With the coming of industrialisation and the railways, rugby too was spread as workers from the main cities brought the game to the new steel and coal towns of south Wales. Merthyr
Merthyr RFC
Merthyr RFC is a Welsh rugby union club based in Merthyr in South Wales. Merthyr RFC are presently members of the Welsh Rugby Union playing in the Division One East League and are a feeder club for the Cardiff Blues..-Early history:...
formed in 1876, Brecon
Brecon RFC
Brecon Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club from the town of Brecon, South Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Cardiff Blues.The club was one of the eleven founding members of the Welsh Rugby Union in 1881...
in 1874, Penygraig
Penygraig RFC
Penygraig Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Penygraig, Wales. Penygraig RFC formed in 1877, one of the earlier rugby clubs to emerge, and by 1890's were a strong voice in the Welsh Rugby Union, one of four clubs from the Rhondda Valley that held WRU representation.-Early...
in 1877; as the towns adopted the new sport they reflected the growth and expansion of a new industrial Wales.
In the 19th century as well as the established clubs there were many 'scratch
Scratch team
A scratch team is a team, usually in sport, brought together on a temporary basis, composed of players who normally play for different sides. A game played between two scratch teams may be called a scratch match....
' teams populating most towns, informal pub or social teams that would form and disband quickly. Llanelli, as an example, in the 1880s was home not only to Llanelli RFC, but also to Gower Road, Seasiders, Morfa Rangers, Prospect Place Rovers, Wern Foundry, Cooper Mills Rangers, New Dock Strollers, Vauxhall Juniors, Moonlight Rovers and Gilbert Street Rovers. These teams would come and go, but some would merge into more settled clubs which exist today, Cardiff RFC was itself formed from three teams, Glamorgan, Tredegarville and Wanderers Football Clubs.
The South Wales Football Club was established in 1875 to try to incorporate a standard set of rules and expand the sport and this was proceeded by the Welsh Football Union
Welsh Rugby Union
The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Wales, recognised by the International Rugby Board.The union's patron is Queen Elizabeth II, and her grandson Prince William of Wales became the Vice Royal Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union as of February 2007.-History:The roots of the...
which was formed in 1881. With the forming of the WFU (which would become the Welsh Rugby Union in 1934), 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...
began competing in recognised international matches, with the first game, 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...
, also in 1881
1880-81 Home Nations rugby union matches
The 1880-81 Home Nations rugby union matches were a series of international rugby union friendlies held between the England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales national rugby union teams. This season is most notable for the introduction of Wales as an international rugby union nation, playing their first...
. The first Welsh team although fairly diverse in the geography of the clubs represented, did not appear to truly represent the strength available to Wales. The team was mainly made up of ex-Cambridge and Oxford university graduates and the selection was heavily criticised in the local press after the crushing defeat by England.
By the end of the 19th century, a group of exciting Welsh players began to emerge, including Arthur Gould, Billy Bancroft
Billy Bancroft
Billy Bancroft was a Welsh international fullback who played club rugby for Swansea and a county cricketer for Glamorgan, becoming their first professional player in 1895....
and 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"....
; players that would be regarded as the first super-stars of Welsh rugby and would usher in not only the first golden era of Welsh rugby, but would also see the introduction of specialised positional players.
The first golden era 1900-1919
The first 'Golden Era' of Welsh rugby is so called due to the success achieved by the national team during the early 20th century. Wales had already won the Triple CrownTriple Crown (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, the Triple Crown is an honour contested annually by the four national teams of the British Isles who compete within the larger Six Nations Championship: England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. If any one team manages to win all their games against the other three they win the...
in 1893, but between 1900 and 1914 the team would win the trophy on six occasions, and with France joining the tournament (unofficially in 1908 and 1909) three Grand Slams
Grand Slam (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, a Grand Slam occurs when one team in the Six Nations Championship manages to beat all the others during one year's competition...
.
George Travers (rugby player)
George "Twyber" Travers was a Welsh international hooker who played club rugby for Pill Harriers and Newport Rugby Football Club. He won 25 caps for Wales between 1903 and 1911....
, the WFU could no longer choose the 'best players' to represent Wales, they needed to think tactically and choose people who could do a specific job on the pitch. This period of Welsh rugby would see the grip of the 'Big Four' clubs providing the bulk of national players, slip slightly. The WFU still tended to turn to the likes of Swansea and Newport to supply the skillful back players and usually kept club half-back pairings together such as Jones
Dick Jones (rugby player)
Richard Hughes "Dick" Jones was a Welsh international fly-half who played club rugby for Swansea Rugby Club. He won 15 caps for Wales and played county rugby for Glamorgan.-Rugby career:...
and Owen
Dicky Owen
Dicky Owen was a Welsh international scrum-half who played club rugby for Swansea RFC Owen is seen as one of the greatest Welsh scrum-halves and won 35 caps for Wales between 1901 and 1912, a record that was unbeaten until 1955 when Ken Jones surpassed him.-Influence in rugby:Born Richard Morgan...
of Swansea. But it was the introduction of the 'Rhondda Forward' which saw men who worked day in day out in the coal, iron and tin mines enter the Welsh front row. Chosen for their strength and aggressive tackling, players such as Dai 'Tarw' Jones from Treherbert
Treherbert RFC
Treherbert Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Tynewydd in the Rhondda Valley. Treherbert RFC play home games in red shirts with black shorts and black socks...
and Dai Evans
Dai Evans
David "Dai" Evans was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Penygraig and international rugby for Wales.Evans was born in Maenclochog, Pembrokeshire, but came to the Rhondda Valley to find work...
from Penygraig added muscle to the front row.
Temperance movement
A temperance movement is a social movement urging reduced use of alcoholic beverages. Temperance movements may criticize excessive alcohol use, promote complete abstinence , or pressure the government to enact anti-alcohol legislation or complete prohibition of alcohol.-Temperance movement by...
. In the early 1900s, rugby was seen as a wicked temptation to the young men of the mining and steel communities, leading to violence and drink, and the valley areas in particular were part of a strong Nonconformist Baptist movement. The religious revival
Religious revival
Religious revival may refer to:* Christian Revivalism* Revival meeting* Islamic revival...
saw some communities completely reject rugby and local clubs, like Senghenydd
Senghenydd RFC
Senghenydd Rugby Football Club are a Welsh rugby union club based in Senghenydd in South Wales. The club formed during the 1898/99 season built around the immigrant workers coming from port areas around Wales to find employment in the newly sunk Senghenydd coal mines.- Early history :1904 saw the...
, disbanded for several years. It wasn't until the 1910s that the social view of rugby would change the other way, fostered by mine owners as a great social unifier; and like baseball in America would be portrayed as a '...source of community integration because it installed civic pride'.
Unlike the game in England, rugby union in Wales was never seen as a sport for gentlemen of higher learning. Although this was fostered in the first international Welsh team, the fast absorption of the sport into the working class areas appeared to sever the link of rugby as a sport for the middle and upper classes.
As rugby became linked with the hard working men of the industrialised areas of Wales, it should also be noted that the sport did not escape the hardships of the industries. In 1913 five members of the Senghenydd team were killed in Britain's worst colliery disaster
Senghenydd Colliery Disaster
The Senghenydd Colliery Disaster, also known as the Senghenydd Explosion, occurred in Senghenydd , near Caerphilly, Glamorgan, Wales on 14 October 1913, killing 439 miners...
and many more lost their lives in the 'slow drip' of deaths caused by the industries. Far worse was to follow during the conflict of World War I when many teams lost members, including Welsh internationals like Charlie Pritchard
Charlie Pritchard
Captain Charlie Pritchard was a Welsh international rugby union player. He was a member of the winning Welsh team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks. He played club rugby for Newport RFC and county rugby for Monmouthshire.-Rugby career:...
and Johnnie Williams
Johnnie Williams
Johnnie Williams was a Welsh international wing who played club rugby for Cardiff Rugby Club. A three times Triple Crown winner, out of seventeen appearances for Wales he was on the losing side only twice....
.
Post-war Welsh rugby 1920-1930
The 1920s were a difficult time for Welsh rugby. The first golden period was over and the players that made up the teams that won four Triple Crowns had already disbanded before the Great War. The war could not be blamed for the downturn in Welsh fortunes as all the home nations lost their young talent in equal numbers. The fact that so many of Wales' talented stars had retired from rugby before 1910 was felt when Wales failed to win the tournament in the few years leading up to the war. But the main reason for Welsh failure on the rugby pitch can be mapped to an economic failures of Wales as a country. The First World War had created an unrealistic demand for coal, and in the 1920s the collapse in the need for coal resulted in a massive level of unemployment throughout the south Wales valleys. This in turn lead to mass emigration as people left Wales for work. The knock-on effect was felt in the port cities of Newport and Cardiff, that relied on the transportation of coal.Suddenly the call of the professional league was a very strong draw to men who could not claim money for playing union. Between 1919 and 1939, Forty-eight capped Welsh rugby union players joined league rugby. The fact that the equivalent of three full national squads left the sport can only allude to the number of trialists and club members that also left the sport. Exceptional players lost to the league game included Jim Sullivan of Cardiff, William Absalom of Abercarn
Abercarn RFC
Abercarn Rugby Football Club are a Welsh rugby union club based in Abercarn near the city of Newport. They currently play in the Welsh Rugby Union Division 4 East having been relegated in two consecutive seasons; from Division 3 East in 2007 and Division 4 East in 2008. The club then immediately...
and Emlyn Jenkins
Emlyn Jenkins
Emlyn Jenkins is a former rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1930s and '40s who at club level has played rugby union for Treorchy RFC and Cardiff RFC, and at representative level has played rugby league for Great Britain, Wales, and England, and at club level for Salford,...
of Treorchy
Treorchy RFC
Treorchy Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the village of Treorchy, in the Rhondda Valley, Wales. They formed in 1886 and by 1891 were a strong voice in the Welsh Football Union and were playing in the Rhondda Division...
.
The other side of the depression was linked to those people that stayed behind. In homes where men were the only earners, the decline in heavy labour areas resulted in very stark choices in where the household money could be spent. It was difficult to justify paying to watch rugby when there was little money for food and rent. With crowds dwindling clubs were forced to drastic measures in the hope of survival. Loughor
Loughor RFC
Loughor Rugby Football Club is a rugby union Club representing the town of Loughor, Swansea, South Wales. Loughor RFC is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Ospreys. Rugby was first played in Loughor in 1882, with evidence of two distinct teams forming in the upper and...
which had produced five internationals in the 1920s were by 1929 begging door to door for old kit. Haverfordwest
Haverfordwest RFC
Haverfordwest Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the town of Haverfordwest, West Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Llanelli Scarlets.-Club Badge:...
disbanded from 1926–29, Pembroke Dock Quins were reduced to 5 members by 1927 and in the valleys the Treherbert, Llwynypia
Llwynypia RFC
Llwynypia RFC was a rugby union club located in the Welsh village of Llwynypia in the Rhondda. The team provided several international players during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, most notably Willie Llewellyn, who was not only selected to represent Wales while playing at the club, but...
and Nantyffyllon clubs had vanished before 1930. Even clubs of the size of Pontypool
Pontypool RFC
Pontypool Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in the town of Pontypool. Pontypool RFC has a long history within Welsh rugby and is one of the most notable clubs, being present at the formation of the Welsh Rugby Union in 1881, but disbanding before the turn of the 19th century...
were not spared; in 1927 they were playing and beating the Waratahs
New South Wales Waratahs
The New South Wales Waratahs are an Australian rugby union football team, representing the majority of New South Wales in the Super 15 Super Rugby competition...
and the Maoris
New Zealand Maori rugby union team
New Zealand Māori is a rugby union team that traditionally plays teams touring New Zealand. A prerequisite for playing in this team is that the player is to have Māori whakapapa or genealogy. In the past this rule was not strictly applied. In the past non-Māori players who looked Māori were often...
, by 1930 they were £2,000 in debt and facing bankruptcy.
Another reason for the fall in the Welsh union game can be placed on the improvement of football in Wales. Traditionally seen as a game more associated with North Wales, the success of Cardiff Football Club
Cardiff City F.C.
Cardiff City Football Club are a Welsh professional football club based in Cardiff, Wales. The club competes in the English football pyramid and is currently playing in the Football League Championship. Cardiff City is the best supported football club in Wales, averaging approximately 22,500 for...
in the 1920s was a strong draw for many supporters. With two F.A. Cup Finals in 1925 and 1927, Cardiff were making the once unpopular sport of 'soccer' very fashionable, for fans and sportsmen alike.
During the 1920s the one team that appeared to be unaffected by the double threat of soccer and debt was Llanelli. The Scarlets had an unswerving loyalty shown by their home supporters, who were repaid by exciting, high scoring matches. During the 1925/26 season the club were unbeaten and the next season they had achieved the unprecedented feat of defeating Cardiff on four occasions. This success would later be reflected in the growing number of Llanelli players that would represent their country in the 1920s, including Albert Jenkins
Albert Jenkins (rugby player)
Albert Jenkins was an international rugby player for Wales and played club rugby for Llanelli RFC between 1919 and 1928. Jenkins was one of the greatest backs to have played for Llanelli and is compared to later Scarlet heroes Lewis Jones and Phil Bennett. Jenkins was a strong tackler and was an...
, Ivor Jones
Ivor Jones
Ivor Egwad Jones CBE was a Welsh rugby union player who played as a back-row forward, mainly at flanker, for Llanelli and won 16 caps for Wales, three of them as captain....
and Archie Skym
Archie Skym
Archie Skym was an international rugby union player for Wales and played club rugby for Llanelli and Cardiff. Skym played as a prop and was renowned for his strength and vigour and was nicknamed The butcher. An excellent scrummager, he was known to be able to lift opponents in the front row...
.
Apart from a few sporadic victories from the national team, there appeared little to cheer about in the 1920s for Welsh rugby at club or country level; but the seeds of recovery were being planted during the same decade. On June 9, 1923 the Welsh Secondary Schools Rugby Union was established in Cardiff. Founded by Dr R Chalke, head of Porth Secondary School with WRU members Horace Lyne
Horace Lyne
Horace Sampson Lyne MBE was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Newport Rugby Football Club. He won five caps for Wales and after retiring from playing rugby became the longest serving president of the Welsh Rugby Union...
as president and Eric Evans
Eric Evans (Welsh Rugby Union)
William Eric Evans was a Welsh rugby player and the secretary of the Welsh Rugby Union from 1948–1955....
as secretary. Its aim was to promote rugby at school level in an attempt to regain 'the glorious days of Gwyn Nicholls, Willie Llewellyn
Willie Llewellyn
William Morris "Willie" Llewellyn was a Welsh international rugby union player. He captained Wales in 1905 and London Welsh in 1902. He was a member of the winning Welsh team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks, toured with the British Isles to Australasia in 1904 and won three Triple Crown...
and Dr E.T. Morgan
Teddy Morgan
Edward "Teddy" Morgan was a Welsh international rugby union player. He was a member of the winning Wales team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks and is remembered for scoring the winning try...
'. In April 1923, at the Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park , also known as The Arms Park, is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green, and is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World...
, Wales played their first secondary schools fixture led by future international Watcyn Thomas
Watcyn Thomas
Watcyn Thomas was a Welsh rugby union player who captained Wales in the early 1930s.Thomas was born in Llanelli and educated at Llanelli County School and at University College, Swansea. While still at school he was the first captain of the newly formed Welsh Secondary Schools XV in 1924. He then...
, who would progress to captain the very first Welsh University XV in 1926. Over the coming years, schools such as Cardiff High School
Cardiff High School
Cardiff High School is a comprehensive school in the Cyncoed area of Cardiff, Wales. Cardiff High School is two miles from the city centre, serving a neighbourhood of privately-owned houses. According to the 2007 ESTYN Report, "Cardiff High School is a very good school with many outstanding...
, Llanelli County School, Llandovery and Christ College, Brecon
Christ College, Brecon
Christ College, Brecon is a co-educational, boarding and day independent school, located in the market town of Brecon in mid-Wales. It caters for pupils from eleven to eighteen.Christ College was founded by Royal Charter in 1541 by King Henry VIII...
fostered a generation of players which would fill the Welsh ranks over the coming years. Wales had in effect begun to mimic the systems adopted by England and Scotland, that rugby should be nurtured from youth, through adolescence to adulthood.
The 1920s closed with the formation of the West Wales Rugby Union, an event that initially appeared to be a positive indication of growth, but in fact the union was formed by western clubs to wrest control away from the WRU. The West Wales clubs had become disenchanted in decisions made by their parent body and believed the Union had no interest in the lower tier clubs, allowing them to become mere feeders for the bigger clubs.
The Welsh revivial 1930-1939
The 1930s began on a high for Welsh international rugby, with success in the Home Nations Championship and the emergence of a strong Welsh team. In the 1931 Championship1931 Five Nations Championship
The 1931 Five Nations Championship was the seventeenth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship following the inclusion of France into the Home Nations Championship. Including the previous Home Nations Championships, this was the forty-fourth series of the annual northern hemisphere...
Wales beat Ireland at Ravenhill
Ravenhill Stadium
Ravenhill Stadium is located in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is used by Ulster Rugby. It has a normal capacity of 12,300 and is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union.-History:The grounds were opened in the 1923/24 season...
in a bruising affair that not only gave Wales the title but denied Ireland the Triple Crown. This may have signaled a change in fortunes in Welsh rugby but underneath the same problems that dogged Wales throughout the 1920s still remained. Wales was still suffering the effects of the depression and club rugby was struggling to survive. Even the WRU had problems, as it faced the fact that it was the only home union without their own ground. The Cardiff Arms was leased and St Helens
St Helens Rugby and Cricket Ground
St. Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground is a spectator venue in Swansea, Wales. It is used for both rugby and cricket.It is owned and operated by the City and County of Swansea council and is also used to host the local annual Guy Fawkes night fireworks display.-History:Since the ground opened in...
was on loan.
From what at first appears to be yet another decade of turmoil for Welsh rugby, is actually regarded as a period of revival. The economic situation began turning from 1937, the WSSRU was bringing many exciting backs through the school system, North Wales embraced the game and the national team won two morale lifting games against England in 1933 and the All Blacks in 1935.
From a statistical point of view, the Welsh national team appeared to be winning roughly the same number of games throughout the 1930s as the poor 1920s period, but Wales were actually improving. In the 1920s most Welsh victories were against France
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team represents France in rugby union. They compete annually against England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations Championship. They have won the championship outright sixteen times, shared it a further eight times, and have completed nine grand slams...
, then the weakest team in the Five Nations Championship; but in 1931 France were excluded from the tournament over accusations of professionalism at club level and were not readmitted until after the 1939 tournament, just before international rugby was suspended because of the Second World War. Welsh victories were now coming against the more established home nation teams. During this period, Wales won three Championships, but its greatest victory happened during the 1933 tournament
1933 Home Nations Championship
The 1933 Home Nations Championship was the twenty-ninth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Five Nations, and prior to that, the Home Nations, this was the forty-sixth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Six matches...
when they finished last. Since its first international game in 1910, Wales had failed to beat England at Twickenham
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
in nine attempts. Now dubbed the 'Twickenham bogey', it took the self confidenece of Cardiff's Ronnie Boon
Ronnie Boon
Ronald Winston "Ronnie" Boon was an international rugby union wing for Wales who played club rugby for Cardiff. Boon possessed a tremendous self-confidence in his own ability and this was reflected in his nickname Cocky. Boon was a quick runner, representing Wales at the 220 yard sprint, and was...
to break the losing streak as he scored a try and a drop goal to take the match 7-3. The game also saw the debut of two players who would become Welsh greats, Wilf Wooller and Vivian Jenkins
Vivian Jenkins
Vivian Gordon James Jenkins was a Welsh rugby union player who, having taught Classics and Games at Dover College, went on to have a successful career as a sports journalist. He won 14 caps for Wales and 1 cap for the British and Irish Lions. He also played first-class cricket with...
.
Wales played host to two touring Southern Hemisphere teams in the 1930s, first came Bennie Osler
Bennie Osler
Benjamin Louwrens Osler was a rugby union footballer who played internationally for South Africa. Osler played mainly at fly-half for both South Africa, and his provincial team of Western Province....
's South Africa
1931-32 South Africa rugby union tour
The 1931-32 South Africa tour of Britain and Ireland was a collection of friendly rugby union games undertaken by the South Africa national rugby union team against the four British Home Nation teams. The tour also took in several matches against British and Irish club, county and invitational teams...
followed by Jack Manchester
Jack Manchester
John Eaton "Jack" Manchester was a New Zealand international rugby union flanker who played club rugby for Christchurch and represented Canterbury province. Manchester played international rugby for the New Zealand national team on nine occasions, including two overseas tours. On the 1935-36 tour...
's All Blacks
1935-36 New Zealand rugby union tour of the British Isles and Canada
-Matches:-Three-Quarters:* N. Ball * H.M. Brown * G.F. Hart * N.A. Mitchell * C.J. Oliver -Five-eighths:* J.L. Griffiths * T.H.C. Caughey * J.R. Page...
. The South Africans
South Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
were rampant in Wales, winning the test match and all six club matches, though gained few supporters due to the kicking tactics Osler employed. The New Zealander's received a better welcome, and after the previous tour
The Invincibles (rugby union)
The Invincibles was a nickname given to the 1924-25 New Zealand rugby union team which toured the United Kingdom, Ireland, France and Canada. The team was captained by Cliff Porter, and numbered among its top players George Nepia and brothers Cyril and Maurice Brownlie.Between September 1924 and...
where the tourist went unbeaten the Welsh press were hoping for a return of the spirit that won the first encounter in 1905. Before the match with Wales, New Zealand were to face eight club teams over six games. After winning the opening three English county matches and then beating a joint Abertillery
Abertillery RFC
Abertillery Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club based in Abertillery. According to their web site, they were founded in 1883, though other sources state 1884. Their team colours are green and white and their home ground is Abertillery Park in Abertillery. The club is a member of the...
and Cross Keys
Cross Keys RFC
Cross Keys RFC is a rugby union club located in the Welsh village of Crosskeys. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Newport Gwent Dragons.- History :...
the All Blacks were showing the same form shown in their first two tours, but then stumbled against Swansea. Swansea were not in a period of particular growth and the only two players showing any flair were Wales Schoolboy players Willie Davies
Willie Davies
Willie Davies was a Welsh international dual-code rugby fly half who played rugby union for Swansea and rugby league for Bradford Northern. He won six caps for the Wales rugby union team and nine caps for the Wales rugby league side...
and Haydn Tanner
Haydn Tanner
Haydn Tanner was a Welsh international rugby union player who also played for the British and Irish Lions and the Barbarians....
. During the game Merv Corner could not contain the attacking bursts from Tanner, the New Zealand flankers were drawn in which in turned allowed Davies the freedom to run which Claude Davey
Claude Davey
Claude Davey was a Wales international rugby union player who played club rugby for several teams, most notably Sale and Swansea. He was awarded 23 caps for Wales and captained his country eight times...
finished off with two tries. Jack Manchester's response to the Swansea win was to ask the New Zealand press "Tell them we have been beaten, but don't tell them it was by a pair of schoolboys". This win gave Swansea the honour of being the first club team to have beaten all three major Southern Hemisphere touring teams. The All Blacks were unbeaten in the next twenty matches, but lost to Wales in a classic game which Wales managed to win in the last ten minutes of the game after the Welsh hooker, Don Tarr
Don Tarr
Donald "Don" James Tarr was a Welsh international hooker who played club rugby for Swansea and Cardiff, county rugby for Hampshire and invitational rugby for the Barbarians...
, was stretchered off with a broken neck.
Post-war Welsh rugby 1945-1959
The post-war years saw strong club teams emerge, but it wasn’t until the 1950s that a true blend of players could be produced to translate club success into international victories. The coming of television saw an upsurge in popularity for the national team, but a decline in club support. Success was gained in the Five Nations Championship, Wales supplied many players to the ranks of the British LionsBritish and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
and New Zealand was beaten for the last time that century.
The decades following on from the Second World War were a boom time for Welsh rugby, though it took until the 1950s for the benefits to be seen on the playing fields. Although Britain was suffering from a post-war slump, attendance figures at club grounds saw an increase as rugby was again embraced as a spectator sport. Towns and villages which had seen their club disbanded during wartime saw their teams re-established. The WRU had 104 member clubs during the 1946-47 season; by the mid fifties there were 130, even though the Union had done nothing to relax its strict membership regulations.
By the 1950s Britain and Wales were beginning to benefit from improved economic conditions. This saw growth in consumer power and spending, which drew many people away from traditional spectator past times, such as sport and the cinema. With a new found wealth the populace began switching from social pursuits to home entertainment, with the biggest draw being the availability of television. From the mid-fifties there was a significant drop in gate receipts as television became more and more popular. During the 1955 Five Nations Championship
1955 Five Nations Championship
The 1955 Five Nations Championship was the twenty-sixth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the sixty-first series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between...
, the Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
v. Wales match was televised live; at the same time an Aberavon v. Abertillery game which would normally draw a crowd of 4000 was unable to muster 400. This created a situation whereby rugby in Wales was gaining in popularity due to the number of people who could now watch the international matches, but support at club level declined. This forced club committees to adopt different strategies to keep their clubs afloat. Many teams set up 'coupon funds' to allow clothing rations to be contributed by members to buy kit. With careful management and thrift most clubs not only survived but grew. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, with little money, many clubs were able to build new facilities or even own their grounds and club-houses for the first time in their history. In 1951 Glamorgan Wanderers purchased the Memorial Grounds in Ely and in 1952 Llanelli were able to purchase the rugby portion of Stradey Park
Stradey Park
Stradey Park was a rugby union stadium located near the centre of the town of Llanelli in Carmarthenshire, Wales. It was the home of the Scarlets region and Llanelli RFC rugby teams. The stadium was a combination of seating and standing with a total capacity of 10,800...
. Similarly, 1954 saw Blaina
Blaina RFC
Blaina Rugby Football Club are a Welsh rugby union club based in Blaina in the county borough of Blaenau Gwent in Wales. They presently play in the Welsh Rugby Union Division Three East league and are a feeder club for the Newport Gwent Dragons.- History :...
construct a new stand while Llanharan
Llanharan RFC
Llanharn Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Llanharan, South Wales. Llanharan RFC were formally established in 1891-92 when Llanharan was little more than an agricultural hamlet. The earliest photograph on the club house wall is dated 1898...
were able to build their first changing rooms procured from RAF surplus units. These events were typical of club expansion through the 50s. It was around this time that club social activities were extended including the introduction of ladies’ committees.
Clubs also took matters into their own hands to promote themselves and their sport. 1947 saw the first unofficial club championship, won by Neath in its inaugrial year, but dominated by Cardiff and Ebbw Vale
Ebbw Vale RFC
Ebbw Vale Rugby Football Club is a Welsh Rugby Union Club based in the town of Ebbw Vale, Blaenau Gwent, South Wales. The club currently play in the WRU Division One East and the SWALEC Cup. It also acts as a feeder club for the Newport Gwent Dragons....
until the 1960/61 season. In 1954 Welsh rugby sevens
Rugby sevens
Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
had their own tournament with the introduction of the Snelling Sevens
Snelling Sevens
The Snelling Sevens was an annual Welsh Rugby Union sevens competition that ran from 1954 until 1995....
competition, while Glamorgan County RFC introduced the Silver Ball Trophy
Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy
The Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy , is a Welsh rugby union competition open to all non-premier Welsh Rugby Union clubs playing in the Glamorganshire area....
in 1956 for the promotion of second tier clubs in the region.
The national team, after unconvincing displays during the 1940s, found unexpected success in the early 1950s winning the Grand Slam twice; in 1950
1950 Five Nations Championship
The 1950 Five Nations Championship was the twenty-first series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the fifty-sixth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played between...
and 1952
1952 Five Nations Championship
The 1952 Five Nations Championship was the twenty-third series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the fifty-eighth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played...
. The 1950 win came after a disastrous 1949 campaign, which saw Wales collect the wooden spoon; but after an opening win over England, the team finished the last three matches conceding only three points. The tournament saw the emergence of Welsh record breaking player Ken Jones as a world class wing; who is most remembered for his late try against the 1953 touring New Zealand team. The 1950 championship is also remembered for the tragic events following the away win to Ireland when a chartered flight, returning from the Triple Crown winning match, crashed at Llandow
Llandow air disaster
The Llandow air disaster was an aircraft accident in Wales in 1950. At that time it was the world's worst air disaster with a total of 80 fatalities...
. Seventy five Welsh fans and five crew died in the accident, at the time it was the world's worst air disaster
Aviation accidents and incidents
An aviation accident is defined in the Convention on International Civil Aviation Annex 13 as an occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft which takes place between the time any person boards the aircraft with the intention of flight and all such persons have disembarked, in which a...
.
The second golden era 1969-1979
The zenith of Welsh rugby was the 1970s, when Wales had players such as Barry JohnBarry John
Barry John is a former Welsh rugby union fly-half who played, during the amateur era of the sport, in the 1960s and early 1970s. John began his rugby career as a schoolboy playing for his local team Cefneithin RFC before switching to first-class west Wales team Llanelli RFC in 1964...
, Gareth Edwards
Gareth Edwards
Gareth Owen Edwards CBE is a former Welsh rugby union footballer who played scrum-half and has been described by the BBC as "arguably the greatest player ever to don a Welsh jersey"....
, Phil Bennett
Phil Bennett
Phillip Bennett was a Welsh international rugby union fly half from 1969 to 1978. His flair and range of tricks, including his famous sidestep and swerve, meant he was a firm favourite with crowds.-Rugby career:...
and JPR Williams. Wales won four consecutive Triple Crowns. All of these players are considered amongst the best players of Welsh rugby, especially Edwards who was voted the greatest player of all time in a players poll in 2003 and scored what is widely regarded as the greatest try of all time in 1973 for the Barbarians
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
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....
.
Many attributed Welsh success to the fact that their forwards were toughened by manual work, according to the theory when Welsh industry declined and players started to be drawn from 'soft jobs' the team suffered. The strong Pontypool
Pontypool RFC
Pontypool Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in the town of Pontypool. Pontypool RFC has a long history within Welsh rugby and is one of the most notable clubs, being present at the formation of the Welsh Rugby Union in 1881, but disbanding before the turn of the 19th century...
front row of Graham Price
Graham Price
Graham Price MBE is a former Welsh rugby union player who won 41 caps for as a prop forward.- Education :...
, Bobby Windsor
Bobby Windsor
Robert William Windsor , known as Bobby and nicknamed "The Duke", is a former rugby union player who gained 28 rugby union caps for Wales as a hooker between 1973 and 1979...
& Charlie Faulkner
Charlie Faulkner
Anthony George "Charlie" Faulkner was a rugby union player of the 1970s and later a rugby coach.He was born Anthony George Faulkner in Newport, Monmouthshire in February 1941.- Wales caps :...
were all manual workers, and Robin McBryde
Robin McBryde
Robin Currie McBryde , is a former rugby union player who gained 37 rugby union caps for Wales as a hooker between 1994 and 2005....
was formerly the holder of the title of Wales's strongest man.
Shamateurism and the professional era 1980-to date
See also: Introduction of regional rugby union teams in WalesIntroduction of regional rugby union teams in Wales
The introduction of regional rugby union teams in Wales occurred prior to the start of the 2003/04 rugby union season. From this date, Wales was represented by a smaller number of regional teams in both the Celtic League and European Cup competitions, where previously the top club sides were...
The 1980s and early '90s were a difficult time for Welsh rugby union when the team suffered many defeats. Harsh economic times in the eighties meant that players such as Jonathan Davies and Scott Gibbs
Scott Gibbs
Scott Gibbs is a former rugby footballer who represented Wales and the Lions in rugby union and Wales and Great Britain in rugby league...
were tempted to 'go North' to play professional rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
in order to earn a living.
In 2003/4 the Welsh Rugby Union
Welsh Rugby Union
The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Wales, recognised by the International Rugby Board.The union's patron is Queen Elizabeth II, and her grandson Prince William of Wales became the Vice Royal Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union as of February 2007.-History:The roots of the...
voted to create five regions to play in the Celtic League and represent Wales in European competition. This soon became four when the Celtic Warriors
Celtic Warriors
The Celtic Warriors were a regional rugby union team from Wales, who played in the Celtic League and Heineken Cup between 2003 and 2004.-History:The Warriors were one of the five original regions of the Welsh Regional Rugby Era...
were liquidated after just one season. The WRU have announced their hopes of developing a fifth region in North Wales
North Wales
North Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales. It is bordered to the south by the counties of Ceredigion and Powys in Mid Wales and to the east by the counties of Shropshire in the West Midlands and Cheshire in North West England...
in the long run; the team at the centre of this plan is now known as RGC 1404.
Governing body
The Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body for rugby union in Wales. Their responsibilities include producing the national teamWales 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...
and the four regional franchises Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....
, Scarlets, Newport Gwent Dragons
Newport Gwent Dragons
Newport Gwent Dragons are one of the four professional Rugby Union regional teams in Wales. They are jointly owned by Newport RFC and the Welsh Rugby Union and play all their home games at Rodney Parade, Newport. They play in the RaboDirect Pro12, the Anglo-Welsh Cup and the Heineken Cup...
and the Ospreys from the Neath
Neath
Neath is a town and community situated in the principal area of Neath Port Talbot, Wales, UK with a population of approximately 45,898 in 2001...
-Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
region.
Competitions
- See also Welsh rugby union systemWelsh rugby union systemThe top level of competition in the Welsh rugby union system is the Magners League which is a league of professional teams from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Italy. Wales currently has four entries in the Magners League: Scarlets, Ospreys, Cardiff Blues and Newport Gwent Dragons.-Magners...
Wales' four professional rugby regions play in the Magners League and take part in the Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
and European Challenge Cup
European Challenge Cup
The European Challenge Cup, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Amlin Challenge Cup, is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup. The cup was known as the Parker Pen Shield from 2001 to 2003 and Parker Pen Challenge Cup from 2003 to 2005. The European...
. Since 2006 they have also competed in the LV Cup against clubs from the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
Aviva Premiership.
There is also a Welsh league
Welsh Premier Division
The Welsh Premier Division is a rugby union league in Wales first implemented by the Welsh Rugby Union for the 1990–91 season.-Competition history:...
and Welsh Cup
WRU Challenge Cup
The WRU Challenge Cup , or its full name of the Welsh Rugby Union Challenge Cup, is Wales' premier knockout rugby union competition and is organised by the Welsh Rugby Union....
competed for by Wales' traditional club teams. Starting in 2009–10, the four Home Unions have instituted the British and Irish Cup
British and Irish Cup
The British and Irish Cup is a semi-professional northern hemisphere rugby union competition. It took place for the first time in the 2009/10 season...
, an annual competition for semi-professional teams throughout Britain and Ireland; the WRU enters six clubs in that competition. A regional rugby franchise, originally known as Rygbi Gogledd Cymru (Welsh
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
for "Rugby North Wales") and now known as RGC 1404, has been established in North Wales; current plans call for the side to enter the Welsh Premier Division as early as 2010–11 and eventually the Magners League. RGC 1404 has also announced a partnership with Rugby Canada
Rugby Canada
Rugby Canada, is the national governing body for the sport of rugby union in Canada. Rugby Canada was incorporated in 1974, and stems from the Canadian Rugby Football Union, a body established in 1884 that now governs amateur Canadian football as Football Canada; and the now-defunct Rugby Union of...
by which the franchise would have a secondary role of developing players for that country's national team
Canada national rugby union team
The Canada national rugby union team represents Canada in international rugby union. They are governed by Rugby Canada, and play in red and black. Canada is classified by the International Rugby Board as a tier two rugby nation. There are ten tier one nations, and seven tier two nations, the...
, at least until enough local players are developed to fill a complete competitive squad.
Popularity
Rugby union has a particular hold on the national psyche of Wales, especially the Six NationsSix Nations Championship
The Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
tournament.
The first proof of Wales as a nation embracing the sport of rugby union is reflected in the rapid growth of rugby clubs in the late 19th century. Within a period of 25 years, from 1875 to 1900, most towns and villages in South Wales were represented by at least one team, though it would take until the 1930s for the North of Wales to set up their own leagues.
Although difficult to prove popularity, two events that took place early in the history of Welsh rugby illustrate its growing influence on the people of Wales. The first was the Gould Affair, when a testimonial fund was set up for Welsh international Arthur Gould, instigated by a local newspaper. From an initial fund of one shilling the public response saw the amount reach into hundreds of pounds, mainly from working class families with little spare money. The second incident was during the Tonypandy Riot
Tonypandy Riot
The Tonypandy Riots of 1910 and 1911 was a series of violent confrontations between coal miners and police that took place at various locations in and around the Rhondda mines of the Cambrian Combine, a business network of mining companies formed to regulate prices and wages in south Wales...
of 1910, when the striking coalminers attacked the shops and premises in the town centre. 80 police officers and 500 civilians were injured and one person died. Over 60 establishments were attacked and looted, with only two buildings avoiding damage. One was a jewelers which had roller shutters, the other was the chemist shop owned by Willie Llewellyn
Willie Llewellyn
William Morris "Willie" Llewellyn was a Welsh international rugby union player. He captained Wales in 1905 and London Welsh in 1902. He was a member of the winning Welsh team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks, toured with the British Isles to Australasia in 1904 and won three Triple Crown...
, which despite the chaos of the events was spared due to his services to Wales on the playing field.
For the match against Scotland in 2005, 40,000 Welsh people went to Edinburgh to watch the game. Over 10,000 gathered on "Henson
Gavin Henson
Gavin Lloyd Henson is a Welsh rugby union player, born in Pencoed, South Wales, currently playing for Cardiff Blues.He attracted much media attention as part of a Wales national team which achieved Grand Slams in the Six Nations Championship in 2005 and 2008...
Hill" to watch a big screen of Wales v. Ireland that gave Wales its first Grand Slam since 1978. The result was greeted well amongst fans and was even used to explain a sudden economic surge.
The choral tradition of Wales manifests itself at rugby games in singing. Popular songs among the fans are 'Delilah' by Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
, 'Cwm Rhondda
Cwm Rhondda
Cwm Rhondda, the Welsh name for the Rhondda Valley, is a popular hymn tune written by John Hughes and first performed in 1907. It is often erroneously called Bread of Heaven and is usually used in English as a setting for William Williams's text Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah , originally...
' and 'Calon Lan
Calon Lan
Calon Lân is a Welsh hymn, the words of which were written in the 19th century by Daniel James to a tune by John Hughes ....
' and in part replace the normal chanting of other Rugby supporters.
Statistics
According to the IRBInternational Rugby Board
The International Rugby Board is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. It was founded in 1886 as the International Rugby Football Board by the unions of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. England refused to join until 1890. The International Rugby Football Board changed its name to the...
, Wales has 239 rugby union clubs; 2321 referees; 28,702 pre-teen male players; 21,371 teen male players; 19,000 senior male players (total male players 69,073) as well as 1,000 teen female players; 1,056 senior female players (total female players 2,056).
Demographics
Whereas Rugby in England fractured into the two separate sports of rugby unionRugby 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...
and rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
over the issue of money, Wales for the most part stayed loyal to the union game. There were some attempts to run professional rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
sides in Wales but the heartland of Welsh rugby was simply too far from Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
and Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
for this to be sustained.
There has always been an element of class warfare
Class conflict
Class conflict is the tension or antagonism which exists in society due to competing socioeconomic interests between people of different classes....
to rugby union in Wales. In 1977 Phil Bennett
Phil Bennett
Phillip Bennett was a Welsh international rugby union fly half from 1969 to 1978. His flair and range of tricks, including his famous sidestep and swerve, meant he was a firm favourite with crowds.-Rugby career:...
's pre-game pep talk before facing England produced a memorable quote:
Look what these bastards have done to Wales. They've taken our coal, our water, our steel. They buy our homes and live in them for a fortnight every year. What have they given us? Absolutely nothing. We've been exploited, raped, controlled and punished by the English — and that's who you are playing this afternoon.
The Welsh valleys north of Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
produced so many quality number tens that it was often referred to as 'The Outside Half Factory' immortalised in a song by Max Boyce
Max Boyce
Maxwell Boyce MBE is a Welsh comedian, singer and former coal miner. He rose to fame during the mid-1970s with an act that combined musical comedy with his passion for rugby union and his origins in the mining communities of South Wales...
. Boyce's humour refers to rugby union very often and he has written many songs about the trials and tribulations of following the game as a fan e.g. 'Asso Asso Yogoshi', 'The Scottish Trip', 'Hymns and Arias'.
The national team
Wales compete annually in the Six Nations, which they have won 24 times, the last being in 2008. Wales have also qualified for every World CupRugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
that has been held, and achieved their best result in the 1987 tournament
1987 Rugby World Cup
The 1987 Rugby World Cup was the first Rugby World Cup. New Zealand and Australia agreed to co-host the first ever tournament with New Zealand hosting seventeen pool stage matches, two quarter-finals and the final with Australia being the junior partner hosting seven pool matches, two...
, when they finished third. The national team play at the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...
, built in 1999 to replace the old National Stadium
Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park , also known as The Arms Park, is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green, and is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World...
. Wales play in scarlet jerseys, white shorts and green socks, with the jersey sporting the Prince of Wales's feathers
Prince of Wales's feathers
The Prince of Wales's feathers is the heraldic badge of the Heir Apparent to the British and Commonwealth Realms thrones. It consists of three white feathers emerging from a gold coronet. A ribbon below the coronet bears the motto Ich dien...
as their official badge. Every four years the British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
go on tour with players from Wales as well as England, Ireland and Scotland.
See also
- History of rugby unionHistory of rugby unionThe history of rugby union follows from various football games played long before the 19th century, but it was not until the middle of that century that rules were formulated and codified....
- Welsh Rugby UnionWelsh Rugby UnionThe Welsh Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Wales, recognised by the International Rugby Board.The union's patron is Queen Elizabeth II, and her grandson Prince William of Wales became the Vice Royal Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union as of February 2007.-History:The roots of the...
- WRU National Leagues
- Wales national rugby union teamWales national rugby union teamThe 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...
- Wales national rugby union team (sevens)Wales national rugby union team (sevens)The Wales national rugby union sevens team is the international rugby sevens side for Welsh rugby union players. They currently compete in the IRB Sevens World Series, the Rugby World Cup Sevens and in the Commonwealth Games....
- Welsh rugby union systemWelsh rugby union systemThe top level of competition in the Welsh rugby union system is the Magners League which is a league of professional teams from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Italy. Wales currently has four entries in the Magners League: Scarlets, Ospreys, Cardiff Blues and Newport Gwent Dragons.-Magners...
- Magners League
- Cardiff BluesCardiff BluesCardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....
- Llanelli ScarletsLlanelli ScarletsThe Scarlets are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Llanelli, south-west Wales the team play at the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the RaboDirect Pro12, as well as competing in the LV= Cup and the Heineken Cup...
- Newport Gwent DragonsNewport Gwent DragonsNewport Gwent Dragons are one of the four professional Rugby Union regional teams in Wales. They are jointly owned by Newport RFC and the Welsh Rugby Union and play all their home games at Rodney Parade, Newport. They play in the RaboDirect Pro12, the Anglo-Welsh Cup and the Heineken Cup...
- Ospreys
- Welsh Premier DivisionWelsh Premier DivisionThe Welsh Premier Division is a rugby union league in Wales first implemented by the Welsh Rugby Union for the 1990–91 season.-Competition history:...
- WRU Challenge CupWRU Challenge CupThe WRU Challenge Cup , or its full name of the Welsh Rugby Union Challenge Cup, is Wales' premier knockout rugby union competition and is organised by the Welsh Rugby Union....
- Rugby League in WalesRugby league in WalesRugby league is a sport played in Wales. The governing body of the game in Wales is the Wales Rugby League.There is a long but sporadic history of rugby league in Wales. Over the decades many hundreds of players have "gone north" to play for the leading English clubs...
- Welsh Rugby Players AssociationWelsh Rugby Players AssociationThe Welsh Players Association , founded in 2003, is the representative body for professional rugby union players in Wales. Its General Secretary is Neil Maclean-Smith, who succeeded previous General Secretary, Dean Sheehan and former Chief Executive, Richard Harry. Rhys Williams, former Wales and...
External links
- The BBC's Welsh rugby union news page
- IC Wales's rugby union news page
- Gwlad Popular fan site for supporters of rugby union in Wales