Tommy Jones-Davies
Encyclopedia
Thomas 'Tommy' Ellis Jones-Davies (4 March 1906 – 25 August 1960) was a Welsh
physician and international rugby union
centre.
He played club rugby for Llanelli
and London Welsh. He won four caps for Wales
and was a member of Doug Prentice
's British Lions
in their tour of New Zealand and Australia in 1930
.
, Carmarthen
to agricultural co-operative pioneer Henry Jones-Davies and Winifred Anna Ellis. He was educated ar Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Carmarthen and St George's School, Harpenden before gaining a place at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
and St. George's Hospital, London.
He married in 1938 Nesta, the daughter of Dr. & Mrs. Hector Jones , Maesteg ; they had one son. Colonel T.E. Jones-Davies.
He was appointed High Sheriff of Carmarthenshire
in 1952.
for Radnorshire
in 1938. During World War II he served as an officer in the Royal Army Medical Corps.
After the war he was appointed a consultant physician at the West Wales Hospital, Carmarthen, a position he held for ten years until his death.
while team captain of London Welsh. Played at the Cardiff Arms Park
in a match against England, Jones-Davies was one of four new Welsh caps in the squad; Hickman
of Neath
, Ocker Thomas
of Abertillery RFC
and fellow London Welsh player David Edward Roberts. Wales lost the match 11-3, Jones-Davies scoring the three Welsh points with a try
. Jones-Davies was not selected for the away game to Scotland, but was back in the team to face the Irish at St. Helen's ground in Swansea
. Playing along-side London Welsh stalwart Wick Powell
, Jones-Davies finished on the winning side as Wales beat Ireland, robbing them of the Triple Crown
.
Jones-Davies played two more games for Wales, both as part of the 1931 Five Nations Championship
. Under the captaincy of Penarth's
Jack Bassett
, Jones-Davies was a member of the Welsh team that drew with England at Twickenham
and beat Scotland at the Arms Park. Jones-Davies scored one of the tries in the England game, and after Wales won the last two games of the tournament he found himself part of a Championship winning team.
In 1930 Jones-Davies was selected for the British Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand. Jones-Davies was one of seven Welsh players chosen to represent the Lions on the tour, but unlike his countrymen he did not play in any of the five test games.
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...
physician and international rugby union
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...
centre.
He played club rugby for Llanelli
Llanelli RFC
Llanelli Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club founded in 1875 and its senior team is one of the leading club sides in Wales. The club began the 2008-09 season at their historic home ground of Stradey Park in Llanelli, but moved in November 2008 to the new Parc y Scarlets in adjacent...
and London Welsh. He won four caps for Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
and was a member of Doug Prentice
Doug Prentice
Frank Douglas "Doug" Prentice was an English rugby union player and administrator.He played club rugby for Leicester. He won three caps for England and was the captain of the British Lions in their tour of New Zealand and Australia in 1930 and manager of the 1936 British Lions tour to Argentina.-...
's British 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...
in their tour of New Zealand and Australia in 1930
1930 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia
The 1930 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia was the twelfth tour by a British Isles team and the fifth to New Zealand and Australia...
.
Personal history
Jones-Davies was born in NantgaredigNantgaredig
Nantgaredig is a village in Carmarthenshire.The village is most notable for being the home of actor Julian Lewis Jones. The winner of the 1990 Cheltenham Gold Cup, Norton's Coin, was trained by Sirrel Griffiths at his farm at Nantgaredig...
, Carmarthen
Carmarthen
Carmarthen is a community in, and the county town of, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It is sited on the River Towy north of its mouth at Carmarthen Bay. In 2001, the population was 14,648....
to agricultural co-operative pioneer Henry Jones-Davies and Winifred Anna Ellis. He was educated ar Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Carmarthen and St George's School, Harpenden before gaining a place at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college is often referred to simply as "Caius" , after its second founder, John Keys, who fashionably latinised the spelling of his name after studying in Italy.- Outline :Gonville and...
and St. George's Hospital, London.
He married in 1938 Nesta, the daughter of Dr. & Mrs. Hector Jones , Maesteg ; they had one son. Colonel T.E. Jones-Davies.
He was appointed High Sheriff of Carmarthenshire
High Sheriff of Carmarthenshire
This is a list of High Sheriffs of Carmarthenshire. Carmarthenshire was originally created by the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284. It became an administrative county in 1889 with a county council following the Local Government Act 1888...
in 1952.
Medical career
After gaining his medical qualifications he served as an assistant medical officer in London before becoming the Medical Officer for HealthMedical Officer for Health
The Medical Officer for Health is a title usually given to the head of the health department at a municipal level.In the United Kingdom, the municipal position was an elected head of the local board of health, however the term has also been used to refer to the Chief Medical Officer...
for Radnorshire
Radnorshire
Radnorshire is one of thirteen historic and former administrative counties of Wales. It is represented by the Radnorshire area of Powys, which according to the 2001 census, had a population of 24,805...
in 1938. During World War II he served as an officer in the Royal Army Medical Corps.
After the war he was appointed a consultant physician at the West Wales Hospital, Carmarthen, a position he held for ten years until his death.
Rugby career
Jones-Davies was first selected to play for the Welsh national team in the country's opening game of the 1930 Five Nations Championship1930 Five Nations Championship
The 1930 Five Nations Championship was the sixteenth 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-third series of the annual northern hemisphere rugby...
while team captain of London Welsh. Played at the Cardiff 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...
in a match against England, Jones-Davies was one of four new Welsh caps in the squad; Hickman
Arthur Hickman
Arthur Hickman was a Welsh rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1930s who at representative level played rugby union for Wales, and at club level for Neath RFC, playing at Wing, i.e...
of 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...
, Ocker Thomas
Trevor Thomas (rugby)
William Trevor 'Ocker' Thomas was a Welsh dual-code international rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1930s and '40s who at representative level played rugby union for Wales, and at club level for Abertillery RFC, playing at Flanker, i.e...
of Abertillery RFC
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 fellow London Welsh player David Edward Roberts. Wales lost the match 11-3, Jones-Davies scoring the three Welsh points with a try
Try
A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...
. Jones-Davies was not selected for the away game to Scotland, but was back in the team to face the Irish at St. Helen's ground in 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...
. Playing along-side London Welsh stalwart Wick Powell
Wick Powell
William Charles "Wick" Powell was a Welsh international rugby union scrum-half who played club rugby for London Welsh and county rugby for Middlesex...
, Jones-Davies finished on the winning side as Wales beat Ireland, robbing them of the Triple Crown
Triple 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...
.
Jones-Davies played two more games for Wales, both as part of the 1931 Five Nations Championship
1931 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...
. Under the captaincy of Penarth's
Penarth RFC
Penarth Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club based since 1924 at The Athletic Field, Lavernock Road, in Penarth, in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales.-Origins and early history:...
Jack Bassett
Jack Bassett
Jack Bassett was a Welsh international rugby union full back who played club rugby for Penarth. He won 15 caps for Wales and was selected for the 1930 British Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand...
, Jones-Davies was a member of the Welsh team that drew with 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...
and beat Scotland at the Arms Park. Jones-Davies scored one of the tries in the England game, and after Wales won the last two games of the tournament he found himself part of a Championship winning team.
In 1930 Jones-Davies was selected for the British Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand. Jones-Davies was one of seven Welsh players chosen to represent the Lions on the tour, but unlike his countrymen he did not play in any of the five test games.
External links
- Library of Wales Biography of Tommy Jones-Davies