William Williams (rugby player)
Encyclopedia
William Edward Osborne Williams (15 December 1866- 22 June 1945) was a Welsh
international rugby union
forward who played club rugby for Cardiff
and London Welsh. Williams was capped for Wales
five times over a period of four years.
. Williams was first selected for the Welsh national rugby team in a game against Scotland as part of the 1887 Home Nations Championship
. Williams was one of three new Welsh caps chosen for the match, along with half-back George Bowen
and full-back Hugh Hughes
. The game was a one-sided affair with Scotland scoring 12 tries
without reply. Despite the crushing defeat the selectors kept faith with the squad, making few changes. Williams was reselected for the next game of the Championship, played at Birkenhead, which Wales won, mainly thanks to a drop goal from Arthur 'Monkey' Gould.
Williams didn't play during the 1888 Championship, but played one game during the 1889
tournament. Under the captaincy of Frank Hill
, Williams found himself part of another away loss to Scotland, but this time was not in the squad that faced Ireland in the last game of the Championship. Williams played two more games for the Wales team, both in the 1890 Home Nations Championship
. The opening game of the tournament saw Wales lose to Scotland, but Williams' last international match was a historic first win for the Welsh team over England. Williams may well have played in more international games, but while playing for Cardiff in an encounter against Newport in November 1890, Williams sustained a serious injury which ending his rugby career. Williams had only just be given the captaincy of Cardiff, and his vice-captain, D.W. Evans
was promoted to captain after Williams' retirement.
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...
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...
forward who played club rugby for Cardiff
Cardiff RFC
Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union football club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, but soon relocated to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since...
and London Welsh. Williams was capped 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...
five times over a period of four years.
Rugby career
Williams first came to prominence as a rugby player while representing Cardiff, a team he captained after Charlie ArthurCharlie Arthur
Charles "Charlie" Suckling Arthur was an English-born international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Cardiff and international rugby for Wales...
. Williams was first selected for the Welsh national rugby team in a game against Scotland as part of the 1887 Home Nations Championship
1887 Home Nations Championship
The 1887 Home Nations Championship was the fifth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 8 January and 12 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales....
. Williams was one of three new Welsh caps chosen for the match, along with half-back George Bowen
George Bowen (rugby player)
George Einon Bowen was a Welsh international rugby union half back who played club rugby for Swansea and Llanelli. Bowen won four caps for Wales and also played cricket for Glamorgan. Later in his life he became the Mayor of Kidwelly.Bowen was first selected for Wales on 26 February 1887 in a...
and full-back Hugh Hughes
Hugh Hughes (rugby player)
Hugh 'Sawdust' Hughes was an international rugby union player who played club rugby for Cardiff and international rugby for Wales. Although very little personal information is available for Hughes, he is notable for facing the touring New Zealand Māoris, the first touring Southern Hempishere rugby...
. The game was a one-sided affair with Scotland scoring 12 tries
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...
without reply. Despite the crushing defeat the selectors kept faith with the squad, making few changes. Williams was reselected for the next game of the Championship, played at Birkenhead, which Wales won, mainly thanks to a drop goal from Arthur 'Monkey' Gould.
Williams didn't play during the 1888 Championship, but played one game during the 1889
1889 Home Nations Championship
The 1889 Home Nations Championship was the seventh series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Three matches were played between 2 February and 2 March. It was contested by Ireland, Scotland and Wales...
tournament. Under the captaincy of Frank Hill
Frank Hill (rugby player)
Frank Hill was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Cardiff. Hill won 15 caps for Wales over a period of ten years and was given the team captaincy on four occasions....
, Williams found himself part of another away loss to Scotland, but this time was not in the squad that faced Ireland in the last game of the Championship. Williams played two more games for the Wales team, both in the 1890 Home Nations Championship
1890 Home Nations Championship
The 1890 Home Nations Championship was the eighth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 1 February and 15 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.-Table:-Results:...
. The opening game of the tournament saw Wales lose to Scotland, but Williams' last international match was a historic first win for the Welsh team over England. Williams may well have played in more international games, but while playing for Cardiff in an encounter against Newport in November 1890, Williams sustained a serious injury which ending his rugby career. Williams had only just be given the captaincy of Cardiff, and his vice-captain, D.W. Evans
David William Evans
Sir David William Evans was a Welsh lawyer and public servant, who played a leading role in the fight against tuberculosis in Wales. In his early adult life, Evans was a very keen sportsman and played rugby union for Oxford University and Cardiff...
was promoted to captain after Williams' retirement.