I was like a rabbit in headlights when I dared to cross the loyal Neath faithful

THROUGHOUT their history, Neath have been prone to producing monumental record breaking seasons and 1928-29 was just such a campaign.

They piled up 930 points in their 49 matches (just three points for a try remember back in those days).

Neath won 42 of those games, drawing three and losing just four as they took their third unofficial Welsh championship. It was the first of four such titles between the two World Wars – a golden period in Neath rugby history.

The team was mostly skippered that season by tough forward Tom Evans, the British Army heavyweight boxing champion, whose name invariably crops up when Wales fans select their best uncapped XV. It was he who helped forge Neath’s reputation for warrior forwards.

The headline grabbing act for Neath during the season though was wing Dan Jones who scored a remarkable 59 tries in total.

And, just for the record, Jones scored another 14 tries in other matches – for Glamorgan in the county championship, in the various Welsh trial matches and the GWR international, a pretty high standard of game between railway workers nationwide.

Jones had won his single Welsh cap the previous season against Australia when he endured a testing afternoon against Johnny Wallace, the legendary wing who starred for both Scotland and the Wallabies.

He wasn’t the only star through, far from it. Neath boasted three other Welsh internationals at the tie in Tom Arthur, Arthur Lemon and Harold Jones while on the opposite wing to Jones, his namesake Howie Jones also had his moments, scoring six tries in one home game against Aberavon.

That season, Neath beat rivals Swansea twice but they did lose a third encounter as Swansea and Wales wing Rowe Harding recalls.

“That win is still my proudest recollection of all the games I played for Swansea,” recalled Rowe in his autobiography. “What gave the match a ‘needle’ atmosphere was a talk I had given in which I paid tribute to the Neath team, but said it was a pity they did not have a stronger fixture list.

“The rumour spread that I had said Neath only played rabbits, and for weeks before the match I received rude anonymous postcards holding me up to ridicule, hatred, and contempt. When the teams fielded on the great day, the Neath war-cry was “Play up, the rabbits”, and the supporters carried as mascots toy bunnies of all shapes and sizes.

“Need I say that Neath won, and, the most bitter pill for me, the winning try was scored by Dan Jones who short-punted over my head and scored in the corner. That was my worst moment, and you will understand why our final 21-15 victory over Neath was my finest hour.”