Sir Gareth,TV portrait of a treasured superstar
Chief reporter Martin Shipton previews a TV tribute programme to rugby great Sir Gareth Edwards, who turned 70 earlier this year
HE is often considered the greatest rugby union player of all time – but Sir Gareth Edwards has his feet firmly grounded on Welsh soil and feels huge passion and loyalty towards the Welsh people and their communities.
This is perhaps one reason why the former Wales and Lions scrum-half, who celebrated his 70th birthday this year, is still so cherished in his own country, decades after his greatest triumphs on the rugby field.
The documentary Syr Gareth Edwards yn 70 (Sir Gareth Edwards at 70) on S4C follows the sporting great over a number of months and takes him to some of the places that have been important in his life and career. The programme is part of the channel’s Chwedlau-Legends season, held in conjunction with VisitWales’ Year of Legends.
The BBC Wales-produced documentary, to be aired on S4C on Saturday, follows Sir Gareth in his daily life when he’s busy working for the media and raising money for charity, spending time with his family, particularly his grandchildren, and pursuing his passion for fishing and golf.
He said: “When people tell me I work too hard I say: ‘Hey, it was my dad who worked hard, getting up at 4.30am, working three back-to-back shifts to earn a little extra, working in the pits – that is what you call hard work’. No, what I do is not hard work; it takes time, yes, but one day these people won’t want me, they will say: ‘Who’s he? When did he play?’”
Sir Gareth, who was capped 53 times for his country and went on three British and Irish Lions tours, was among the first generation of Welsh rugby players who became international celebrities.
The programme takes him back to the Stade de Colombes, in Paris, where he made his first appearance for Wales against France on April 1, 1967, at the tender age of 19.
There he meets another rugby icon, former All Blacks fly-half Dan Carter, who is among an array of famous names contributing to the programme.
“He had all the skills, the kicking, the passing, the running skills – he was a household name that everyone knew back home in New Zealand,” says Carter.
The programme takes viewers back to Sir Gareth’s childhood. The miner’s son, brought up in Gwaun-cae-Gurwen in the Amman Valley, developed into such a talented athlete at Pontardawe Technical School for Boys that he won a sport scholarship to the celebrated independent school Millfield.
He takes his two sons, Rhys and Owen, to the famous Somerset school, which he could easily have left at the age of 18 to become a top track athlete.
Luckily for rugby followers he became one of the main players in the nation’s success in the 1960s and 1970s, winning three Grand Slams, five Triple Crowns, and five Five Nations titles.
During this head-turning period of success for Cardiff, Wales, the Lions and of course, The Barbarians, his wife, Maureen, was his greatest supporter.
Maureen features prominently as we discover why, at the age of 70, Gareth continues to work tirelessly to raise money for a wide range of charities.
But Maureen warned anyone who’d like to tee up against him for a round of golf that he is not so charitable on the course.
“He can’t relax like other people. He can’t go out and play golf and relax, he has to win,” she says.
This will to win was behind his celebrated career and perhaps provides the drive today to give his best in so many walks of life.
During the programme Sir Gareth tells how he copes with being a celebrity: “What you noticed was when you went out of Wales, you were recognised more, and I saw a huge difference after I went on A Question of Sport.
“In myself I didn’t feel any different, and as I had a strong enough family at home you didn’t have a chance to feel that you’re any different from them.
“At the end of the day, when I went back to Gwaun-cae-gurwen to see my mother, my friends would tell me: ‘Gar, we saw you on Question of Sport, you didn’t know the answer to that question, did you?’
“They’d soon pull you down a peg or two and that’s what friends are for – to put you in your place and to remind you where you come from.”
Maureen says: “It is difficult living with someone who is so active – because he never stops. But I’m used to him, he’s a different character to everyone else I know.”
Sir Gareth admits that Maureen is the boss – although Maureen adds: “But he doesn’t always listen to what I have to say.”
On returning to his home village, Sir Gareth says: “I never thought I’d ever play rugby for Wales – I thought I’d be going down the pits just like my father before me.”
Brynmor Williams, his understudy for many years as scrumhalf for Wales, is one of many former players who speak about his generosity and decency of character: “He is one of the best rugby players of all time, but what stands out more than anything else about Gareth Edwards is that he’s a really nice guy.”
Syr Gareth Edwards yn 70 can be seen on S4C at 7.30pm on Saturday