PLUS: CAROLYN HITT,
COLUMNIST
IN 1968, a 12-year-old boy from Tumble travelled with his father to Cardiff to watch Wales play France at the Arms Park. It proved a special game from both a personal and historical perspective.
For the youngster it was the first and only time his dad – a miner – took him to an international.
For rugby it was a milestone match.
Fifty-eight years after France had joined the home countries to form the Five Nations, Les Bleus finally secured their first Grand Slam.
They did so despite Wales leading 9-3 at half-time on a wet and windswept March afternoon that had turned the turf of the national stadium into a quagmire.
Up front, the Welsh pack were facing a French eight that included the legendary lock Walter Spanghero, a man who Mervyn Davies would later describe as “a beautiful runner and ball player (with the biggest hands I have ever seen) who epitomised all that was best in French forward play”.
The Welsh scrum struggled after prop John O’Shea – father of rugby broadcaster Rick – suffered a rib injury and bravely attempted to soldier on.
In the French midfield the elegant Jo Maso – now the French team manager – was weaving his magic.
And in the battle of the half-backs, the Gallic pairing of brothers Guy and Lilian Camberabero had the edge over a youthful Gareth Edwards and Barry John.
Lilian scored a try while Guy, a 31-year-old shopkeeper, made a conversion, dropped a goal and kicked a penalty.
France’s skipper, the formidable flanker Christian Carrere, also scored a try to seal a momentous Grand Slam.
If it was a massive first for France, that day signalled a significant last for Wales.
Incredibly, that 1968 defeat would be the final loss endured by Wales in a championship match at Cardiff until 1982 – a superlative home record of 27 unbeaten contests.
Fifty years almost to the day from that French Grand Slam, the boy from Tumble will be welcoming players from both those 1968 teams from a rather more elevated position than the patch of the East enclosure he occupied with his father at the Arms Park.
The youngster grew up to captain Wales, earn 21 caps, play for the Lions and is now chairman of the Welsh Rugby Union.
Gareth Davies cherishes the memory of that day with his Dad and is looking forward to marking France’s milestone with a special invitation to some of the biggest names in the history of French rugby to return to the site of their Grand Slam.
“I was talking to a journalist some months ago and he reminded me that this was the 50th anniversary,” he explains.
“So with my emotional involvement also I contacted Bernard Laporte, my counterpart in the FFR, and his deputy, Serge Simon, and they thought it was a fantastic gesture by Wales. The Union will look after them and we shall try and introduce them to some of their opponents on that day.”
While former Welsh and French rivals will share recollections from the field of play, Gareth has never forgotten the viewpoint of an excited schoolboy supporter.
“It was in fact my second match at the Arms Park as I had played for Mynydd Mawr schools v Cardiff Schools the year before and saw the Jarrett match against England. But this was the first and only time my Dad – a collier – took me to the game,” he recalls.
“We got the bus from Tumble to Llanelli and the train to Cardiff. We didn’t have a car so it was quite a day out. And not being one of the crach’ we had East enclosure tickets and we stood behind the railings in the downpour for three hours. Dad was not best pleased but I was made up!”
As a young fly-half himself, Gareth naturally focused on his grown-up counterparts.
“My heroes were Barry John – as BJ was from Gwendraeth – and Gareth Edwards and the half-backs on the other side, Guy and Lilian Camberabero. I couldn’t see further than 9 and 10 even in those days.
“I was first-year grammar school and rugby was taking hold. I was a regular Tumble and Llanelli fan – but never with my father – apart from this one! So this match has emotional memories for me.” So was it a big deal to witness this moment of
Five Nations history for Les Bleus?
“It was a deserved win for France and I have always said that if I had been born another nationality from a rugby perspective, I would choose France. But I didn’t grasp the significance of the Grand Slam at the time – as a 12-year-old I was more disappointed that Barry hadn’t won the game for Wales.”
Yet as the nucleus of both those sides went on to be such great rivals through the next decade, Gareth got first-hand experience of how France became Wales’ biggest challenge in the tournament.
“The ’70s in many ways were dominated by Wales and France – and also in terms of style and quality of play,” he says.
“They were also hugely physical encounters and I experienced playing against the likes of Rives, Skrela, Paperamborde, Blanco, Bertranne, Dintrans, Lescaboura etc in the late 70s early 80s.”
The fading of French dominance
has been mourned by the rugby purists in recent years, particularly those who thrill to the fabled Gallic flair. But the particular appeal of a Wales v France encounter lives on.
“There is great mutual respect and admiration for each other’s game, I believe, and we all appreciate that most matches are physical battles sprinkled with some gold dust in terms of sparkling play,” Gareth reflects.
“This French team is the most physical side of the Six Nations this year, so they will give Wales the most serious test – however, I think that the class of 2018 will compensate me for the loss experienced 50 years ago.”
And how will it feel for the boy from Tumble, who once stood behind the Arms Park railings with his dad, to welcome back those legendary players of 50 years ago as WRU chairman?
“It reflects the great family values that rugby offers – and I am now in a privileged position where I can reemphasise those values. Long may that continue.”