Match illustrated Welsh culture

I WENT to watch the Wales v Italy game at the Principality Stadium and it turned out to be a special occasion.

Despite having access to an excellent seat for home internationals high in the stands (for previous services to the game at all levels in Wales), I joined the supporters in the seating close to the pitch at ground level.

Because of the relative lack of demand (there were 5,000 empty seats) I took the opportunity to invite two young Chinese teachers to the game. This chance for cross-cultural experience was not to be missed.

My suggested preparation for the game was that they should watch one of the games on TV on Saturday afternoon, preferably France v England and, of course, shout for France, which I would explain when they met me. The plan was then, over lunch, to give them an exposé of the development and objectives of the game.

The round-ball game is taking a foothold in China and they have great skills in table tennis and badminton, with basketball rising as well. While working there nearly 30 years ago I attempted to introduce rugby in one tiny corner of western China. I had taken a couple of rugby balls with me but found they were not by nature sympathetic to contact sports but “touch rugby” was a possibility.

Raiding my wardrobes, I collected enough red anoraks and added a couple of souvenir scarves so they were “Welsh enough” to walk to the ground.

They immediately began to respond to the atmosphere with the increasing numbers as we moved to join the main throng in Westgate Street with the roads closed and no traffic on the way, the four large police horses in the crowd and finally the drums in full beat. We had a smooth entry into the ground, purchasing memento programmes on the way in, then they finally got their first glimpse of the stadium as we walked around the concourse. It was a great start.

Watching the warm-up of the Welsh team at our end and the close proximity to the exercises undertaken set the pattern. “Could we keep the ball if it came into the crowd?” one asked, but there was no fear of that. The arrival of the choirs and the Welsh Regimental Band led by its mascot added to the build-up.

The singing and anthems were, as usual, superb and the volume as the crowd joined in did not let Wales down.

It was a marvellous match to watch, with a superb contribution from Italy, who played out of their skins. Plenty of action close to us and both visitors jumped up with the locals with their cameras in hand. I even got them into the chants – “Wales, Wales, Wales, heave, heave” and “Oggy, oggy, oggy”.

When the crowd spontaneously broke into Max’s Hymns and Arias I explained that we sing hymns at the matches because rugby to the Welsh is almost a religion.

The atmosphere was outstanding; if only we could bottle it, as it epitomises what the people of Wales offer to the world.

In the after-match discussions with the Chinese visitors they were so full of praise for the feeling of Wales as a nation. I suggested if the stadium had been full of Welsh people only it would have meant that one in every 40 Welsh persons were present while most of the rest would be found in pubs, clubs and at home supporting their country. That is an impossibility in China as the same ratio means they would have to have a stadium holding 30 million people.

Thank you to all the people supporting Wales in the stadium on Sunday, especially those around us, who included many children. You did us proud and supported me in my very best efforts at international promotion of our country by creating a fabulous atmosphere.

MJ Crouch Tonteg