Welsh ace Dave beat Alun Wyn to four Slams
If only the gods had stayed onside for another 30 seconds or so in Paris, Alun Wyn Jones would have been praised still higher to the heavens. He would have been acclaimed as the first Welshman to win a fourth Grand Slam. The notion had been given such widespread credence that the obligatory after-match interview brought the captain commiserations, the cruellest of near-misses having robbed him of a place among the chosen very few. All that historic guff can be exposed today as so much bunkum.
Jones missed out on being the first Welshman to achieve a quartet of Slams not by half a minute but by 98 years. Dave Davies, born and bred in Pembroke Dock, died more than half a century ago and yet his story, long shrouded in the mists of time, can never have been more relevant.
Given his habitual disdain of ‘the media’, it would not have been surprising had Jones interrupted the post-match touchline interview at the Stade de France and told his inquisitor to check their facts: “Me the first Welshman to win four Grand Slams? Come off it…”
For some of those who went before him, a Welsh birthplace was more by accident than design, because their English parents just happened to be stationed there, like the Arsenal footballer Wally Barnes, born in Brecon, who played for Wales and the Bath centre Simon Halliday, born in Haverfordwest, who played for England.
Davies did not belong to that category. His parents were Welsh, he spent his formative years in Pembroke Dock and served two apprenticeships, one in the naval dockyard as a constructor engineer, the other at the then recently formed rugby club now known as Pembroke Dock Harlequins.
In 1911, when Wales completed their first back-to-back Grand Slams under Swansea’s Billy Trew, Davies made his debut for the Royal Navy, his rising career in the senior service having taken him from Pembroke to Portsmouth. Two years later, he was playing for England.
There is no record of anyone objecting because they tended not to back then. It is unlikely that anybody from the RFU cited Pembrokeshire’s description as ‘little England beyond Wales’ and declared: ‘That’ll do’.
Acclaimed as a ‘great’ fly-half, his greatness appeared to know no bounds. He stands supreme as the only captain to lead England into more than ten matches and emerge unbeaten, winning ten out of eleven and drawing the other, against France in 1922.
He appeared 22 times for England and lost only once, on debut against South Africa in 1913. With their Welshman at the helm, England won the Slam that year and again the next.
Davies served throughout the Great War on two dreadnought battleships, HMS Iron Duke of Battle of Jutland fame and HMS Queen Elizabeth. Made an OBE in recognition, he resumed normal service on the rugby field after a five-year gap in an almost completely new England team.
Davies won a third Slam in 1921 and a fourth two years later as captain whereupon he retired at the age of 32. He made a lasting impression on all concerned, from the humblest matelot to King George V, a regular attender at Twickenham for England and InterServices.
One of the King’s equerries sent a note to England’s Welsh captain after the 1923 campaign: “The King wishes me to let you know how delighted he was to hear of the victory of the England team in Paris and to congratulate you on being captain of the winning team in all your matches.
“His Majesty feels sure that you must have created a record by this fitting termination to your brilliant career in international football.’’
James Baxter knew Davies the flyhalf as well as anyone in his role as chairman of England selectors a century ago. Baxter, ‘Bim’ to his friends, was a man of many parts: Birkenhead Park and England, Olympic oarsman, international referee, Lions’ tour manager and captain of Royal Liverpool Golf Club.
“It is my firm conviction,’’ he once said. “That WJA Davies was not only the greatest match-winner who ever put on a football boot but as captain of the national fifteen he was essentially the right man in the right place.
“Idolised by the men under him, trusted to the full by the Rugby Union and all its officers, his lovable personality and intense enthusiasm for the game marked him out as the ideal captain.
“Under his leadership England never lost a match and I think I may say without fear of contradiction that she never expected to lose one, so supreme was the confidences placed in his prowess and in his unfailing ability to rise to the occasion.’’
From start to finish, Davies’ club team never changed – United Services, Portsmouth, then one of the most powerful in the game. Geraint Ashton Jones, former Premiership and European Cup referee, is writing a book on the history of Royal Navy rugby.
“William John Abbott Davies, Dave to all and sundry, will be a big part of it,’’ he says. “I have no doubt that he was the greatest of all Royal Navy rugby players and it’s gratifying to know that he hasn’t been forgotten.’’
Dave Davies retired from the Navy at the rank of commander. He never went back home but lived not far from Twickenham in Richmond where he died on April 24, 1967 at the age of 76. Only one Englishman, Jason Leonard, has matched his four Slams and no Welshman, not even Alun Wyn Jones.
Maybe Pembroke Dock Quins, from Division 5 West of the Welsh League, ought to consider invoicing the RFU for services rendered to four Grand Slams, interest-free.
“WJA Davies was the greatest match-winner to put on a boot”