Billy Hullin
Encyclopedia
William Gwyn "Billy" Hullin (born 2 January 1942) is a former Welsh
international rugby union
scrum-half who played club rugby for Cardiff
and London Welsh. He represented the Barbarians
and played county rugby for Surrey and the London Counties. Hullin was capped only once for Wales
, being unfortunate to be playing at the same time as Gareth Edwards
, one of the greatest scrum-halves in world rugby. Despite his lack of international caps, he was a regular first team club player, and toured overseas, with Cardiff, London Welsh and the Barbarians. He was also a successful Sevens
player, finishing in the winning team in both the Snelling Sevens
and the Middlesex Sevens.
, in Swansea
, Hullin played rugby as a boy, representing his school Dynevor Grammar, and progressed to play for the Wales Secondary Schools team. As a senior Hullin played for Mumbles
before switching to Aberavon
, where he was part of the team that helped the club win the unofficial Western Mail Championship for the only time. He spent a brief season at Swansea RFC before being selected by Welsh rivals Cardiff in the 1963/64 season. By the following season he was a first team regular, playing in 33 matches and scoring 12 tries. In the 1966/67 side he was made vice-captain of the senior team under Keith Rowlands
.
Hullin's most notable game was for Cardiff occurred on 5 November 1966 when he was part of the team that faced John Thornett
's touring Australian team. Cardiff won the match 14 - 8, their fourth successive win over the Australian national side. Hullin was influential throughout, scoring the match-winner after out-smarting his opposite number Ken Catchpole
, scoring a try
and a drop goal. He also made the break for Ken Jones
to score a try. The 1966/67 season also saw Hullin break into the Wales squad when he was selected for the Welsh opener of the 1967 Five Nations Championship
, played away against Scotland
. Hullin was paired at half-back, with his Cardiff team-mate and fellow international debutant, Barry John
. Despite some excellent players in the team, the Welsh play was unimaginative, often negative, and they lost 11-5. Hullin was dropped the next game and never represented Wales again. Hullin continued to represent Cardiff and was also given his first invite to represent invitational tourists, the Barbarians, that same season. Hullin left Cardiff at the end of the 1968/69 season. He made a total of 152 appearances over 6 seasons scoring 43 tries.
The 1968/69 season ended with the third Barbarians overseas tour. Hullin’s last act as a Cardiff RFC representative, was to tour with fellow Cardiff team-mate John O'Shea
. The African tour took in six matches from 10–26 May 1969. A different member of the touring side was selected to act as team captain for each of the games, and Hullin was given the honour of leading the team out for the encounter against the South African Barbarians
. The South Africans won 23-11.
At the age of 28, Hullin's career in banking had taken him to London, and there he was welcomed into Welsh exiles team, London Welsh. Described as a fine strategist, he spent seven years at the club. In 1972 Hullin was part of the London Welsh team to undertake their first overseas tour, to Ceylon. The team, containing several Welsh internationals, played six matches, winning them all.
player for Cardiff, and represented them in 10 tournaments. Edwards never played Sevens for Cardiff, and Hullin was rewarded with two Snelling Sevens
title wins with the Blues in 1966 and 1969. It was a late try from Hullin in the final against Llanelli
in the 1969 final that gave Cardiff the title. He continued his association with Sevens rugby when he switched to London Welsh, where he played a crucial role in the team's success in the Middlesex Sevens. On 10 May 1975 he was captain of the Welsh Presidents in the Ulster Invitation Centenary Sevens at Ravenhill in Belfast.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
international rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
scrum-half who played club rugby for Cardiff
Cardiff RFC
Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union football club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, but soon relocated to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since...
and London Welsh. He represented the Barbarians
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
and played county rugby for Surrey and the London Counties. Hullin was capped only once for Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
, being unfortunate to be playing at the same time as Gareth Edwards
Gareth Edwards
Gareth Owen Edwards CBE is a former Welsh rugby union footballer who played scrum-half and has been described by the BBC as "arguably the greatest player ever to don a Welsh jersey"....
, one of the greatest scrum-halves in world rugby. Despite his lack of international caps, he was a regular first team club player, and toured overseas, with Cardiff, London Welsh and the Barbarians. He was also a successful Sevens
Rugby sevens
Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
player, finishing in the winning team in both the Snelling Sevens
Snelling Sevens
The Snelling Sevens was an annual Welsh Rugby Union sevens competition that ran from 1954 until 1995....
and the Middlesex Sevens.
Rugby career
Born in the town of LoughorLoughor
Loughor is a town in the City and County of Swansea, Wales, within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales. It lies on the estuary of the River Loughor. The town has a community council called Llwchwr....
, in Swansea
Swansea
Swansea is a coastal city and county in Wales. Swansea is in the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan. Situated on the sandy South West Wales coast, the county area includes the Gower Peninsula and the Lliw uplands...
, Hullin played rugby as a boy, representing his school Dynevor Grammar, and progressed to play for the Wales Secondary Schools team. As a senior Hullin played for Mumbles
Mumbles RFC
Mumbles Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Mumbles, Swansea, south Wales. Mumbles RFC is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Ospreys.-Club history:...
before switching to Aberavon
Aberavon RFC
Aberavon RFC is a rugby union club located in the Welsh town of Port Talbot, although the club's name refers to the older settlement of Aberavon which lies on the western side of the town...
, where he was part of the team that helped the club win the unofficial Western Mail Championship for the only time. He spent a brief season at Swansea RFC before being selected by Welsh rivals Cardiff in the 1963/64 season. By the following season he was a first team regular, playing in 33 matches and scoring 12 tries. In the 1966/67 side he was made vice-captain of the senior team under Keith Rowlands
Keith Rowlands
Keith Alun Rowlands , was a Welsh international lock rugby union player, later administrator who was the first Chief Executive Officer of the International Rugby Board.-Playing career:...
.
Hullin's most notable game was for Cardiff occurred on 5 November 1966 when he was part of the team that faced John Thornett
John Thornett
John Thornett is a former Australian rugby union player, having played 37 Tests for Australia between 1955 and 1967. He captained Australia on four of the eight occasions that he went on tour....
's touring Australian team. Cardiff won the match 14 - 8, their fourth successive win over the Australian national side. Hullin was influential throughout, scoring the match-winner after out-smarting his opposite number Ken Catchpole
Ken Catchpole
Ken Catchpole OAM, is a former Australian rugby union footballer. A state and national representative half-back, he played twenty-seven matches for Australia, thirteen as captain. Catchpole rose through the ranks at the Randwick club as a young man, before making his debut for New South Wales...
, scoring a try
Try
A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...
and a drop goal. He also made the break for Ken Jones
Ken Jones (rugby player born 1941)
David Kenneth Jones is a former international rugby union player.He was capped fourteen times by Wales as a centre between 1962 and 1966. He scored five tries for Wales...
to score a try. The 1966/67 season also saw Hullin break into the Wales squad when he was selected for the Welsh opener of the 1967 Five Nations Championship
1967 Five Nations Championship
The 1967 Five Nations Championship was the thirty-eighth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Home Nations and Five Nations, this was the seventy-third series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Ten matches were played...
, played away against Scotland
Scotland national rugby union team
The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...
. Hullin was paired at half-back, with his Cardiff team-mate and fellow international debutant, Barry John
Barry John
Barry John is a former Welsh rugby union fly-half who played, during the amateur era of the sport, in the 1960s and early 1970s. John began his rugby career as a schoolboy playing for his local team Cefneithin RFC before switching to first-class west Wales team Llanelli RFC in 1964...
. Despite some excellent players in the team, the Welsh play was unimaginative, often negative, and they lost 11-5. Hullin was dropped the next game and never represented Wales again. Hullin continued to represent Cardiff and was also given his first invite to represent invitational tourists, the Barbarians, that same season. Hullin left Cardiff at the end of the 1968/69 season. He made a total of 152 appearances over 6 seasons scoring 43 tries.
The 1968/69 season ended with the third Barbarians overseas tour. Hullin’s last act as a Cardiff RFC representative, was to tour with fellow Cardiff team-mate John O'Shea
John O'Shea (rugby player)
John Patrick O'Shea is a former international rugby union player.Educated at Lewis School Pengam, along with John Dawes, he was capped five times for Wales as a prop between 1967 and 1968....
. The African tour took in six matches from 10–26 May 1969. A different member of the touring side was selected to act as team captain for each of the games, and Hullin was given the honour of leading the team out for the encounter against the South African Barbarians
South African Barbarians
South African Barbarians is an invitational rugby union club formed in 1960 by Frank Mellish, the former 1951-2 Springbok selector and manager together with former Natal chairman, Harry Stacey, styled along the lines of Barbarian F.C...
. The South Africans won 23-11.
At the age of 28, Hullin's career in banking had taken him to London, and there he was welcomed into Welsh exiles team, London Welsh. Described as a fine strategist, he spent seven years at the club. In 1972 Hullin was part of the London Welsh team to undertake their first overseas tour, to Ceylon. The team, containing several Welsh internationals, played six matches, winning them all.
Rugby sevens
Hullin was also a regular SevensRugby sevens
Rugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
player for Cardiff, and represented them in 10 tournaments. Edwards never played Sevens for Cardiff, and Hullin was rewarded with two Snelling Sevens
Snelling Sevens
The Snelling Sevens was an annual Welsh Rugby Union sevens competition that ran from 1954 until 1995....
title wins with the Blues in 1966 and 1969. It was a late try from Hullin in the final against Llanelli
Llanelli RFC
Llanelli Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club founded in 1875 and its senior team is one of the leading club sides in Wales. The club began the 2008-09 season at their historic home ground of Stradey Park in Llanelli, but moved in November 2008 to the new Parc y Scarlets in adjacent...
in the 1969 final that gave Cardiff the title. He continued his association with Sevens rugby when he switched to London Welsh, where he played a crucial role in the team's success in the Middlesex Sevens. On 10 May 1975 he was captain of the Welsh Presidents in the Ulster Invitation Centenary Sevens at Ravenhill in Belfast.