Cliff Pritchard
Encyclopedia
Cliff Pritchard was a Welsh
international centre who played club rugby for Newport RFC and Pontypool RFC
. Pritchard was capped on five occasions and scored two tries for his country. He is best known as one of the Welsh squad that beat the 1905 touring All Blacks.
Pritchard was first capped for his country in a winning game against Scotland in 1904; he was paired with seasoned international Rhys Gabe
as a replacement for Gwyn Nicholls
. His debut was reported in the South Wales Evening Post
as "Once Pritchard got over early nervousness, he settled down to tackle well"
Pritchard was not the first choice for the game against New Zealand in 1905, as Pritchard was a forward player and the role he was required to fill in at the edge of the scrum, for this particular game, required speed and vision. He was known by the Welsh as the 'extra back' as his role required him to play up close to the scrum in defence, but also as an additional prong of attack. On the day of the match against the All Blacks, Pritchard proved he had taken his role seriously and executed his position as a roving player to neautralise the New Zelender loose head during scrum play with great skill. Pritchard was also part of the game's only try when he managed to collect a low pass from Dicky Owen
, he drew the New Zealand centre Bob Deans
and passed to Gabe, who in turn passed to the try scorer Teddy Morgan
.
International matches played 1906 1904 1905 1904, 1906
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 centre who played club rugby for Newport RFC and Pontypool RFC
Pontypool RFC
Pontypool Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in the town of Pontypool. Pontypool RFC has a long history within Welsh rugby and is one of the most notable clubs, being present at the formation of the Welsh Rugby Union in 1881, but disbanding before the turn of the 19th century...
. Pritchard was capped on five occasions and scored two tries for his country. He is best known as one of the Welsh squad that beat the 1905 touring All Blacks.
International career
Rhys Gabe
Rhys Thomas "Rusty" Gabe born as Rees Thomas Gape, was a Welsh rugby union player who played club rugby for Llanelli, London Welsh and Cardiff and gained 24 caps for Wales, mainly as a centre.-Rugby career:...
as a replacement for Gwyn Nicholls
Gwyn Nicholls
Erith Gwyn Nicholls was a Welsh rugby union player who gained 24 caps for Wales as a centre. Nicholls was known as the "Prince of Threequarters"....
. His debut was reported in the South Wales Evening Post
South Wales Evening Post
The South Wales Evening Post is a tabloid daily newspaper that distributed in South West Wales. The paper has three daily editions - Swansea, Neath and Port Talbot and Carmarthenshire and is published by South West Wales Publications, part of the Northcliffe Media group. The current editor is...
as "Once Pritchard got over early nervousness, he settled down to tackle well"
Pritchard was not the first choice for the game against New Zealand in 1905, as Pritchard was a forward player and the role he was required to fill in at the edge of the scrum, for this particular game, required speed and vision. He was known by the Welsh as the 'extra back' as his role required him to play up close to the scrum in defence, but also as an additional prong of attack. On the day of the match against the All Blacks, Pritchard proved he had taken his role seriously and executed his position as a roving player to neautralise the New Zelender loose head during scrum play with great skill. Pritchard was also part of the game's only try when he managed to collect a low pass from Dicky Owen
Dicky Owen
Dicky Owen was a Welsh international scrum-half who played club rugby for Swansea RFC Owen is seen as one of the greatest Welsh scrum-halves and won 35 caps for Wales between 1901 and 1912, a record that was unbeaten until 1955 when Ken Jones surpassed him.-Influence in rugby:Born Richard Morgan...
, he drew the New Zealand centre Bob Deans
Bob Deans
Bob Deans was a former All Black and Canterbury rugby union player....
and passed to Gabe, who in turn passed to the try scorer Teddy Morgan
Teddy Morgan
Edward "Teddy" Morgan was a Welsh international rugby union player. He was a member of the winning Wales team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks and is remembered for scoring the winning try...
.
International matches played 1906 1904 1905 1904, 1906