Edgar Long
Encyclopedia
Edgar 'Eddie' Long was a Welsh
international rugby union
flanker who played club rugby for Swansea
and was capped seven times for Wales
. He is best remembered not for his international duties, but for his marshalling of the Swansea pack during the clubs victory of the 1935 touring New Zealand team
.
, the Waratahs
, South Africa
and New Zealand. In the game against New Zealand in 1935, Edgar led the Swansea team as club captain in a notable victory over one of the most impressive rugby teams of the day. Known by many as the game in which schoolboys Willie Davies
and Claude Davey
'beat' the All Blacks, the contribution of Long and the rest of the forwards is often forgotten. In the second half of the game, Long switched the play of his pack into adopting 'spoiling' tactics, matching the New Zealand's own often physical style, in an attempt to slow the game down. The tactics succeeded but resulted in 'unpardonable scenes' in which both sides switched to fist fighting as players tired towards the end of the game. The win for Swansea gave them the record of being the first team to beat all three major Southern hemisphere teams. While club captain during the 1935/36 season, Long was also the seasons top points scorer.
match against England at St Helens
. The game was a surprising 0-0 draw, with many supporters disappointed as both teams had shown flair in beating the touring New Zealanders just a few weeks earlier. Long was recalled for the next two games of the tournament, which saw Wales beat both Scotland and Ireland to win the Championship.
Long retained his place for the first two matches of the 1937 Championship
, but ended on the losing side in both. Long was not recalled for another two years, but in 1939 was selected to represent Wales again against Scotland under the captaincy of Wilf Wooller. Wales won the game 11-3, and when they beat Ireland at Ravenhill
a month later they won Championship again. Long may have been selected for further internationals, but the Ireland game was his last as the outbreak of World War II suspended international rugby for eight years.
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...
flanker who played club rugby for Swansea
Swansea RFC
Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premier Division. Its home ground is St Helens Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea. The team is sometimes known as The Whites because of the primary colour of the team strip...
and was capped seven times 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...
. He is best remembered not for his international duties, but for his marshalling of the Swansea pack during the clubs victory of the 1935 touring New Zealand team
1935-36 New Zealand rugby union tour of the British Isles and Canada
-Matches:-Three-Quarters:* N. Ball * H.M. Brown * G.F. Hart * N.A. Mitchell * C.J. Oliver -Five-eighths:* J.L. Griffiths * T.H.C. Caughey * J.R. Page...
.
Club career
Long joined Swansea in 1925 while still a teenager and spent almost the entirety of his sporting career with the club. While playing with the 'All Whites' he faced several touring teams including the MāorisNew Zealand Maori rugby union team
New Zealand Māori is a rugby union team that traditionally plays teams touring New Zealand. A prerequisite for playing in this team is that the player is to have Māori whakapapa or genealogy. In the past this rule was not strictly applied. In the past non-Māori players who looked Māori were often...
, the Waratahs
New South Wales Waratahs
The New South Wales Waratahs are an Australian rugby union football team, representing the majority of New South Wales in the Super 15 Super Rugby competition...
, South Africa
South Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
and New Zealand. In the game against New Zealand in 1935, Edgar led the Swansea team as club captain in a notable victory over one of the most impressive rugby teams of the day. Known by many as the game in which schoolboys Willie Davies
Willie Davies
Willie Davies was a Welsh international dual-code rugby fly half who played rugby union for Swansea and rugby league for Bradford Northern. He won six caps for the Wales rugby union team and nine caps for the Wales rugby league side...
and Claude Davey
Claude Davey
Claude Davey was a Wales international rugby union player who played club rugby for several teams, most notably Sale and Swansea. He was awarded 23 caps for Wales and captained his country eight times...
'beat' the All Blacks, the contribution of Long and the rest of the forwards is often forgotten. In the second half of the game, Long switched the play of his pack into adopting 'spoiling' tactics, matching the New Zealand's own often physical style, in an attempt to slow the game down. The tactics succeeded but resulted in 'unpardonable scenes' in which both sides switched to fist fighting as players tired towards the end of the game. The win for Swansea gave them the record of being the first team to beat all three major Southern hemisphere teams. While club captain during the 1935/36 season, Long was also the seasons top points scorer.
International career
Long was first capped for Wales in a 1936 Home Nations Championship1936 Home Nations Championship
The 1936 Home Nations Championship was the thirty-second series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Five Nations, and prior to that, the Home Nations, this was the forty-ninth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Six...
match against England at St Helens
St Helens Rugby and Cricket Ground
St. Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground is a spectator venue in Swansea, Wales. It is used for both rugby and cricket.It is owned and operated by the City and County of Swansea council and is also used to host the local annual Guy Fawkes night fireworks display.-History:Since the ground opened in...
. The game was a surprising 0-0 draw, with many supporters disappointed as both teams had shown flair in beating the touring New Zealanders just a few weeks earlier. Long was recalled for the next two games of the tournament, which saw Wales beat both Scotland and Ireland to win the Championship.
Long retained his place for the first two matches of the 1937 Championship
1937 Home Nations Championship
The 1937 Home Nations Championship was the thirty-third series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Including the previous incarnations as the Five Nations, and prior to that, the Home Nations, this was the fiftieth series of the northern hemisphere rugby union championship. Six matches...
, but ended on the losing side in both. Long was not recalled for another two years, but in 1939 was selected to represent Wales again against Scotland under the captaincy of Wilf Wooller. Wales won the game 11-3, and when they beat Ireland at Ravenhill
Ravenhill Stadium
Ravenhill Stadium is located in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is used by Ulster Rugby. It has a normal capacity of 12,300 and is owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union.-History:The grounds were opened in the 1923/24 season...
a month later they won Championship again. Long may have been selected for further internationals, but the Ireland game was his last as the outbreak of World War II suspended international rugby for eight years.
International matches played
Wales 1936, 1937- IrelandIreland national rugby union teamThe Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...
1936, 1939 1936, 1937, 1939