George North
Encyclopedia
George Philip North is a Wales international rugby union
player currently playing for the Scarlets in the RaboDirect Pro12, in the position of winger
.
, Wales
, his father is English. His family moved to Hong Kong, on Royal Airforce duty, when he was 14 weeks old. The family returned to Anglesey on 13 January 1995 when he was aged two and he is a fluent Welsh language
speaker. Educated at Llandovery College
in West Wales
, he played as a junior for Llangefni
, Pwllheli
, Rhyl
and Gogledd Cymru under-16s.
Up to the point of his international call-up, North had played six matches for the Scarlets first team, a record restricted by an injury.
on 13 November, making him the joint third youngest player to represent Wales behind Tom Prydie
and Norman Biggs
and equal to Evan Williams
.
North made an impressive start to his international career on Saturday 13 November 2010 in a match against the reigning World Champions, by scoring two tries for Wales as they lost to South Africa 29–25 in the Millennium Stadium
, Cardiff
, Wales
. He set a number of Welsh and international records in the match:
In September 2011 North scored two tries against Namibia, making him the youngest ever try scorer at a Rugby World Cup competition aged 19 years and 166 days and beating the record set by Australian Joe Roff
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...
player currently playing for the Scarlets in the RaboDirect Pro12, in the position of winger
Winger
Winger is an American hard rock band formed in New York City that gained popularity during the late 1980s and early 1990s. The band's two platinum albums, Winger and In the Heart of the Young, along with charting singles "Seventeen", "Headed for a Heartbreak" and "Miles Away", put the band on the...
.
Early life
North was born in 1992 in King's Lynn, Norfolk, his mother is from AngleseyAnglesey
Anglesey , also known by its Welsh name Ynys Môn , is an island and, as Isle of Anglesey, a county off the north west coast of Wales...
, Wales
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...
, his father is English. His family moved to Hong Kong, on Royal Airforce duty, when he was 14 weeks old. The family returned to Anglesey on 13 January 1995 when he was aged two and he is a fluent Welsh language
Welsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
speaker. Educated at Llandovery College
Llandovery College
Llandovery College is an independent school in Llandovery, Carmarthenshire, Wales. It was founded and endowed by Thomas Phillips in 1847 to provide a classical and liberal education in which the Welsh language; the study of Welsh literature and history were also to be cultivated.Llandovery...
in West Wales
West Wales
West Wales is the western area of Wales.Some definitions of West Wales include only Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire, an area which historically comprised the Welsh principality of Deheubarth., an area called "South West Wales" in the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics....
, he played as a junior for Llangefni
Llangefni RFC
Llangefni Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the town of Llangefni, on the island of Anglesey, North Wales. Llangefni RFC is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Scarlets.-History:...
, Pwllheli
Pwllheli RFC
Pwllheli Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the town of Pwllheli, North Wales. Pwellheli RFC is a member of the welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Scarlets....
, Rhyl
Rhyl and District RFC
Rhyl and District Rugby Union Football Club is a rugby union club in Rhuddlan outside Rhyl, North Wales. Rhyl and District RFC is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Llanelli Scarlets....
and Gogledd Cymru under-16s.
Up to the point of his international call-up, North had played six matches for the Scarlets first team, a record restricted by an injury.
International career
After an impressive start to the 2010 season, in October 2010, he was selected to the 33 man squad for the Autumn international series. On 11 November 2010 North was named in the Wales team to face South AfricaSouth 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...
on 13 November, making him the joint third youngest player to represent Wales behind Tom Prydie
Tom Prydie
Tom Prydie is a Welsh rugby union player. A fullback who can also play on the wing, Prydie is the youngest player in the history of Europe's top club competition in the sport, the Heineken Cup, and the youngest player ever to represent the Wales national team.-Early life:Born in Porthcawl, a...
and Norman Biggs
Norman Biggs
Norman Witchell Biggs was a Welsh international rugby union wing who played club rugby for Cardiff and county rugby for Glamorgan. Both Biggs and his brother Selwyn played international rugby for Wales, though they never played together in the same match for Wales...
and equal to Evan Williams
Evan Williams (rugby)
Evan Williams was a Welsh rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1920s who at representative level played rugby union for Wales, and at club level for Aberavon RFC, playing at Centre, i.e...
.
North made an impressive start to his international career on Saturday 13 November 2010 in a match against the reigning World Champions, by scoring two tries for Wales as they lost to South Africa 29–25 in the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...
, Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Wales
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...
. He set a number of Welsh and international records in the match:
- North, aged , became the youngest player ever to score a try in his debut for Wales. The previous record holder was Tom PearsonTom Pearson (rugby player)Thomas William Rory Pearson was a Welsh international wing who played club rugby for Cardiff and Newport and county rugby with Middlesex. He won 13 caps for Wales and captained the team on one occasion, against England. Pearson was an all-round sportsman, representing Wales not only in rugby, but...
, who was aged 18 years, 238 days when he scored against England in 1891. - He also became the youngest player to have scored two tries in his debut, with the opposition being a major rugby nation. (The only younger player to have scored two or more tries in his debut was Gustavo Jorge of ArgentinaArgentina national rugby union teamThe Argentina national rugby team, nicknamed Los Pumas, represents Argentina in international rugby union matches. The team, which plays in sky blue and white jerseys, is organised by the Argentine Rugby Union .Argentina played its first international rugby match in 1910 against a touring British...
, who was not yet 18 when he scored six tries in his debut in 1989—but the Pumas' opponent was BrazilBrazil national rugby union teamThe Brazil national rugby union team is the national side of Brazil, representing them at rugby union. Brazil is a third tier rugby union side, and have yet to make their debut at the Rugby World Cup. Rugby union has been growing substantially in Brazil since 2005 and the number of players is...
, who have never qualified for the World CupRugby World CupThe Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
.) - He also became the youngest player ever to have scored two tries against a major rugby nation, whether on his debut or not. The previous record holder was James O'ConnorJames O'Connor (rugby)James O'Connor is an Australian international rugby union footballer. He made his Wallabies debut in 2008. In the Super Rugby competition he played from 2008 to 2011 with Western Force, and subsequently signed to the Melbourne Rebels for the 2012 season.-Biography:O'Connor is a versatile...
of AustraliaAustralia national rugby union teamThe Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
, who was aged 18 years, 343 days when he scored a hat-trick against ItalyItaly national rugby union teamThe Italy national rugby union team represent the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri . Italy have been playing international rugby since the late 1920s, and since 2000 compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland,...
in 2009. (Taylor Paris of CanadaCanada national rugby union teamThe Canada national rugby union team represents Canada in international rugby union. They are governed by Rugby Canada, and play in red and black. Canada is classified by the International Rugby Board as a tier two rugby nation. There are ten tier one nations, and seven tier two nations, the...
turned 18 in October 2010 and scored two tries in his second appearance against SpainSpain national rugby union teamThe Spain national rugby union team are a national sporting side of Spain, representing them at rugby union. Spain have been playing rugby since the late 1920s, playing their first international against Italy in 1929. They have qualified for one Rugby World Cup, in 1999 where they were pooled with...
on the same day as North's debut, but Spain is also not considered a major rugby nation, although they have qualified for one World Cup.) - North is the first player of any age to have scored two tries while making his debut against South Africa. Over 500 players have made their international debut against the Springboks, and 34 of them had scored tries on their debut before North, but none had scored two tries.
In September 2011 North scored two tries against Namibia, making him the youngest ever try scorer at a Rugby World Cup competition aged 19 years and 166 days and beating the record set by Australian Joe Roff
Joe Roff
Joe Roff is a retired Australian rugby union footballer and a product of the Tuggeranong Vikings Rugby Union Club in Canberra, who played on the wing or at fullback for Brumbies and Australia and played 5 tests as a centre in the early part of his test career...