James John Jeffery is a former 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...

 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...

 international.

Product of Pontllanfraith

John Jeffery was born in Oakdale

Oakdale, Caerphilly

Oakdale is a large village in Caerphilly county borough, Wales, 9½ miles north of Caerphilly itself, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire...

 and educated at Pontllanfraith

Pontllanfraith

Pontllanfraith is a large village located in the Sirhowy Valley in Caerphilly county borough, south Wales, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. It is situated adjacent to the town of Blackwood, with the Sirhowy River passing through both locations...

 Grammar School, the same school attended by British Lion

British and Irish Lions

The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...

 Alun Pask

Alun Pask

Alun Edward Islwyn Pask was a international rugby union player and captain.Pask was capped twenty-six times by Wales between 1961 and 1967, twenty-three times as a flanker and three times as at number eight. He scored two tries for Wales, the first on his international debut and toured South...

. He played for Welsh Schools in the 1962-63 season and Pontllanfraith School continues to acknowledge his achievements by awarding the annual player of the year trophy in his name.

Newport RFC and the Barbarians

Having played for a series of clubs, he joined Newport RFC in the 1965-1966 season. He played for the club for nearly ten years making 210 appearances, scoring 55 tries and Captaining the team between 1970 and 1972. He also played 10 times for 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...

, including an appearance against 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...

.

Wales caps

In November 1967 he played number 8 for Wales against New Zealand at Cardiff Arms Park

Cardiff Arms Park

Cardiff Arms Park , also known as The Arms Park, is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green, and is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World...

 in a Welsh team that included 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...

, 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"....

 and John Taylor

John Taylor (rugby player)

John Taylor is a Welsh former rugby union player and current commentator. Nicknamed "Basil Brush" thanks to his wild hair and beard, he played as a flanker for London Welsh , and represented Wales 26 times between 1967 and 1973.-Rugby career:Perhaps his most famous moment was in the Five Nations...

. The New Zealand side that day included such greats as Colin Meads

Colin Meads

Sir Colin Earl Meads, KNZM, MBE , is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer. He played 55 test matches , most frequently in the lock forward position, for New Zealand's national team, the All Blacks, from 1957 until 1971.Meads is widely considered one of the greatest players in history...

 and Brian Lochore

Brian Lochore

Sir Brian James Lochore, ONZ, KNZM, OBE is a former rugby union footballer and coach who represented and captained the New Zealand national team, the All Blacks. He played at number 8 and lock, as well as captaining the side 46 times...

. New Zealand won the game scoring two converted tries and a penalty to Wales' single penalty and a drop goal.

The following year he toured Argentina with a Wales team that was captained by John Dawes

John Dawes

Sydney John Dawes OBE is a former Welsh rugby union player, playing at centre, and later coach. He captained London Welsh, Wales, the Barbarians and the British Lions...

.