Reg Skrimshire
Encyclopedia
Reginald "Reg" Truscott Skrimshire (30 January 1878 - 20 September 1963) was a Welsh
international rugby union
forward who played club rugby for Newport and county rugby for Kent. He won three caps for Wales
and was the only Welsh representative on the 1903 British Isles tour
.
in 1878, and educated at Monmouth School
. After playing his early rugby with Blaenavon
he moved to first class side Newport. He made his Newport debut against English side Moseley
in 1897, and in his first season scored 16 tries
in 24 matches, a good return for a centre. Skrimshire was regarded as a fast and agile runner who had a cool head and good positional ability, though he was noted as being greedy with the ball and needed to release more to his wing players.
Skrimshire was first selected for Wales against England on the 9 January 1899 at St Helens
in front of a Welsh record crowd of 20,000. Wales ran out comfortable winners and Skrimshire was back in the team for the Scotland game two months later. Although Wales lost the match against Scotland, he retained his place for the final game of the 1899 tournament
against Ireland. Ireland won the a much disrupted game, caused by crowd trouble, and took the Triple Crown
. It would be Skrimshire's last match for Wales.
In 1903 Skrimshire was selected for Mark Morrison's
British Isles
team to South Africa
. Skrimshire was the only Welsh representative but integrated well and played in all but one of the 22 matches including all three tests against the South African team. Skrimshire was the only threequarter to have improved his reputation during the tour and scored an excellent try in the first test at Johannesburg. He finished the tour as the team's highest scorer and would later move to South Africa
and played for Western Province
.
, England in 1963.
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...
forward who played club rugby for Newport and county rugby for Kent. He won three caps 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...
and was the only Welsh representative on the 1903 British Isles tour
1903 British Lions tour to South Africa
The 1903 British Isles tour to South Africa was the fifth tour by a British Isles team and the third to South Africa. It is retrospectively classed as one of the British Lions tours, as the Lions naming convention was not adopted until 1950....
.
Rugby career
Skrimshire was born in CrickhowellCrickhowell
Crickhowell is a small town in Powys, Mid Wales.-Location:The name Crickhowell is taken from that of the nearby Iron Age hill fort of Crug Hywel above the town, the Welsh language name being anglicised by map-makers and local English-speaking people...
in 1878, and educated at Monmouth School
Monmouth School
Monmouth School is an HMC boys' boarding and day school in Monmouth, Monmouthshire in south east Wales. It was founded in 1614 by William Jones. It is run as a trust, the William Jones's Schools Foundation, by the Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, one of the Livery Companies...
. After playing his early rugby with Blaenavon
Blaenavon RFC
Blaenavon Rugby Football Club are a Welsh rugby union club based in the town of Blaenavon, South Wales. Blaenavon RFC is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Newport Gwent Dragons....
he moved to first class side Newport. He made his Newport debut against English side Moseley
Moseley Rugby Football Club
Moseley Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union club, based at Billesley Common in Birmingham, that competes in the RFU Championship. The club was historically the premier rugby club in Birmingham, reaching the final of the John Player Cup three times in the late 1970s and early 1980s...
in 1897, and in his first season scored 16 tries
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...
in 24 matches, a good return for a centre. Skrimshire was regarded as a fast and agile runner who had a cool head and good positional ability, though he was noted as being greedy with the ball and needed to release more to his wing players.
Skrimshire was first selected for Wales against England on the 9 January 1899 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...
in front of a Welsh record crowd of 20,000. Wales ran out comfortable winners and Skrimshire was back in the team for the Scotland game two months later. Although Wales lost the match against Scotland, he retained his place for the final game of the 1899 tournament
1899 Home Nations Championship
The 1899 Home Nations Championship was the seventeenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 5 January and 18 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales....
against Ireland. Ireland won the a much disrupted game, caused by crowd trouble, and took the Triple Crown
Triple Crown (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, the Triple Crown is an honour contested annually by the four national teams of the British Isles who compete within the larger Six Nations Championship: England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. If any one team manages to win all their games against the other three they win the...
. It would be Skrimshire's last match for Wales.
In 1903 Skrimshire was selected for Mark Morrison's
Mark Coxon Morrison
Mark Coxon Morrison was a Scottish rugby union footballer who captained both Scotland and the British Isles. He played for Scotland twenty three times between 1896 and 1904, and captained the team fifteen times, a record which stood until the era of Arthur Smith, sixty years later...
British Isles
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
team to South Africa
1903 British Lions tour to South Africa
The 1903 British Isles tour to South Africa was the fifth tour by a British Isles team and the third to South Africa. It is retrospectively classed as one of the British Lions tours, as the Lions naming convention was not adopted until 1950....
. Skrimshire was the only Welsh representative but integrated well and played in all but one of the 22 matches including all three tests against the South African team. Skrimshire was the only threequarter to have improved his reputation during the tour and scored an excellent try in the first test at Johannesburg. He finished the tour as the team's highest scorer and would later move to South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
and played for Western Province
Western Province (rugby team)
DHL Western Province is a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. The team has won the Currie Cup on 32 occasions and has the most supporters of any Currie Cup team...
.
Personal history
Reginald Skrimshire was a civil engineer who worked mainly in Ceylon, Southern Africa and India. Employed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office he built railways and bridges in the former British Empire, his most notable work being the railway from Johannesburg to the Victoria Falls, including the famous bridge over the falls. He died at Swan Dean Hospital in High SalvingtonHigh Salvington
High Salvington is a neighbourhood of the Borough of Worthing in West Sussex, England. It lies north of the A27 2.9 miles northwest of the town centre....
, England in 1963.