Compiled by JOHN O'SULLIVAN
Welsh centre from 1948 recalls the marvellous skills of Kyle
THERE ARE four players from the Wales team that lost 6-3 to Ireland at Ravenhill in 1948 still alive, Bleddyn Williams, Hadyn Tanner, Emlyn Davies and John Gwilliam. Tanner, a brilliant scrumhalf, is the oldest surviving Welsh international and Lions player at 92 years of age and is currently in a nursing home in Leicester.
Williams, affectionately known as the "prince of centres", was a try scorer that day at Ravenhill with a typically brilliant individual effort. When contacted recently he waxed lyrical about Ireland's outhalf that day, Jack Kyle.
He ventured: "Jackie Kyle was a marvellous, marvellous player. He was a good kicker and a good distributor but when he ran, boy, could he turn it on.
"He scored one of the best tries I have ever seen in the first Test against New Zealand in 1950."
Williams, who still attends internationals, went on to single out Jimmy McCarthy, Karl Mullen and Bill McKay from the victorious team that day."
Millar looks back to 1970 clash
IN THE book “My Greatest Game”, (Bob Holmes and Chris Thau) former Ireland and Lions prop Syd Millar chose a match between Ireland and Wales at Lansdowne Road in 1970 in which the home side prevailed 14-0.
It was to be Millar’s last cap for his country a month short of his 36th birthday in a career that included playing on three Lions’ tours.
Putting the match in context, the previous year, 1969, Ireland and Wales had been involved in a game marred by violence prompted by a punch from which Welsh forward Brian Price broke Ireland flanker Noel Murphy’s jaw. The papers had been full of talk of Irish revenge because the Welsh in ’69 had also denied Ireland a Grand Slam in that match.
Millar explained: “Our game plan was simple. The Welsh thought we were keen to avenge the events of the previous year. Well we were but we didn’t want any nonsense. We approached the game very aggressively but were focused and in the right spirit. The media had created a state of mind amongst the Welsh and we decided to use it to make them feel targeted.”
Ireland targeted two of their chief tormentors in terms of skill the previous year, Gareth Edwards and Barry John, sending Ronnie Lamont through in every lineout to hound the former and Fergus Slattery to make a bee-line for John. It worked a treat.
Irishman in win-win situation
SATURDAY’S MATCH at the Millennium Stadium will be an interesting occasion for the new Welsh Rugby Union sponsorship manager Alex Saul. The Irishman left his former job with ERC to take up his new role with the WRU at the start of the season. He may be one of the few fans in a win-win situation irrespective of the outcome.
EVEN THOUGH Ireland’s official ticket allocation for the match is a little over 5,000 the influx of Irish visitors to Cardiff is expected to boost the local economy to the tune of €21.3 million.
Grand history between sides
THE HISTORY books perhaps best outline the size of the task the Ireland side face in trying to win a Grand Slam against Wales at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday. The two countries have met on eight occasions with the Grand Slam at stake for one or other country.
Ireland chased it on four occasions but the Welsh denied them three times – all in the Principality – in 1926, 1951 and 1969. Only in 1948 did Ireland manage to beat the Welsh, winning their only Grand Slam at Ravenhill. Ireland failed all four times that they tried to deny Wales a Grand Slam.
It doesn’t end there. Wales have prevented Ireland from winning the Triple Crown on 11 occasions, nine times on Welsh land and twice in Belfast. Ireland have prevented the Welsh from winning the Triple Crown on five occasions but only once on Welsh soil.
Warren Gatland’s Wales are chasing a Triple Crown and outright Six Nations Championship victory while Declan Kidney’s Ireland will pursue the same goals with the added incentive of a Grand Slam.
For the record Wales have won 19 Triple Crowns and 10 Grand Slams as against Ireland’s success rate of nine and one respectively.
Interestingly the Triple Crown trophy, which was first awarded in 2006, has only been handled by Welsh or Irish captains; namely Brian O’Driscoll and Ryan Jones.
