WALES V IRELAND CLASSICS

1914 – March 14. IRELAND 3 WALES 11 (at Balmoral, Belfast).
This match is remembered as ‘The Roughest Ever’ and was the day of ‘The Terrible Eight’, who were the Welsh pack that won the battle against eight very strong Irish opponents.
Wales captain, the Reverend Alban Davies, stated that he had heard no complaints from the Irish players, who had begun the niggling by coming into the elsh hotel on the eve of the match.
Ireland’s pack leader Doctor William Tyrell told Welsh forward Percy Jones: “It’s you and me for it tomorrow.” Jones, a colliery foreman, smiled and answered: “I shall be with you, doing the best I can.”
Another Wales forward asked: “Can anyone join in ?” And so they did!
Players fought when the ball was not near themand some should have been sent off, but Mr.Tulloch, the referee from Scotland, took little notice.
It was one of the all-time best punch-ups and Jones said: “The fun just went on and on.”
But after the match Jones was told by Tyrell that he was the best Welshman he had ever come across, adding: “You’re the only Welshman who ever beat me.”
The pair signed each others menu-card and in 1951, the president of the IRU, now Sir William Tyrell, and retired collier and now hotelier, Percy Jones, sat together during the match in Cardiff.
Ireland led with skipper Alex Foster’s try, but Wales clawed back the lead with Bedwelty Jones scoring the equalising try. Two weeks later he signed for Oldham Rugby League club.
Selected Irish captain Dicky Lloyd was photographed before the match with his team, but strained a tendon in the warm-up and Harry Jack was called up for his second cap, playing at scrum half with Victor McNamara switching to outside half. Jack’s third cap came in 1921 and he later became president of the Fiji Rugby Union.
For the first time Wales’s pack had remained unchanged throughout the season, but the First World War now intervened and Wales did not play an official match for five years and one month.
The Rev. Alban Davies died in Los Angeles at the age of 90, while both Tyrell and Jones lived to the age of 82, dying within six months of each other.
Scorers.
Ireland – Try: Alec Foster .
Wales – Tries:  Bedwelty Jones, Ivor Davies, Jack Wetter. Con: Clem Lewis.
 
1936 – March 14. WALES 3 IRELAND 0 (at the Arms Park, Cardiff).
Westgate Street was overrun by fans who rushed the gates which had been closed two hours before the kick-off. The police were overwhelmed and the fire brigade was called from the station just opposite the Arms Park. They hosed the crowd, after having already cleared water off the pitch.
The ground capacity was broken and it was probably close to 70,000 who entered, standing all around the touchlines very much as had happened in the 1923 F.A.Cup final at Wembley. Referee Cyril Gadney of England had great trouble in getting in after a steward told him: “We’ve had three referees hear already!”
Ireland were going for their first Triple Crown in 37 years, while for Wales a win would have given them the championship. It was not a great game and a penalty by full back Vivian Jenkins was the only score, coming after 20 minutes when Michael Sayers, an Ireand forward, was penalised for not playing the ball after a tackle.
In the closing minutes, fly half Victor Hewitt had a chance to win the match with a drop goal (then worth four points) but the wind took the ball outside the posts.
The 19-years-old Willie Davies, Swansea’s fly half, was chosen at centre after Claude Davey had withdrawn with a leg injury. Davies, the cousin of scrum half Haydn Tanner, switched successfully to Bradford Northern Rugby League club in 1939.
Scorer.
Wales – Pen: Viv Jenkins.
 
1948 – March 13. IRELAND 6 WALES 3 (at Ravenhill, Belfast).
London Irish prop forward John Daly was carried off shoulder-high, minus his jersey that was torn to shreds by excited Irish suopporters after his try had given Ireland their first Triple Crown since 1899 and took them to their one and only Grand Slam in history.
It was the brilliant Jackie Kyle, possibly the greatest-ever fly half to play Championship rugby for any country, who was the genius behind the title win. He was ably served by Ernie Strathdee and his magnificent Musketeers – the back-row of Jim McKay, Des O’Brien (later a Cardiff captain) and the blond bombshell Jimmy McCarthy.
Kyle made the running for wing Barney Mullan to score a try before a typical side-stepping run by star centre Bleddyn Williams equalised. Then, seven minutes into the second spell it was Daly who became a national hero. The exile prop grabbed the ball after a kick from a lineout and no Welshman could hold him.
It was the seventh and final test for Daly, who had served as an engineer in World War Two. He transferred to Huddesfield Rugby League club later that year and in 1952 played for Featherstone Rovers in a Wembley Cup final. He died in 1988, one month short of his 72nd birthday.
Scorers.
Ireland – Tries: Barney Mullan, Jack Daly.
Wales – Try: Bleddyn Williams.
 
1950 – March 1. IRELAND 3 WALES 6 (at Ravenhill, Belfast).
Wales won their first Triple Crown for 39 years, but the winning try came with only three minutes remaining and even then it was after a anxious wait, which in these times would have involved a television referee.
At 3-3, the great Jackie Kyle took a bad pass from Ray Carroll at a scrum and found Ray Cale coming hard at him. Cale put in the tackle and fly half Billy Cleaver was in support to send the loose ball to centre Lewis Jones, who drew full back George norton and gave his Devonport Services colleague Malcolm Thomas a good pass on the left wing.
Thomas, really a centre, but a most versatile performer, who later skippered Wales at fly half and was a Lions full back, put his head back and went for the corner flag. Several fling Irish defenders hit him as he crashed into the flag over the line.
After agonising seconds, referee Beattie of Scotland raised his arm and a try was awarded, but it was due to the honesty of Irish touchjudge Ossie Glasgow, who signalled that Thomas had grounded the ball before hitting the flag.
Wing Ken Jones had given Wales the lead after a pointless first-half, when he collected a Jack Matthews pass to shjow his Olympic sprinting pace. Norton kicked an equalising penalty after 57 minutes and wing forward Jimmy McCarthy almost put Ireland ahead, only for Cleaver to dive underneath him and minor the ball.
On the following morning, Sunday, a Tudor V aircraft crashed at Llandow, near Cowbridge in the Vale of Glamorgan. Eighty Welsh supporters died and only three survived as those in a second plane witnessed the worst civil disaster in history to that time.
Scorers.
Ireland – Pen: George Norton.
Wales – Tries: Ken Jones,. Malcolm Thomas.
 
1976 – February 21.  IRELAND 9 WALES 34 (at Lansdowne Road, Dublin).
Wales took the Triple Crown for the thirteenth time, though it was a far harder match than the scoreline suggested.
It was only 10-9 at half-time, with Gerald Davies having scored the only try. Phil Bennett kicked Wales to 16-9 and then came three tries in a five-minute spell.
Davies started it with his second try and scrum half Gareth Edwards burst over for a record-breaking eighteenth try for Wales and equalled Teddy Morgan’s effort of tries in five successive matches.
The best was left until almost the last as Wales were now in full flow and none better than the brilliant half back partnership of Bennett and Edwards, served ably by captain Mervyn Davies and his pack.
It was ‘Benny’ who produced a classic try in the right hand corner to resemble the one he had scored for the Lions in the third test of their 1974 unbeaten tour of South Africa.
Centre Ray Gravell charged at the defence, back came the ball and Bennett, in his best hopping-style, was over for a delightful score. He followed with a superb touchline conversion that gave him 19 points in the match to equal those scored by Jack Bancroft and Keith Jarrett.
Skipper Mervyn Davies became the most-capped Wales forward, winning his 37th to surpass Denzil Williams of Ebbw Vale.
Scorers.
Ireland –  Pens: Barry McGann (3).
Wales – Tries: Gerald Davies (2), Gareth Edwards, Phil Bennett. Cons: Phil Bennett (3).
Pens: Phil Bennett (3), Allan Martin.
 
1987 – (WORLD CUP) May 25.  IRELAND 6 WALES 13 (at Athletic Park, Wellington, NZ).
Wales won their opening match of the first Rugby World Cup that was held in New Zealand and Australia and in which New Zealand went on to defeat France in the final at Auckland, while Wales gained a creditable third-place after defeating Australia 22-21 at Rotorua.
It was at windy Athletic Park, Wellington that Wales and Ireland met in their opening Group fixture, just 51 days after Ireland had won 15-1 in the championship at Cardiff.
This time it was Wales who were the winners however with Richard Moriarty of Swansea leading the side at lock alongside Bob Norster of Cardiff and Richard’s brother, Paul, was at No 8.
Jonathan Davies (Neath) played the commanding role in a swirling wind with Robert Jones (Swansea) providing a sound service. It was Davies and his clubmate, full back Paul Thorburn, who played a part in creating the game’s only try, touched down by Cardiff centre Mark Ring.
Thorburn converted and Davies dropped two smart goals with the reply being only two penalty goals by Ireland centre Michael Kiernan.
It was not a great game, but it was at least a winning one in this new competition. Walesxwent on to beat Tonga 29-16 and Canada 40-9 in the Group, England 16-3 in the quarter-finals, but lost 49-6 to New Zealand in the semi-finals.
Scorers.
Ireland – Pens: Michael Kiernan (2).
Wales –  Try: Mark Ring. Con: Paul Thorburn. DG’s: Jonathan Davies (2).