The Welsh skipper will be playing in his 148th Test match, thus matching the number played by McCaw for the All Blacks, in what will be the 100th meeting between Wales and France.
Jones, now 35, made his Wales debut in 2006 and will be facing the French for a record 15th time – overtaking the record of 14 matches between the two nations he shared with Gethin Jenkins and Philippe Sella. Jason Leonard holds the overall record with 18 appearances for England against the French.
He will also extend his world record of Test starts as a second row to 131, which will move him 10 ahead of Springbok ace Victor Matfield.
Wales first played France on Monday, 2 March, 1908, at Cardiff Arms Park. Tickets cost 4 shillings to sit in the Grand Stand and 3 shillings to stand on the terraces.
A crowd of only 2,000 turned up to watch a game dominated by Wales, who scored nine tries in a 36-4 triumph. Cardiff’s Reggie Gibbs scored four tries and also landed a conversion for a haul of 14 points in the match.
The record between the two nations currently stands at 51-45 in Wales’ favour, with three games drawn. The 1908 victory allowed Wales to notch what is recognised as the first Grand Slam, although it wasn’t until 1910 that France fully entered the Five Nations by playing against every other team.
Wales won the first 15 encounters before the French notched their first win, 8-3, at Stade Colombes on 9 April, 1928. Their first win on Welsh soil followed 20 years later at St Helen’s, Swansea, when they triumphed 11-3, and three tries to nil, on 21 February, 1948.
THE FIRST MEETING
Wales 34 – 4 France – Cardiff Arms Park, 2 March, 1908Wales: Bert Winfield; Teddy Morgan (captain), Rhys Gabe, Billy Trew, Reggie Gibbs; Dick Jones, Dicky Owen; James Watts, Twyber Travers, Billy Dowell, John Alf Brown, Dick Thomas, Jim Webb, Billy O’Neil, George Hayward
Scorers: Tries: R Gibbs 4, T Morgan 2, W Trew 2, R Jones; Cons: H Winfield 2, R Gibbs; Pen: H WinfieldFrance: Henri Martin; Emile Lesieur, Gaston Lane, Maurice Leuvielle; Charles Vareilles, Albert Hubert; Alfred Mayssonnie, Albert Branlat, Paul Mauriat, Pierre Guillemin, Alphonse Masse, Rene von Malmann, Rene Duval, Jacques Dufourcq, Marcel Communeau (captain)
Scorer: DG: C Vareilles
There were some remarkable tales of pre-match revelry by the French players before their first meeting in 1908. This is how the Evening Express, in Cardiff, followed up the story of that first encounter.
SOME AFTERTHOUGHTS FROM A FRENCH RESIDENT IN CARDIFF
First of all, they were not keen enough on the result of the match. They came to Wales for the trip, to admire the Welsh beauties, and thought only of the match as a secondary matter. After two nights’ travel over land and sea, one would expect the players to go to bed early on Sunday night. Instead of that they indulged in bridge and port till an advanced hour, and afterwards found some good jokes to make, such as hiding their diminutive manager’s portmanteau and pyjamas on the wardrobe, bringing down a bath in their trainer’s room, &c. After that they should have slept late in the morning to be fresh for the match, but they were up at eight a.m., and drank champagne and smoked cigars with the Lord Mayor, the French Consul, and the Chamber of Commerce consecutively. On the ground they lost two or three good opportunities through lack of moderation. Another of their defects was the entire absence of cohesion and understanding between the different sections of the team.
BORDEAUX CAPTAIN’S VIEW
When interviewed, M. Giaccardy, captain of the Bordeaux club, who saw the match, said:
“The Welsh were bewildering in their methods and very speedy; their combination disconcerted our men, and the terrible impetuosity of their forwards was maintained all through the game, whilst they continually played to their backs. The Welsh halves were wonderfully nimble, and passed very quickly. As to the three-quarters, the centres were absolutely marvellous. Gabe and Trew simply toyed with their adversaries. As for the French team, the forwards were courageous, and played very well. Hubert at half was remarkable in defence. Maysonnie, the outside half, did not take advantage of the rare occasions he had of attacking. Our three-quarters were overrun, but they did their best, and the slippery turf inconvenienced them badly. Martin at back was very adroit, but those Welsh demons were too fast for him.
