The first representative game played at the senior age group was against France in Paris on 10 April, 1924. Two weeks later the Welsh side hosted Yorkshire in Cardiff.
Both games were lost, 23-5 in Paris and 22-14 against this weekend’s rivals, Yorkshire. It was four tries each, but two four point drop goals for the visitors earned them a win hey would only repeat twice in the next 30 years.
The Wales Schools U15 team first played in 1904, beating England 22-5 at the Arms Park on 12 March, but the older age group took a further 20 years to come to fruition.
The seeds were sewn at a meeting held on 29 May 1923, at which it was agreed to form an association. This is how the Western Mail reported on the meeting in their editions on 1 June:
WELSH RUGBY UNION AND THE SCHOOLBOYS
The connecting of schoolboy football with the Welsh Rugby Union was the subject of a conference at Cardiff on Wednesday evening, Mr. J. Jarrett (Monmouthshire) presided, and a large number of secondary schools sent representatives. They discussed the best method of organising Rugby football for inter-school and college games, and decided to form an organisation immediately, with Dr. Chalke (Porth County School) as chairman. The meeting agreed to arrange alternative annual “home and home” games with France.
Richard Chalke was headmaster at Porth County School and became the guiding light for more than a decade, acting as chairman from 1923-35. By October 1923 there had been 24 schools which had joined, and regional trials for the international matches took place in December.
The team that faced the French was led by future international John Roberts, from Cardiff HS, and there were three other players who went on to play for the senior Welsh side.
Outside half Windsor Lewis was the first to make the grade, winning his first cap against Ireland in 1926. Watcyn Thomas then joined Roberts in debuting against England in 1927, John Bartlett made his first appearance in against the Scots later in the same Five Nations tournament, and Guy Morgan was then picked against the French in the same campaign.
INTERNATIONAL RUGBY WELSH SECONDARY SCHOOLS V FRENCH
The Welsh Secondary Schoolboys XV who are meeting the French lads at Paris today, left Cardiff on Wednesday morning at 11.20am. The party, which numbered 44, was in charge of Dr C. C. Chalk and Mr Eric Evans, president and hon. secretary respectively of the Welsh Secondary Schools Rugby Union. The Welsh team and reserves are as follows: C. Michael (Neath CS); J. D. Bartlett (Llandovery College), J. Roberts (captain, Cardiff HS), W. G. Morgan (Christ College, Brecon), C. Cameron (Ammanford C.S); I. K Thomas (Carmarthen GS), Windsor Lewis (Christ College, Brecon): Watcyn Thomas (Llanelly CS), D. McArthur (Cardiff HS), P. Green (Neath CIL), D. H Davies (Llandovery College), J. Hughes (Newport MSS), H. Jones (Neath CS), H. Walker (Cardiff Howard Gardens), H. Mills (Mountain Ash)
Reserves: Forwards – P. Thomas (Ammanford CS), T. Cowling (Gowerton CS); half-back – S. Rowell (Llanelly CS); threequarters – W. E Phillips (Carmarthen GS), H. Hallam (Newport HS)
The first game against England came post-WW2 in 1945, while in 1956 the Welsh Secondary Schools became the first Welsh national team to go on a major tour. Their first big adventure was to South Africa and five members of that touring party will be guests of honour at the game on the weekend and at the post-match dinner – Jack Davies, Dai Jones, Jack Davies, Dewi Jones, Brian Skirrow and Maurice Palmer.
WRU President Terry Cobner, who won a cap against France while he was at West Mon School in 1964, is another major guest, along with three former tour captains in Jonathan Evans, David Bryant and Gareth Williams.
