Carwyn James
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Carwyn Rees James (2 November 1929 – 10 January 1983) was a Welsh
rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
player and coach. He won two
Welsh international The Welsh International is an international badminton championship held in Wales since 1928 and is thereby one of the oldest badminton tournaments in the world. The tournament was halted during World War II and until 1956, between 1960 and 1966, ...
caps but is most famous for his coaching achievements with
Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...
, the 1971 British Lions and the
Barbarians A barbarian is a person or tribe of people that is perceived to be primitive, savage and warlike. Many cultures have referred to other cultures as barbarians, sometimes out of misunderstanding and sometimes out of prejudice. A "barbarian" may ...
, with all of whom he beat the
All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...
.


Early life and education

James was born in 1929, the son of a coalminer, in
Cefneithin Cefneithin () is a village and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, in the Carmarthenshire coalfield area. It lies just off the A48 road, 7 miles north west of Ammanford and 9 miles north of Llanelli. Its nearby community villages include Cros ...
in the Gwendraeth Valley. He was educated at the village school, at Gwendraeth Grammar School in Drefach, at Llandovery College, and at Trinity College, Carmathen. He played rugby for and captained Wales Secondary Schools. At Aberystwyth University in his first year he studied Geography, Philosophy, Welsh History and Welsh, and Welsh alone in his final year.


Teaching, navy, espionage

James worked as a Welsh teacher by profession and later a lecturer at
Trinity College, Carmarthen Trinity University College () was a Church University College in Carmarthen, Wales. The institution was founded in 1848 as the South Wales and Monmouthshire Training College, a teacher-training college. It changed its name in 1931 to Trinity ...
. He also served in the navy, and may have done spying work, although was a pacifist later in life.


Rugby playing

James played
fly-half In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16β€ ...
for Llanelli, playing his first game while still at Gwendraeth School. He later played for
London Welsh RFC London Welsh Rugby Football Club () was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, after gaining promotion from ...
. He was capped for Wales twice in 1958, the second time at centre, but would probably have gained more caps had he not been in competition with
Cliff Morgan Clifford Isaac Morgan, (7 April 1930 – 29 August 2013) was a Welsh rugby union player who played for Cardiff RFC and earned 29 caps for Wales between 1951 and 1958. After his playing career ended, Morgan made a successful career in broadca ...
for the fly-half spot.


Rugby coaching

James gained distinction as a coach with Llanelli. In 1970, he refused to leave the changing rooms whilst Llanelli lost to South Africa as a protest to the apartheid in the country of the visiting team to Wales. James was coach of the 1971
British and Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England national rugby union team, England, Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland, Scotland national rugby union team, Scotland, and ...
tour to New Zealand, the only Lions side ever to win a series against the All Blacks. James then continued to coach Llanelli. He coached them to the famous victory over the
All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...
at Stradey Park, Llanelli, in 1972. He then coached them to four Welsh Cups between 1973 and 1976. James also coached the
Barbarians A barbarian is a person or tribe of people that is perceived to be primitive, savage and warlike. Many cultures have referred to other cultures as barbarians, sometimes out of misunderstanding and sometimes out of prejudice. A "barbarian" may ...
to victory over the All Blacks in 1973, including being credited with man management to stimulate
Phil Bennett Philip Bennett (24 October 1948 – 12 June 2022) was a Welsh rugby union player who played as a fly-half for Llanelli RFC and the Wales national rugby union team, Wales national team. He began his career in 1966, and a year later he had taken ...
to make his famous sidestepping run that day. He then coached in Italy, at Rugby Rovigo, from 1977 to 1980, winning a title. James never coached the Welsh national side, largely because of his belief that the coach should chair the selectors' meetings and be responsible for choosing the other selectors. At one stage he applied for the role but then withdrew his application.


Coaching approach

James' coaching style was said to involve quiet words with players and half-suggestions rather than orders. Mervyn Davies said, "He invited us to take personal responsibility for our role but without ever telling us what to do." Mike Gibson said, "We were free to express our ability, free to attack from any situation." He said in some training sessions James would run behind the backs, shouting 'Think! Think! Think!' James was a strong believer in attacking rugby, with the attitude that if a team had possession of the ball it should be able to attack, regardless of the position on the field.


Rugby media work

In his later years he became a noted broadcaster on the game in Wales.


Politics

James was a nationalist and stood as
Plaid Cymru Plaid Cymru ( ; , ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, and often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left, Welsh nationalist list of political parties in Wales, political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from th ...
candidate in
Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...
in the 1970 General Election. He was an opponent of
apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English:  , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...
and during the controversial 1969/70 Springbok tour he prepared the Llanelli team but stayed in the dressing room as a protest. He was a pacifist in his later years.


Personal life

James was very interested in literature. He spoke Russian fluently. James never married, and is believed by many to have struggled with loneliness and possibly been
homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" exc ...
. James suffered serious eczema. Always a smoker, he also consumed significant alcohol in his later years.


Death

In January 1983, 53-year-old James made a visit to the Netherlands as a break after making a television series, and stayed alone at the
Hotel Krasnapolsky The Anantara Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky Amsterdam, colloquially known as Kras'','' is a five-star luxury hotel located on Dam Square in central Amsterdam, Netherlands. Founded in 1865, the hotel has 402 rooms, a convention center, restaurants, and a ...
in
Dam Square Dam Square or the Dam () is a town square in Amsterdam, the capital and most populated city of the Netherlands. Its notable buildings and frequent events make it one of the best-known and most important locations in the city and the country. ...
, Amsterdam. He had stayed with
Cliff Morgan Clifford Isaac Morgan, (7 April 1930 – 29 August 2013) was a Welsh rugby union player who played for Cardiff RFC and earned 29 caps for Wales between 1951 and 1958. After his playing career ended, Morgan made a successful career in broadca ...
before the trip, had invited Alun Richards on the trip, and made entirely normal telephone calls to friends during it. The Western Mail reported that his body was discovered in the bath of his hotel suite, having lain there for some days. Police said he had died of a heart attack and there were no suspicious circumstances.


Legacy

The sports building of
Aberystwyth University Aberystwyth University () is a Public university, public Research university, research university in Aberystwyth, Wales. Aberystwyth was a founding member institution of the former federal University of Wales. The university has over 8,000 stude ...
is named after him, as is the playing field at
Cefneithin RFC Cefnethin Rugby Football Club (Welsh: Clwb Rygbi Cefneithin) is a Welsh rugby union team from Cefneithin, Ammanford, Carmarthenshire . Officially founded in 1929. Cefnethin RFC is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the L ...
. Due to his coaching in Italy, an international tournament, called "Carwyn James Easter Trophy", is held in Pieve di Cento (Bologna). The 12th edition was in 2016. The trophy is for Under 15s sides and has been arranged with the help of Carwyn's nephew, Llyr James. After the conclusion of the
2024 Six Nations Championship The 2024 Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Men's Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) was a rugby union competition that took place in February and March 2024, and featured the men's national teams of England national rugby union tea ...
, WRU chief executive Abi Tierney suggested that the Carwyn James–Roy Bish Cup should be awarded to the winner of the Six Nations game between Wales and Italy.


Bibliography

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References


External links

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Outside Half
'
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
documentary about Carwyn James {{DEFAULTSORT:James, Carwyn 1929 births 1983 deaths Rugby union players from Carmarthenshire Welsh educators Welsh rugby union players Rugby union fly-halves Welsh rugby union coaches Alumni of Aberystwyth University World Rugby Hall of Fame inductees People associated with Trinity University College British & Irish Lions coaches Wales international rugby union players Llanelli RFC players Llanelli RFC coaches London Welsh RFC players Barbarian F.C. players Devonport Services R.F.C. players Welsh nationalists