Clive Ronald Griffiths (born 2 April 1954), also known by the

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

of "Griff", is a Welsh former dual-code international

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 ...

and professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s, and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

ed rugby union and rugby league in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

, at invitational level for the

Barbarian F.C. The Barbarian Football Club, known as the Barbarians, is a Great Britain, British-based invitational rugby union club. The Barbarians play in black and white hoops, though players wear socks from their own club strip. Membership is by invitatio ...

, and at club level for

Llanelli RFC Llanelli Rugby Football Club () is a Welsh rugby union club founded on 30 March 1872. The club's historic home ground was Stradey Park in Llanelli, but they moved in 2008 to the new Parc y Scarlets in adjacent Pemberton. The club song is " ...

, as a full-back, and representative level rugby league (RL) for

, and at club level for St. Helens and

Salford Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...

, as a or , and coached representative level rugby union (RU) for

(Defence Coach), and at club level for

Newcastle Emlyn RFC Newcastle Emlyn RFC () is a Welsh rugby union club based on the outskirts of the town of Newcastle Emlyn, in the community of Adpar, Ceredigion on the north bank of the River Teifi. The club currently plays in the WRU Division One West (Known ...

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 ...

(assistant coach),

Swansea RFC Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Super Rygbi Cymru. The club play at St Helen's Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea and are also known as ''The Whites,'' in reference to their home kit colours. History ...

(assistant coach), Newport Gwent Dragons (assistant coach),

Doncaster Knights Doncaster Knights Rugby Football Club ''(formerly, Doncaster RFC)'' are a professional rugby union club representing the city of Doncaster, England. The club play in the 2nd division of English rugby, the RFU Championship. Being the most prom ...

(two spells),

Worcester Warriors Worcester Warriors are a professional rugby union club based in Worcester, England. They most recently played in Premiership Rugby, the top division of English rugby union, before being suspended by the Rugby Football Union, RFU in September 2 ...

and

RGC 1404 RGC 1404 (Rygbi Gogledd Cymru 1404), formerly "Gogledd Cymru" (, "North Wales"), is a rugby union team founded in 2008 and based in Colwyn Bay, Conwy. They currently play in the Super Rygbi Cymru; after winning Division 1 East at the first atte ...

(in

Colwyn Bay Colwyn Bay () is a town, Community (Wales), community and seaside resort in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales overlooking the Irish Sea. It lies within the historic counties of Wales, historic county boundaries of Denbighshire (h ...

), and representative level rugby league (RL) for

, and at club level for the

South Wales South Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the Historic counties of Wales, historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire ( ...

and the

North Wales Crusaders The North Wales Crusaders () is a professional rugby league club based in Colwyn Bay, Wales. They are the successors to the former Super League club Crusaders Rugby League. Crusaders compete in League 1, the third tier of English rugby leagu ...

, and as of 2018 he is the Director of Rugby at the

Background

Clive Griffiths was born in

Loughor Loughor (; ) is a town in Swansea, Wales. Historic counties of Wales, Historically in Glamorgan, it lies on the estuary of the River Loughor (). The town has a community (Wales), community council under the name Llwchwr. The town is bordered by ...

Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...

, he was affectionately known as "Clive the Ship" after the family pub in nearby

Penclawdd Penclawdd () is a village in the north of the Gower Peninsula in the county of Swansea, Wales. Historically, it was part of Glamorgan. Penclawdd is most famous for its local cockle industry which goes back for many years to Roman times. It fa ...

, he was a pupil at Gowerton Grammar School, he is the father of the rugby league International footballers

Rhys Rhys or Rhŷs is a popular Welsh language, Welsh given name (usually male) that is famous in Welsh history and is also used as a surname. It originates from Deheubarth, an old region of South West Wales, with famous kings such as Rhys ap Tewdwr. ...

and Owain Griffiths.

International rugby union career

He represented 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 ...

and on the international scene he was capped once against

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in his last match for Wales on 17 March 1979. After winning his Wales B cap he was selected on the bench three times previously during the 1979 Five Nations but was an unused replacement.

Rugby league club career

On 16 August 1979 he switched codes signing for St. Helens rugby league club for a world record £27,000 (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £183,200 in 2015), and making his début in the 28–16 defeat by

Widnes Widnes ( ) is an Industrial city, industrial town in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England, which at the 2021–2022 United Kingdom censuses, 2021 census had a population of 62,400. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, ...

in the first round of the 1979 Lancashire Cup at

Knowsley Road Knowsley Road is a former football stadium in Eccleston, St Helens, Merseyside. It was the home ground of St. Helens from 1890 until its closure in 2010. St Helens Town FC played their home fixtures at Knowsley Road from 2002 until 2010. For ...

Eccleston, St Helens Eccleston is a civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, Merseyside, England. At the 2011 United Kingdom census, 2011 census, it had a population of 10,433. Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county ...

on Sunday 19 August 1979. In exactly 100 appearances he scored 598 points from 276 goals, 8 drop goals and 11 tries. After playing his last match for the club against

Hull Kingston Rovers Hull Kingston Rovers (often abbreviated to Hull KR) are a professional rugby league club based in Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, England. The club play home games at Craven Park, Hull, Craven Park and compete in Super League, the top tier of B ...

On 9 October 1984 he joined

. He also coached at St.Helens and

Warrington Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...

before returning to Rugby Union.

Rugby league coaching career

In September 1986, he returned to St. Helens to take up the position of fitness conditioner and a move into coaching the

Wales national rugby league team The Wales national rugby league team represents Wales in representative rugby league football matches. Currently the team is ranked 17th in the IRL World Rankings. The team was run under the auspices of the Rugby Football League, but an inde ...

led to some very creditable performances under his guidance including a

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

semi-final match against the eventual winners

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

with a first half performance that gave Wales a half time lead. He spent 10 years with the Welsh rugby league team, twice guiding them to the semi-final stage of the World Cup and winning the

European Championship A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...

for the first time in 57 years. He also enjoyed a spell as Great Britain rugby league coach in 1996.

Rugby union coaching career

Whilst playing for

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, ...

Griffiths took up his first senior coaching appointment in 1977 at the age of 25 for

. His first professional coaching role in union was with

London Welsh 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 ...

for three seasons before joining

as assistant coach in 2000. He later joined

Mike Ruddock Mike Ruddock, OBE (born 5 September 1959) is a Welsh rugby union coach who was later an interim consultant for Ospreys, having previously coached Lansdowne FC. Ruddock was the Director of Rugby at the Worcester Warriors from 2007 to 2010. He ...

at the Newport Gwent Dragons again as assistant coach. Griffiths was appointed to the Wales Squad Coaching team on 1 July 2001 by Graham Henry and remained a part of the set up through the 2003

Rugby World Cup The Men's Rugby World Cup is a rugby union tournament contested every four years between the top international teams, the winners of which are recognised as the World championship, world champions of the sport. The tournament is administer ...

and five Six Nations campaigns, including the 2005 RBS Six Nations Grand Slam where he was credited for his part in tightening Wales' defensive line, particularly in their tackling performance against England. In May 2006 he joined the then National One side

Doncaster Doncaster ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, Yorkshire, River Don, it is the administrative centre of the City of Doncaster metropolitan borough, and is the second largest se ...

as director of rugby on a two-year deal, leading them to third place in National Division One. Clive Griffiths joined

as Head Coach and assistant to Director of Rugby

in June 2007 on an initial two-year deal. He went on to coach

North Wales rugby club who are being fast tracked into the Welsh Premiership.

Return to rugby league coaching

In November 2011 Griffiths signed a 2-year deal to coach

, the rugby league side risen from the ashes of the former Super League franchise

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding ...

. North Wales play in the Cooperative Championships 1 division. After a winning eight out of 18 games, including three doubles, and just two more victories would have put in them in the end of season play-off competition. The following year The Crusaders won the double and were crowned champions and won the Northern Rail Cup and Griffiths was awarded Championship 1 Coach of the Year.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Griffiths, Clive 1954 births Living people 20th-century Welsh sportsmen 21st-century Welsh sportsmen Barbarian F.C. players Doncaster Knights coaches Doncaster Knights players Dual-code rugby internationals Great Britain national rugby league team coaches North Wales Crusaders coaches People educated at Gowerton Grammar School Rugby league centres Rugby league fullbacks Rugby league players from Swansea Rugby league wingers Rugby union fullbacks Rugby union players from Swansea Salford Red Devils players South Wales RLFC (1995) coaches St Helens R.F.C. players Wales international rugby union players Wales national rugby league team coaches Wales national rugby league team players Welsh rugby league coaches Welsh rugby league players Welsh rugby union coaches Welsh rugby union players Worcester Warriors