A victory at Pontypool Park would have been a real boost for both the club and Mainwaring, who became the club’s first known centurion on Saturday 23 November.
Mainwaring made his debut for the club in an 11-0 win over Plymouth Albion on 16 February 1948. He was 23 at the time and he scored two tries in the game.
Born in 1923 in Inkerman Row, in Taibach, Mainwaring went to Port Talbot Secondary School with Richard Jenkins (Richard Burton) and played for Aberavon as a winger 1948-51. He then moved to London where enjoyed a 10-year sting playing for London Welsh.
Having scored twice on debut against Plymouth he became an even bigger hero when he scored the only try for the Wizards in a 9-6 win over Llanelli. At the end of the 1947-48 season he played against his home town team for an Enoch Rees XV.
The following season he was top scorer with 15 tries, including the only score in a 3-0 win over Swansea. There were 10 more tries a season later to take his total for Aberavon to 26 overall.
In the summer of 1950 he moved away from the area and joined London Welsh. He came home at Christmas and scored for Aberavon in a 6-6 draw with Neath before playing against the Wizards a few days later for London Welsh.
Happy Birthday Tom!
