The 11-5 victory over Ireland by Bert Winfield’s 1908 Welsh side at Balmoral Showgrounds in Belfast created a piece of rugby history as Wales became the first team to notch the fabled Grand Slam.
There were two more to follow in 1909 and 1911, with the Swansea threequarter Billy Trew and Abertillery forward Jim Webb figuring in all 12 matches, as the first ‘Golden Era’ made Wales one of the greatest teams in the world.
But then came the long wait. It was 39 years before Wales tasted Grand Slam success again.
Under the leadership of John Gwilliam they scooped the top prize in 1950 and 1952 before there was another big break. This time it was a 29 year gap before the second ‘Golden Era’ kicked-off with a 1971 clean sweep under John Dawes.
The super Seventies saw further Slams in 1976 and 1978, as well as Triple Crowns in 1976, 1977 and 1979, but the familiar lull followed.
There was a Grand Slam chance in 1988, dashed by the French in Cardiff in the last match, before 2005 came out of the blue.
But the Grand Slam trailblazers were the 1908 team that contained some of the greatest names in the history of Welsh rugby. Trew, Swansea scrum half Dickie Owen, Pill Harriers hooker George Travers and Cardiff backs Percy Bush, Johnnie Williams and Reggie Gibbs rank among the all-time greats of the game.
Three of the players who featured in the four games were to become casualties of the First World War. Williams, Charlie Pritchard and Dick Thomas were all killed in action in the space of 37 days at the Somme.
Another, the diminutive scrum half wizard Owen, all 5ft 3in and 9st 3lbs of him, tragically took his own life at the age of 55. Capped 35 times, Owen was the first in the line of world class Welsh scrum halves that continues to this day in Mike Phillips and Dwayne Peel.
Having beaten England away from home in their opening match, just as they did this year, the 1908 side struggled to beat the Scots in Cardiff. Then came the first fixture against the French and a record victory.
Finally, it was off to Belfast for the Triple Crown decider. Up until that time the Holy Grail had always been the Triple Crown, achieved by beating England, Scotland and Ireland. Arthur Gould’s 1893 team were the first Welsh side to reach that goal and Billy Bancroft’s 1900 outfit did the same.
Gwyn Nicholls’s 1902 side secured a third Triple Crown and Willie Llewellyn was skipper of the 1905 winners. Wales were one of the most powerful teams in the world game at the turn of the century, confirmed by their epic 3-0 win over New Zealand, and the three Grand Slams in four seasons confirmed their status.
Not that the ‘Grand Slam’ was considered to be of much consequence at the time – nor for many years to come as the French flitted in and out of the tournament for various reasons. In fact, the phrase ‘Grand Slam’ didn’t become a recognised part of the rugby vocabulary until England’s triumph in 1957 when it was used by ‘The Times’ to describe their clean sweep of that season.
But nowadays everyone knows what it means to complete a Grand Slam and Ryan Jones and his men will be playing for much more than the title and their bonus cheques on Saturday. If they can continue their winning ways then Welsh rugby immortality beckons – just as it did for the 1908 pioneers.
The photograph is of the Wales team that played Ireland in 1908
Back Row (left to right): A Webb, G Hayward, EJ Thomas, TH Evans, W O’Neil, WH Dowell
Middle Row (left to right): G Travers, RA Gibbs,WJ Trew, HB Winfield (Captain), RT Gabe, JL Williams, J Watts
Front Row (left to right): RH Jones and R Owen
