Gareth Edwards
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Gareth Edwards, born 12 July 1947 in Pontardawe, Wales, is a former Welsh rugby union footballer who plays at scrum-half, considered by many to be the greatest player in the history of the game. He is known in rugby circles merely as 'Gareth', such is his fame and the regard in which he is held.
Edwards was a miner's son from Gwaun-cae-Gurwen. He won a scholarship to the elite Millfield Public School.
He first played for Wales in 1967 at the age of 19. Between 1967 and 1978 Edwards won 53 caps for Wales, including 13 as captain. All his caps were won in succession, he never once had a dip in form or an injury that would allow anybody else to take his place.
He is Wales' youngest ever captain, gaining his first captaincy at the age of 20. During his era the Welsh side dominated the Five Nations Championship, winning the title seven times, including three grand slams.
He also played ten times for the British Lions, playing for the legendary 1971 Lions team that was the only such team to win a series in New Zealand and for the unbeaten 1974 side in South Africa.
Edwards was blessed with extreme pace and married this with strength, agility and guile, scoring twenty tries in internationals. His try for the Barbarians against the All Blacks in 1973 at Cardiff Arms Park, often refered to simply as 'that try', is commonly said to be the greatest ever. The move starting deep with Phil Bennett inside his own 22, and passing through five other pairs of hands before Edwards finished it with a diving score in the corner.
When he wrote his autobiography he was branded a 'professional' and was prevented from coaching or being involved in any way with the sport of rugby union.
In a poll of international rugby players conducted in 2003 by Rugby World magazine, Edwards was declared the greatest player of all time. He now commentates on the game for the BBC and S4C, commentating for the latter in the Welsh language, his mother tongue. A statue of Gareth Edwards stands in the St David's shopping centre, Cardiff.
