WALES NATIONAL RUGBY UNION TEAM

Why I love rugby? It is hard to say. Maybe because is the greatest team sport, or
maybe because I had vivid memories with it from my childhood. I remember the match
between Romania and Wales in 1988. The match was played in Cardiff and our national team
won.
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a full-contact team sport that
originated in England in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby
football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its most common form, a game is
played between two teams of 15 players each, using an oval-shaped ball on a rectangular field
called a pitch. The field has H-shaped goalposts at both ends.
Countries that have adopted rugby union as their de facto national sport include Wales.
New Zealand, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga.
Rugby union and Wales' national team hold an important place in Welsh culture and
society. Sport historian John Bale has stated that "rugby is characteristically Welsh", and
David Andrew said that "(…) rugby is as Welsh as coal mining (…) and Tom Jones"1
Welsh rugby's first 'golden age' (1900–1911) coincided with the country's zenith
during the 20th century, and rugby was important in building Wales' modern identity.2 There
is a long tradition of Welsh supporters singing before and during matches. The choral
tradition developed in Wales during the 19th century and has extended to singing at rugby
matches. We think that is one of the loveliest gestures in sport, in general, and in rugby in
special.
The Wales national rugby union team represents Wales in men's international rugby
union. Its governing body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), was established in 1881, the
same year that Wales played their first international against England.

Hystory

Wales won the Home Nations Championship (Six Nations Championship in our days)
for the first time in 1893, winning the Triple Crown in the process.3 Wales next won the
Championship in 1900, heralding the first "golden age" of Welsh rugby, which was to last
until 1911.
In 1905 Wales faced New Zealand (The Original All Blacks) at Cardiff Arms Park for
the first time in history. Before the match, New Zealand team performed a haka; the 47,000-
strong crowd responded with the Welsh national anthem –  "Land of My Fathers" – the first
time a national anthem had been sung before a sporting fixture.4
1
Andrews, David (1991), "Welsh Indigenous! and British Imperial? – Welsh Rugby, Culture, and Society 1890–
1914"  in Journal of Sport History. 18 (PDF). 
2
Morgan, Gareth (May 2005). "Rugby and Revivalism: Sport and Religion in Edwardian Wales". The
International Journal of the History of Sport. 22
3
http://www.6-nations-rugby.com/six-nations-history
4
www.rugbymuseum.co.nz
 The post-First World War years marked a decline in Welsh rugby. An industrial
recession struck. Welsh international results in the 1920s mirrored the performance of the
economy
After the Second World War, Wales conducted their first overseas tour in 1964,
playing several games and one test in South Africa.
Wales enjoyed a second "golden age" in the 1970s. Wales dominated Northern
Hemisphere rugby between 1969 and 1979, and managed an incredible winning record, losing
only seven times during that period.

Stadiums

Wales' first home international was played in 1882 at St Helen's Ground in Swansea.
In the 1880s and 1890s, home Welsh internationals were played at Cardiff, Swansea, Newport
and Llanelli. Swansea continued to be used as an international venue until 1954, when Cardiff
Arms Park became Wales' primary home venue. Cardiff Arms Park first had a stand erected in
1881 Crowds continued to grow and in 1902 in Wales' match against Scotland a world record
40,000 spectators paid to see the match.
By 1958, a new national ground was needed due to flooding that often affected Arms
Park. After debate and disputes, it was decided in the 1960s that a new national stadium
would be built. The National Stadium, as it was known, was officially opened in 1970. 5 
Since 1999, Wales have played all their home matches at the 74,500-
capacity Millennium Stadium, Cardiff,

World Cup

Wales have contested every Rugby World Cup since the inaugural tournament in
1987.
The 1987 tournament was Wales most successful; they won all three pool matches and
their quarter-final, before losing to the All Blacks in the semi-finals. They then faced
Australia in the third place play-off match, which they won 22–21.
In the next two tournaments in 1991 and 1995, Wales failed to progress beyond the
pool stage, winning just one match in each tournament. Both the 1999 and 2003 tournaments
were more successful, with Wales qualifying for the quarter-finals both times.
In 2003, they finished second in their pool behind the All Blacks, and faced England
in the quarter-finals. They lost to England, the eventual champions, 28–17.In the 2007 World
Cup, Wales again failed to progress from the pool stage.
At the 2011 World Cup, Wales reached the semi-finals for the first time since 1987.
Playing the semi-finals against France, Wales lost 9–8.
At the 2015 World Cup, South Africa defeated Wales in the quarter-finals.

5
Griffiths, John (1987). The Phoenix Book of International Rugby Records. 
 In the 2019 World Cup Wales won all their group matches to finish top of the pool.
After defeating France in the quarter-finals, they lost to the eventual tournament winners
South Africa in the semi-finals.6

Six Nations

Wales compete annually in the Six Nations Championship, which is played against
five other European nations: England, France, Ireland, Italy, and Scotland.
The Six Nations started as the Home Nations Championship in 1883, as a contest
between the four component nations of the United Kingdom. Wales first won it in 1893,
Wales have won the tournament outright 27 times, and shared 12 other victories. Wales first
won a Grand Slam in 1908
 Their most recent Grand Slam and Triple Crown were won in 2019 with victory over
Ireland on the final day of the Six Nations tournament.

Statistics

Wales have won 389 of their 744 Test matches. Their biggest Test defeat was a 96–13
loss to South Africa in 1998, and their largest victory was a 98–0 defeat of Japan in 2004.
Their record for most tries in a match is 16, scored against Portugal in 1994 – they also scored
102 points in this match, more than in any other Test. Wales' record for consecutive Test wins
is 14, and for consecutive losses is 10.7
Fun fact: Romania is in the exclusive clubs of the ten countries who beat Wales more
than once in history.8

Bibliography:

Andrews, David (1991), "Welsh Indigenous! and British Imperial? – Welsh Rugby,

Culture, and Society 1890–1914"  in Journal of Sport History. 18 (PDF). 
Griffiths, John (1987). The Phoenix Book of International Rugby Records. London:
Phoenix House.
Morgan, Gareth (2005). "Rugby and Revivalism: Sport and Religion in Edwardian
Wales". The International Journal of the History of Sport. 22 (PDF)

Internet sources:
www.6-nations-rugby.com/six-nations-history
www.rugbymuseum.co.nz
www.wikipedia.com
www.wru.wales/
www.rugby.ro

6
www.wikipedia.com
7
https://www.wru.wales/
8
https://www.rugby.ro