William Bowen (6 December 1897 – 19 December 1960) was a Welsh dual-code

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School 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 m ...

, and professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who played in the 1910s and 1920s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for

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

, winning 6

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

s, and at club level for

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

, as a

fly half In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...

, and club level rugby league (RL) for

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

, as a .

Rugby career

Bowen was first selected to play for Wales during the

1921 Five Nations Championship The 1921 Five Nations Championship was the seventh series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship following the inclusion of France into the Home Nations Championship. Including the previous Home Nations Championships, this was the thirty-fo ...

in a game against Scotland. Under the captaincy of

Tommy Vile Major Thomas Henry Vile MBE (6 September 1882 – 30 October 1958) was a Welsh international rugby union player. He played club rugby predominantly for Newport, captaining the side twice and played county rugby for Monmouthshire. He also repres ...

, Wales lost the match in a match that was nearly abandoned due to crowd problems, when the St Helen's spectators kept pushing onto the pitch.Godwin (1983), pg 130. Bowen was re-selected for the next game of the tournament this time against France in a victory at the

Cardiff Arms Park Cardiff Arms Park ( cy, Parc yr Arfau Caerdydd), also known as The Arms Park, is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. It is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green. The Arms Park was host to the British E ...

, though he lost his place for the last match in Ireland. Bowen was reselected to represent Wales for the entirety of the

1922 Five Nations Championship The 1922 Five Nations Championship was the eighth series of the rugby union Five Nations Championship following the inclusion of France into the Home Nations Championship. Including the previous Home Nations Championships, this was the thirty-fif ...

in which Wales won the tournament, winning three of the games and drawing against Scotland. Bowen scored two tries during the tournament; the first in the opening Welsh victory over England when Bowen was one of eight different players to score a try for Wales. His second was more important, as it allowed the draw with Scotland snatched by Wales when

Islwyn Evans Haydn Islwyn Evans (25 December 1898 – 13 May 1974) was a Welsh international rugby union player who played club rugby union for Swansea and Llanelli. Evans was capped four times for Wales, all during the 1922 Five Nations Championship. Ru ...

scored a drop goal in the last two minutes.Godwin (1983), pg 135. Bowen may have been awarded more caps for Wales, but he 'Went North' in 1922, switching codes to professional rugby league, joining Leeds RLFC.Robert Gate (1986). "Gone North - Volume 1". R. E. Gate. Bowen made his début for

against

Bradford Northern The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is predomi ...

Headingley Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingle ...

Rugby Stadium,

on Saturday 2 September 1922.Dalby, Ken (1955). ''The Headingley Story - 1890-1955 - Volume One - Rugby''. The Leeds Cricket, Football & Athletic Co. Ltd ASIN: B0018JNGVM Bowen played right-, i.e. number 3, and scored a

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

' 28–3 victory over

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and were ...

in the 1922–23

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involves am ...

Final during the 1922-23 season at Belle Vue,

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

, the only occasion the Challenge Cup final has ever been staged at Belle Vue. The

backline in the early 1920s was known as the Busy Bs, as it included;

Jim Bacon James or Jim Bacon may refer to: *Jim Bacon (politician) (James Alexander Bacon, 1950–2004), Premier of Tasmania, 1998–2004 *Jim Bacon (rugby) James Arthur Bacon (fourth ¼ 1896 – fourth ¼ 1968) was a Welsh rugby union, and professional ...

Arthur Binks Arthur Binks (10 January 1902 – 1969) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1920s and 1930s. He played at representative level for England, and at club level for Buslingthorpe Vale ARLFC (in Leeds), Leeds, Wiga ...

, Billy Bowen,

Joe Brittain Joseph Brittain (birth unknown – death unknown) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1910s and 1920s. He played at representative level for England, and at club level for Leeds and York, as a , or , i.e. numbe ...

and

Harold Buck Harold Buck was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1910s and 1920s. He played at club level for Hunslet and Leeds, as a . In November 1921, Buck became rugby league's first £1,000 player when he transferred from H ...

International matches played

WalesSmith (1980), pg 464. * 1922 * 1921, 1922 * 1922 * 1921, 1922

Bibliography

* *

References

External links

Search for "Bowen" at rugbyleagueproject.org

-> {{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, Billy 1897 births 1960 deaths Leeds Rhinos players Rugby league centres Rugby league players from Swansea Rugby union fly-halves Rugby union players from Swansea Swansea RFC players Wales international rugby union players Welsh rugby league players Welsh rugby union players