Cliff Pritchard (1881–1954) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

international centre who played club rugby for

Newport RFC Newport Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Casnewydd) is a Welsh rugby union club based in the city of Newport, South Wales. They presently play in the Welsh Premier Division. Until 2021 Newport RFC were based at Rodney Parade situated on t ...

and

Pontypool RFC Pontypool Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in the town of Pontypool, which plays in the WRU Championship (known as the SWALEC Championship for sponsorship purposes). Due to the regionalisation of Welsh rugby in 2003, Pontyp ...

. Pritchard was capped on five occasions and scored two tries for his country. He is best known as one of the Welsh squad that beat the 1905 touring

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

in the '' Match of the Century''.

International career

Pritchard was first capped for his country in a winning game against Scotland in 1904; he was paired with seasoned international

Rhys Gabe Rhys Thomas "Rusty" Gabe (22 June 1880 – 15 September 1967) born as Rees Thomas Gape,Jenkins (1991), pg 60. was a Welsh rugby union player who played club rugby for Llanelli, London Welsh and Cardiff and gained 24 caps for Wales, mainly as a c ...

as a replacement for

Gwyn Nicholls Erith Gwyn Nicholls (15 July 1874 – 24 March 1939)Newport RFC player profiles
was a W ...

. His debut was reported in the ''

South Wales Evening Post The ''South Wales Evening Post'' is a tabloid daily newspaper distributed in the South West region of Wales. The paper has three daily editions – Swansea, Neath and Port Talbot and Carmarthenshire – and is published by Media Wales, part ...

'' as "Once Pritchard got over early nervousness, he settled down to tackle well".Parry-Jones (1999), pg 112. Pritchard was not the first choice for the famous '' Match of the Century'' against New Zealand in 1905, as Pritchard was a forward player and the role he was required to fill in at the edge of the scrum, for this particular game, required speed and vision.Parry-Jones (1999), pg 138. He was known by the Welsh as the 'extra back' as his role required him to play up close to the scrum in defence, but also as an additional prong of attack.Smith (1980), pg 151. On the day of the match against the All Blacks, Pritchard proved he had taken his role seriously and executed his position as a roving player to neutralise the New Zealand loose-head during scrum play with great skill.Parry-Jones (1999), pg 151. Pritchard was also part of the game's only try when he managed to collect a low pass from

Dicky Owen Dicky Owen (17 November 1876 - 27 February 1932) was a Welsh international scrum-half who played club rugby for Swansea RFCSmith (1979), pg 132. Owen is seen as one of the greatest Welsh scrum-halves and won 35 caps for Wales between 1901 and 1 ...

, he drew the New Zealand centre

Bob Deans Robert George Deans (19 February 1884 – 30 September 1908) was a New Zealand and Canterbury rugby union footballer. In 1905, Deans entered New Zealand rugby folklore for his disallowed try against Wales in the famous '' Match of the Century''. ...

and passed to Gabe, who in turn passed to the try scorer

Teddy Morgan Edward "Teddy" Morgan (22 May 1880 – 1 September 1949) was a Welsh international rugby union player. He was a member of the victorious Wales team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks in the famous '' Match of the Century'' and is remembered for ...

.Parry-Jones (1999), pg 152. International matches played:Smith (1980), pg 470. * 1906 * 1904 * 1905 * 1904, 1906

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pritchard, Cliff Rugby union players from Pontypool Welsh rugby union players Wales international rugby union players 1881 births 1954 deaths Rugby union centres Newport RFC players Pontypool RFC players