Donald "Don" George Vines (6 February 1932 – 17 September 1989) was a Welsh

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 1950s and 1960s, and a heel wrestler in

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring o ...

of the 1960s. He played club level rugby union (RU) for

Newbridge RFC Newbridge RFC is a Welsh Rugby Union club based in Newbridge, Caerphilly in South Wales. Newbridge RFC was formed in 1888 and joined the WRU in 1911. They play in the WRU Specsavers Division 1 East Club history Newbridge RFC established in ...

, as a

centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...

, or later in the forwards, and representative level rugby league (RL) for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

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 ...

and

Other Nationalities The Other Nationalities rugby league team are a rugby league representative team that usually consists of non-English players. They have also played under the name The Exiles and more recently Combined Nations All Stars. They competed in the first ...

, and at club level for

Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, wh ...

( Heritage № 595),

Wakefield Trinity Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, that plays in the Super League. One of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, between 1999 and 2016 the c ...

( Heritage № 649) (two spells), and St. Helens ( Heritage № 777), as a , or , i.e. number 8 or 10, 11 or 12, or 13, during the era of contested

scrum Scrum may refer to: Sport * Scrum (rugby), a method of restarting play in rugby union and rugby league ** Scrum (rugby union), scrum in rugby union * Scrum, an offensive melee formation in Japanese game Bo-taoshi Media and popular culture * M ...

Background

Don Vines was born in Newbridge, Wales, his birth was registered in Newport district, he worked as a

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

at Crigglestone Colliery , he worked at

Wakefield College Wakefield College is a Further Education and Higher Education College in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It has provided education in the city since 1868. On 1 March 2022, the college merged with Selby College to form the 'Heart of Yorkshi ...

, and he died aged 57 in

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, ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England.

Playing career

International honours

Don Vines won

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 for

(RL) while at Wakefield Trinity 1959…1963 2-caps, and won

s for

(RL) while at Wakefield Trinity in 1959 against France (2 matches), and Australia, and represented

(RL) while at Wakefield Trinity, he played right-, i.e. number 12, in the 2-19 defeat by St. Helens at

Knowsley Road Knowsley Road in Eccleston, St Helens, Merseyside, was the home ground of St. Helens from 1890 until its closure in 2010. St Helens Town FC played their home fixtures at Knowsley Road from 2002 until 2010. For a period, the venue also hosted ...

, St. Helens on Wednesday 27 January 1965, to mark the switching-on of new

floodlight A floodlight is a broad-beamed, high-intensity artificial light. They are often used to illuminate outdoor playing fields while an outdoor sports event is being held during low-light conditions. More focused kinds are often used as a stage ...

Championship appearances

Don Vines played right-, i.e. number 10, in

's 3-27 defeat by

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

in the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

Final during the 1959–60 season at

Odsal Stadium Odsal Stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, is the home of Bradford Bulls Rugby League team. It has also been used by the Bradford Dukes speedway team, BRISCA F1 and F2 stock cars, the football team Bradford City, following the Valley ...

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

on Saturday 21 May 1960.

Challenge Cup Final appearances

Don Vines played right-, i.e. number 10, in

's 38-5 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 1959–60

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 1959–60 season at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on Saturday 14 May 1960, in front of a crowd of 79,773,Hoole, Les (2004). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC – FIFTY GREAT GAMES''. Breedon Books. played left-, i.e. number 11, in St. Helens' 12-6 victory over

in the 1960–61

Final during the 1960–61 season at

on Saturday 13 May 1961, in front of a crowd of 94,672, and played left- in

's 25-10 victory over

in the 1962–63

Final during the 1962–63 season at

on Saturday 11 May 1963, in front of a crowd of 84,492.

County Cup Final appearances

Don Vines played right-, i.e. number 10, in

's 13-8 victory over

in the 1957–58

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

County Cup The county football associations are the local governing bodies of association football in England and the Crown dependencies. County FAs exist to govern all aspects of football in England. They are responsible for administering club and player ...

Final during the 1957–58 season at

Station Road, Swinton Station Road was a stadium in Pendlebury, near Manchester, England. It was the home of Swinton Rugby League Club between 1929 and 1992 and was widely recognised as one of the finest grounds in the Rugby League. Swinton moved to Station Road w ...

on Saturday 19 October 1957, played left-, i.e. number 11, in St. Helens' 15-9 victory over Swinton in the 1960–61

Final during the 1960–61 season at

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

on Saturday 29 October 1960, played right-, i.e. number 12, in

's 19-9 victory over

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 ...

in the 1961–62

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

Final during the 1961–62 season at

on Saturday 11 November 1961, and played right- in the 18-2 victory over

in the 1964–65

Final during the 1964–65 season at Fartown,

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

on Saturday 31 October 1964.

Club career

Don Vines made his début for

in the 15-14 victory over

at Fartown,

on Saturday 27 September 1958.

Contemporaneous article extract

"''Don Vines. Playing as off-half for the Welsh Association of Boys' Clubs, then at

for Welsh Youth against Welsh Secondary Schools, Don started his

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

career with two caps. That was in 1950. There followed three years in the Army and after that a period with the Newbridge R.U. club, still at centre threequarter. A brief break and then resumption with Newbridge, this time as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

, but after three more months Don decided to change his code, and signed for Oldham Rugby League Club in 1956. Two years later came another move, this time, we are glad to say, to

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

. Whilst with us he has gained international honours for

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, twice for

v. France, and again, during the recent tour of the

Australians Australians, colloquially known as Aussies, are the citizens, nationals and individuals associated with the country of Australia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or ethno-cultural. For most Australians, several (or all) ...

, for

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

followers are glad to know that Don is happily settled in

. We shall look forward to many more grand displays such as he has given since coming to Belle Vue.''"Lindley, John (20 February 1960). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC Official Programme: Oldham''. John Lindley Son & Co Ltd. ISBN n/a Don went to Oxford with Les Gant in the 1970's to guest coach the newly formed Oxford University Rugby League Club. He was excellent and the team is still going strong forty years later.

Genealogical information

Don Vines' marriage to Patricia B. (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Cook, birth registered during fourth ¼ in Newport district) was registered during second ¼ 1954 in

Caerleon Caerleon (; cy, Caerllion) is a town and community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable Roman ...

district, Wales. They had children; Michelle Vines, Beverley S. Vines (birth registered during fourth ¼ in St. Helens district)and Lee J. Vines (birth registered during third ¼ in

district)

References

External links

Great Britain Statistics at englandrl.co.uk (statistics currently missing due to not having appeared for both Great Britain, and England)Profile at saints.org.uk
*(archived by web.archive.org
list of matches shownBlast from the past 1962Big Geoff was star of No 13 shirt
*(archived by web.archive.org

* ĎŔ�
Rugby League Fans Forum
*(archived by web.archive.org

Sharing may be answer for 'Cats
*(archived by web.archive.org
Rugby League Cup Final 1960Rugby League Final 1963Search for "Don Vines" at britishnewspaperarchive.co.ukSearch for "Donald Vines" at britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vines, Donald 1932 births 1989 deaths Doncaster R.L.F.C. coaches Footballers who switched code Great Britain national rugby league team players Newbridge RFC players Oldham R.L.F.C. players Other Nationalities rugby league team players Rugby league locks Rugby league players from Caerphilly County Borough Rugby league props Rugby league second-rows Rugby union centres Rugby union forwards Rugby union players from Newbridge, Caerphilly St Helens R.F.C. players Wakefield Trinity players Wales national rugby league team players Welsh male professional wrestlers Welsh rugby league players Welsh rugby union players