David John Daniel (1871 – 30 April 1948) 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

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 it ...

forward who played club rugby for

Llanelli Llanelli (" St Elli's Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of Swansea and south-east of the county town, Carmarth ...

and international rugby for

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

Personal history

Daniel was born in 1871 in Llanelli. He married Francis Ann Roberts and they had thirteen children. His son William Daniel was a boxer of some note, fighting under the name '' Gipsy Daniels'' he became British light-heavyweight boxing champion in 1927. Daniel was a mason by trade but also worked as a brewery worker.

Rugby career

Daniel came to note as a rugby player for first class side Llanelli. It was while playing for Llanelli that Daniel was first selected to represent Wales, an away game against Scotland as part of the

1891 Home Nations Championship The 1891 Home Nations Championship was the ninth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 3 January and 7 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The 1891 Championship was won ...

. Daniel was one of three new caps in the Welsh squad for the Scotland game, but the only one brought into the pack. Under the captaincy of veteran forward

Willie Thomas William Henry Thomas (22 March 1866 – 11 October 1921) was a Welsh international rugby union player who played club rugby for Llanelli and London Welsh. He was capped eleven times for Wales and captained the team on two occasions. In 1888, ...

, Wales were outclassed by Scotland, who scored seven tries without reply. The next game of the Championship saw a vastly altered Welsh pack with four new caps, Daniel was one of the players dropped. Daniel failed to be reselected for three years, but in

1894 Events January–March * January 4 – A military alliance is established between the French Third Republic and the Russian Empire. * January 7 – William Kennedy Dickson receives a patent for motion picture film in the United S ...

, the year after Wales had won the

Triple Crown Triple Crown may refer to: Sports Horse racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing (United States) ** Triple Crown Trophy ** Triple Crown Productions * Canadian Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing * Tri ...

, he was brought back into the pack as a replacement for Newport's David Samuel. Daniel kept his place throughout the Championship, which saw Wales lose to England and Ireland, but win at home to Scotland. Despite the fact the Daniel had held down a position for the full series, the next season he was again replaced, this time by

William Elsey William Edward Elsey was an Anglican bishop in the first half of the 20th century. Early life Elsey was born into a sporting family on 4 July 1880 in Horncastle, Lincolnshire, England, and educated at King Edward VI Grammar School, Louth an ...

who was in turn replaced by

Ernie George Ernest Edward George (1871 – 28 November 1952) was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for a variety of teams, but is most associated with Pontypridd and Cardiff. George was capped three times for Wales between 189 ...

after a single game. Another four seasons passed, and Daniel was again back in favour with the Welsh selectors, when he came into the Welsh squad to face Ireland as part of the

1898 Home Nations Championship The 1898 Home Nations Championship was the sixteenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Five matches were played between 5 February and 2 April. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. For the second year ru ...

. This was the first Wales match after the Gould Affair, and Daniel found himself the veteran pack leader, with five of the pack newly capped that match, and the other two positions held by Fred Cornish and

Dick Hellings Richard Hellings (1 December 1874 – 9 February 1938) was an English-born Welsh rugby union forward who played international rugby for Wales and club rugby for Llwynypia. Hellings was noted for his strength built from years cutting coal as a ...

, both having played just a single game each. This meant that Daniel had twice as many caps as the entire seven other pack members combined. Despite the inexperience of the Welsh pack, Wales were victorious over the Irish, winning 11-3. The selectors reacted by keeping faith in the Welsh squad, which saw no newly capped players, and Daniel leading out an almost unchanged pack against England at Blackheath. Despite a try and a dropped goal from

Viv Huzzey Viv Huzzey (24 July 1876 – 16 August 1929) was a Welsh rugby union and rugby league wing who played club rugby for Cardiff and Oldham RLFC ( Heritage № 60). He won five caps for Wales. Huzzey was also an international British baseball player ...

, Wales lost the game. Daniel's final season with Wales was during the 1899 Home Nations Championship. After a record win over England, Daniel missed the away game to Scotland, replaced by Fred Scrine, but returned for the home game to Ireland 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 ...

; Daniel's final Wales international match.

International matches played

WalesSmith (1980), pg 464. * 1894, 1898, 1899 * 1894, 1898, 1899 * 1891, 1894

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daniel, David Wales international rugby union players Rugby union players from Llanelli Rugby union forwards Llanelli RFC players Welsh rugby union players 1871 births 1948 deaths