Douglas Marsden-Jones

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

born Marsden Douglas Jones (1893 – 5 January 1955) 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 its m ...

forward who played club rugby for

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

and

London Welsh London Welsh Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Cymry Llundain) was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, ...

. Marsden-Jones was also a member of

Ronald Cove-Smith Ronald Cove-Smith (26 November 1899 – 9 March 1988) was an physician and sportsman. He represented Old Merchant Taylors and King's College Hospital RFC. Internationally he represented the England national rugby union team in 29 tests (1921� ...

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

team that toured South Africa in 1924.

Rugby career

Marsden-Jones was born in Swansea and played in his early life for University College, Swansea. He played just two games for Wales as a back row forward at No 8. The first was the opening game of 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 ...

against England on 15 January. Marsden-Jones was one of seven new caps to play under the captaincy of

Jack Wetter Jack Wetter DCM (29 December 1887 – 29 July 1967) was a Welsh international rugby union player who played club rugby predominantly for Newport. He was captain for both his club and country and earned 10 caps for Wales. Wetter's rugby career ...

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

, and after a string of serious injuries, Wales lost the game 18–3. His second game would take over three years, when he was selected to face the touring New Zealand team in 1924. It was another heavy defeat for the Welsh side and Marsden-Jones was not selected again. In 1924 Marsden-Jones was selected to tour South Africa with the British Isles team and played in two tests. He continued his rugby career by captaining London Welsh for several seasons. He died in London in 1955.

International games played

WalesSmith (1980), pg 468. * 1921 * 1924 British Isles * 1924, 1924

Personal life

During the First World War he fought in the British Army, serving in the Glamorganshire Yeomanry (1297), 210th Coy, Machine Gun Corps (74727) and the Tank Corps. He later worked as manager of the labour relations division of the Ford Motor Company. In 1938 as Director of Factories he was seconded to mobilise a workforce of 30,000 to staff the Ordnance Factories throughout the country. In 1952 he was nominated for the CBE by Winston Churchill for this major contribution to the war effort, which was presented by the Queen in her New Years Honours list.

Bibliography

References

ESPN Scrum Douglas Marsden-Jones
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marsden-Jones, Douglas 1893 births 1955 deaths Alumni of Swansea University Barbarian F.C. players Blackheath F.C. players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Wales British Army personnel of World War I Cardiff RFC players Commanders of the Order of the British Empire London Welsh RFC players People educated at Bishop Gore School Rugby union number eights Rugby union players from Swansea Wales international rugby union players Welsh rugby union players