Henry Thomas Phillips (22 June 1903 – 16 December 1978) was a Welsh 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 ...

lock who played club rugby for Cross Keys and Newport 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 ...

. Phillips was a collier by profession before becoming a police officer, and was the nephew of former international Wales player

Harry Day Harry Melville Arbuthnot Day, (3 August 1898 – 11 March 1977) was a Royal Marine and later a Royal Air Force pilot during the Second World War. As a prisoner of war, he was senior British officer in a number of camps and a noted escapee. Ea ...

Rugby career

Phillips was born in

Crosskeys Crosskeys ( cy, Pont-y-cymer) is a village, community and an electoral ward in Caerphilly county borough in Wales. Etymology The village was originally named Pont-y-cymer and this remains the official Welsh name for the village. The name ...

, and began his rugby career with local team Cross Keys RFC, before moving to first class team Newport. He played rugby with Newport from 1923, and was given various roles within the pack, though he played mainly second row and prop. In 1926, Phillips faced his first international opposition when he was part of the Newport team that played the touring Māoris. The game ended in a 0–0 draw, a score which the Māori captain, Wattie Barclay, believed his team was fortunate to achieve.Billot (1972), pg 74. In 1927, Phillips was given his first international call-up, when he was selected for the opening game of the

1927 Five Nations Championship The 1927 Five Nations Championship was the thirteenth 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 fortiet ...

. Under the captaincy of Bernard Turnbull, Phillips' debut was against England at

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 ...

which Wales lost 9–11. Phillips played in all the matches of the 1927 Championship which saw poor Welsh results, with only a single win, over France. Despite the poor run of results, Phillips was reselected for the Wales game against the New South Wales Waratahs, who he had faced just a month earlier with Newport. The Wales team included eight new caps, which the far tighter Waratahs were able to defeat, finishing the match 18–8 winners. Phillips played in all four games of the 1928 Championship, which was as miserable a campaign as 1927. The Welsh won just once, the first ever victory over Scotland at Murrayfield. Although a historic win, this was the start of a poor run of results for ScotlandGodwin (1980), pg 169. who finished the tournament with just a single win too. Worse for Wales was the loss to France. Wales had beaten France in the previous twelve encounters, and this was the first time Wales had lost to the French team. This final game of the tournament saw five Welsh players represent Wales for the last time, Phillips was one of them.Godwin (1980), pg 171. Phillips continued representing Newport after the end of his international career, and in the 1929/30 season he was given the captaincy of the Newport first team.Harry Phillips player profile
Newport RFC site He left Newport in 1931.

International matches played

Wales (rugby union)Smith (1980), pg 470. * 1927, 1928 * 1927, 1928 * 1927, 1928 * New South Wales Waratahs 1927 * 1927, 1928

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phillips, Harry 1903 births 1978 deaths category:Officers in Welsh police forces Cross Keys RFC players Newport RFC players Rugby union locks Rugby union players from Crosskeys Rugby union props Wales international rugby union players Welsh miners Welsh police officers Welsh rugby union players