Samuel Llewelyn Kenrick (9 June 1847 – 29 May 1933) was a Welsh
solicitor who became the founder of the
Football Association of Wales
The Football Association of Wales (FAW; cy, Cymdeithas Bêl-droed Cymru) is the governing body of association football and futsal in Wales, and controls the Welsh national football team, its corresponding women's team, as well as the Welsh ...
and organised the first
Welsh international
The Welsh International is an international badminton championship held in Wales since 1928 and is thereby one of the oldest badminton tournaments in the world. The tournament was halted during World War II and until 1956, between 1960 and 1966, a ...
football match against
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
in
1876
Events
January–March
* January 1
** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin.
** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol.
* February 2 – The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs is ...
. As such he became the "father of Welsh football".
Early life and family
Kenrick was born into the land-owning, industrialist Kenrick dynasty of
Wynn Hall,
Ruabon, Wales, the son of William Kenrick (1798–1865) who had founded the Wynn Hall Colliery, and a descendant of the Wynn family. After attending
Ruabon Grammar School
Ruabon Grammar School was situated in Ruabon, Denbighshire in north-east Wales. It provided a grammar school education to boys in the parishes of Ruabon and Erbistock.
Ruabon Grammar School for Boys became a Denbighshire County secondary school ...
, Kenrick trained as a solicitor (admitted 1871) and practised at Ruabon.
[Davies and Garland (1991), p. 119-120.]
Two of his cousins, Harriet and Florence Kenrick, were the first and second wives of the politician
Joseph Chamberlain
Joseph Chamberlain (8 July 1836 – 2 July 1914) was a British statesman who was first a radical Liberal, then a Liberal Unionist after opposing home rule for Ireland, and eventually served as a leading imperialist in coalition with the C ...
.
In 1909 Kenrick married Lillian Maud, daughter of the Rev. A. L. Taylor, headmaster of Ruabon Grammar School, although they had no children.
Football career
His earliest football appearances were in England when he played for
Priorslee
St George's and Priorslee is a civil parish in the borough of Telford and Wrekin, Shropshire, England. St. George's and Priorslee are suburbs of Telford. The parish had a population of 11,033 at the 2011 census, and has an area of .
The parish ...
at
Shifnal
Shifnal is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, about east of Telford, 17 miles (27 km) east of the county town of Shrewsbury and 13 miles (20 km) west-northwest of the city of Wolverhampton. It is near the M5 ...
, Shropshire.
Druids Football Club
In 1872, he assisted brothers
David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
and
George Thomson in amalgamating the Ruabon-based, Plasmadoc club with two other Ruabon clubs, "Ruabon Rovers" and "Ruabon Volunteers", to form the
Ruabon Druids. The newly created club played their home matches at Plasmadoc Park in the village of
Rhosymedre
Rhosymedre () is a village within the community of Cefn, in Wrexham County Borough, Wales.
The Anglican church, which was consecrated in 1837, is dedicated to St John the Evangelist, and is part of the Diocese of St Asaph. Former vicars inclu ...
, before a new ground was created in the nearby Wynn family estate at
Wynnstay
Wynnstay is a country house within an important landscaped park 1.3 km (0.75 miles) south-east of Ruabon, near Wrexham, Wales. Wynnstay, previously Watstay, is a famous estate and the family seat of the Wynns. The house was sold in 1948 and i ...
in 1879.
At this time, there was no organised league system and Druids played friendly matches against other local clubs although they occasionally ventured further afield to play in England and Scotland, including a match against
Queens Park at
Hampden Park in 1877.
Shropshire Wanderers
Kenrick also played for the
Shropshire Wanderers in the 1874–75 season in which he helped them reach the semi-final of the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
, when they were defeated 1–0 by the
Old Etonians
Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...
.
First international match
In January 1876, a London-based Welshman, G. Clay-Thomas, placed an advertisement in
''The Field'' newspaper proposing that a Welsh team be formed to play Scotland or Ireland at rugby.
Kenrick saw the advertisement but decided that the international match should be
Association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
.
He told ''The Field'' that the footballers of North Wales accepted the challenge and he advertised for players:
To be selected, the players had to be born in Wales or have sufficient residence in the Principality. Although Kenrick corresponded with several Welsh clubs and the Universities in order to raise a team he was criticised for allegedly overlooking players from the south.
The test matches took place in February 1876 under the auspices of the newly created
Football Association of Wales
The Football Association of Wales (FAW; cy, Cymdeithas Bêl-droed Cymru) is the governing body of association football and futsal in Wales, and controls the Welsh national football team, its corresponding women's team, as well as the Welsh ...
(see below). Kenrick selected six players from his own club, Druids, plus two from local rivals,
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
, and one from English club,
Oswestry.
William Evans (of
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...
) was the only player from South Wales selected, with the others all from North Wales, other than
John Hawley Edwards
John Hawley Edwards (21 March 1850 – 14 January 1893) was an English footballer who made one appearance for England in 1874, before going on to play for Wales in 1876. He was a member of the Wanderers team that won the 1876 FA Cup Final.
Ca ...
who was born in Shrewsbury in England and had previously represented the
England national football team
The England national football team has represented England in international football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in England, which is affilia ...
. Edwards was a fellow solicitor and member of the Shropshire Wanderers.
The match against Scotland was played at
Hamilton Crescent
Hamilton Crescent is a cricket ground in the Partick area of Glasgow, Scotland, which is the home of the West of Scotland Cricket Club.
Hamilton Crescent hosted the 1872 Scotland v England football match, first international football match, betw ...
,
Partick
Partick ( sco, Pairtick, Scottish Gaelic: ''Partaig'') is an area of Glasgow on the north bank of the River Clyde, just across from Govan. To the west lies Whiteinch, to the east Yorkhill and Kelvingrove Park (across the River Kelvin), and ...
, the home of the
West of Scotland Cricket Club
The West of Scotland Cricket Club is a cricket club based in Glasgow, Scotland. The club's home ground is Hamilton Crescent, located in the Partick area of Glasgow's West End.
West of Scotland, traditionally, are one of the working class cricke ...
on 25 March 1876. The Welsh were well defeated, conceding four goals without reply. Kenrick played at left back and acquitted himself well, with the match report commenting: "Evans and Kenrick, the backs, played splendidly for Wales".
Football Association of Wales
![Rhiwabon wynnstay arms](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Rhiwabon_wynnstay_arms.jpg)
Provisionally known as the "Cambrian Football Association", the Football Association of Wales was founded at a meeting held on 2 February 1876 at the Wynnstay Arms Hotel in
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
, initially to formalise the arrangements for the forthcoming match against Scotland.
In May 1876, a further meeting was called, this time in the ballroom of the identically named Wynnstay Arms Hotel in Ruabon where the name was agreed as the "Football Association of Wales" and the constitution was drawn up.
The arguments and discussions continued so long that the local policeman came in to call time.
Fortunately,
Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn was in attendance; as the local JP (and also the sitting Member of Parliament), he went next door, opened the Court, extended the hotel's licensing hours, thus enabling the meeting to continue.
The meeting ended with Kenrick appointed as the first chairman and honorary secretary
with John Hawley Edwards as first treasurer.
Kenrick continued to serve the FAW until 1884, when he left, probably because of the trend towards professionalism. In 1897, when the FAW secretary was charged with fraud, Kenrick returned to guide the association through the crisis. He made the final break a few months later over the minor issue of the allocation of gate money to Welsh Cup semi-finalists and finalists.
The Welsh Cup
In 1877, the FAW inaugurated the first Welsh domestic football competition, the
Welsh Cup
The FAW Welsh Cup ( cy, Cwpan Cymdeithas Pêl-droed Cymru), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the mos ...
, which kicked off in the autumn. 19 clubs entered though only 17 actually fielded a team.
The first match was played on Saturday 13 October at
Newtown against the Druids and ended in a 1–1 draw. The game started at 2.30 in front of a large crowd with the high wind causing problems. Evans scored for Newtown in the first half, although Druids equalised through
Daniel Grey
Daniel Grey (1848 – 26 February 1900) was a Welsh medical practitioner who was prominent in the early days of Welsh football, making two appearances for the Wales national football team in the 1870s.
Early life
Grey was born in New Mills, L ...
to take the match to a replay. The match report says that "Ll. Kendrick (was) prominent for Druids."
Druids won the replay 4–0 and progressed to the final against Wrexham. The match was a cliffhanger, with no score until the Wrexham forwards charged the Druids' defenders to take the ball over the line to win the game in the final minute, with
James Davies being credited with the goal.
Following the loss of their Plasmadoc ground in the autumn of 1878, Druids were temporarily disbanded.
During this period, Kenrick first played one game for
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
however decided not to join them and instead Kenrick and several of his Druids team-mates joined the
Oswestry club.
In 1879, the Druids had gained the use of the ground at Wynnstay and Kenrick returned to the Druids for one further season as captain, leading them to the Welsh Cup Final when they defeated
Ruthin
Ruthin ( ; cy, Rhuthun) is a market town and community in Denbighshire, Wales, in the south of the Vale of Clwyd. It is Denbighshire's county town. The town, castle and St Peter's Square lie on a hill, skirted by villages such as Pwllglas and ...
2–1 (with goals from
Jack Vaughan and
John Jones). As captain of the Druids, Kenrick collected the cup from Sir Evan Morris, who acclaimed him as the founder of Welsh football.
Later international career
The return match against Scotland came on 5 March 1877 at the
Racecourse Ground
The Racecourse Ground ( cy, Y Cae Ras) is a football stadium in Wrexham, Wales. It is the home of Wrexham A.F.C.
It is the world's oldest international football stadium that still hosts international matches, having hosted Wales' first home ...
,
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
, with Kenrick retaining his place at left-back. The Scots were again victorious, winning 2–0. The match report in the ''Wrexham Advertiser'' stated:
Kenrick missed the 1878 match against Scotland (lost 9–0) but returned to the side the following year for matches against England and Scotland. Described as "a small, muscular player and a full-back with a reputation as a fearsome shoulder-charger",
Kenrick had retired from playing and was attending the match against England at
Alexandra Meadows
Alexandra Meadows is the home ground of the East Lancashire Cricket Club in Blackburn.
Between 1878 and 1881 the ground was used as the home venue for the Blackburn Rovers football team, following their move from the Pleasington Cricket Ground. ...
,
Blackburn
Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...
on 26 February 1881 as a spectator.
Jack Powell missed his train connection at Chester and Kenrick turned out in his everyday clothes to give "a splendid performance" at right-back.
Some years later,
William Pierce Owen recalled the match at Blackburn:
It was snowing and hailing and we had been playing for some time, when I saw what I thought was a spectator breaking into the field and making a violent attack upon Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
and Rostron, the English right wing. Upon closer inspection I found it was Llewelyn Kenrick of Ruabon. He was dressed in long tweed trousers, wore ordinary boots and sported a smart Oxford shirt. He played with the utmost vigour until unfortunately his knee gave way and once more Wales had only ten men on the field.
According to the ''Wrexham Advertiser'':
(John) Hawtrey, the English goalkeeper, threw the ball out but was charged over at the same time and (Jack) Vaughan running up placed the leather safely through the goal for Wales. The Englishmen strove hard to get on terms with their opponents. Shot after shot was aimed at the Welsh goal but each attempt was rendered futile. When time was called Wales were declared winners by one goal to love.
This was the first victory by the Welsh international side, five years after their first international match.
Legal career
Kenrick was
Clerk
A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keeping, filing, staffing service ...
to the Ruabon Magistrates from 1896 and was appointed
coroner for
East Denbighshire in 1906, a post he held until his death in 1933.
Shortly after his appointment, he presided over an inquest into the death of a footballer at
Chirk and, after amusing himself with a remark that the jury probably knew more about the game than he did, made the following comment on the game:
One writer who knew Kenrick well described him as "thoroughly straightforward and conscientious. He has never been the man to court favour and popularity. His somewhat brusque manner perhaps offended many, but no one ever doubted his sincerity."
International appearances
Kenrick made five appearances for Wales as follows:
Death
Kenrick died on 29 May 1933 in Ruabon at the age of 85. He was buried at Ruabon Cemetery.
References
Bibliography
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*
External links
Football Association of Wales (FAW)
Welsh Football Data Archive(WFDA)
wrexham.gov.uk
Biography on BBC Wales
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kenrick, Llewelyn
1847 births
1933 deaths
People from Ruabon
Welsh footballers
Wales international footballers
Association football fullbacks
Druids F.C. players
Oswestry Town F.C. players
History of football in Wales
Founders of association football institutions
People educated at Ruabon Grammar School
Welsh football chairmen and investors
Welsh solicitors
Shropshire Wanderers F.C. players