Percy Frank Bush (23 June 1879 – 19 May 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 ...

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 ...

player who played international rugby for

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 ...

on eight occasions. Playing at

fly-half In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...

, Bush is regarded as one of the most talented Welsh players of the pre-First World War era.

Rugby career

Bush played most of his career for

Cardiff RFC Cardiff Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Caerdydd) is a rugby union club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876Parry-Jones (1989), pg 59 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, shortly after ...

making 171 appearances and scoring 66 tries between 1899 and 1913. He captained the club for three seasons. He won eight

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

for Wales (1905–1910), including for the famous '' Match of the Century'', the 1905 victory over New Zealand. He also played in four tests for the 1904

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, ...

on their tour to Australia and New Zealand. This was before he had been capped by Wales. He was the undoubted star of the tour, being dubbed 'Will o' the Wisp' by the Australian press for his devastating play.

Cricket career

Bush also played county cricket for

Glamorgan County Cricket Club Glamorgan County Cricket Club ( cy, Criced Morgannwg) is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Glamorgan ( cy, Morgannwg). Founded in 1888, ...

and

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

.Percy Bush cricket statistics
cricketarchive.com He played in three

Minor Counties Cricket Championship The NCCA 3 Day Championship (previously the Minor Counties Cricket Championship) is a season-long competition in England and Wales that is contested by the members of the National Counties Cricket Association (NCCA), the so-called national cou ...

matches between 1900 and 1903, all for Glamorgan. His first Minor Counties match was at St Helens against Wiltshire in 1900. Bush scored just 5 runs in his first innings, but his Glamorgan team won the match before he was required in the second innings. Bush failed to improve in his second match, played against Berkshire 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 E ...

in 1902; scoring a single run in his only innings. Despite this Glamorgan won by an innings and ten runs. His final encounter for Glamorgan, was against a Surrey Second XI in 1903. Glamorgan lost the match by 61 runs, and Bush failed to enhance his record with 6 runs over two innings.

References

External links

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bush, Percy Frank Wales international rugby union players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Wales 1879 births 1955 deaths Rugby union players from Cardiff Alumni of Cardiff University Cardiff RFC players London Welsh RFC players Penygraig RFC players Glamorgan cricketers Welsh cricketers Glamorgan County RFC players Rugby union scrum-halves