T. Williams was a

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

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe). The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...

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, ...

and 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 ...

. Very little is known of Williams and he is often confused with his contemporary Tom Williams who also played for Wales around the same period, and who also had connections with London Welsh.

Rugby career

Williams' first notable connection to rugby occurred on 24 October 1885, when he turned out for the very first match for the

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

exile team, London Welsh. The team contained six players who were, or would soon, be capped for Wales, Williams, Arthur 'Monkey' Gould,

Martyn Jordan Martyn Jordan (7 March 1865 – 14 July 1902) was an English-born international rugby union player who played club rugby for London Welsh and Newport and international rugby for Wales. Jordan played in three games for Wales scoring two tries, ...

Thomas Judson Thomas Haigh Judson ( c. 1857 – 4 September 1908) was an English-born international rugby union player who played club rugby for Llanelli and international rugby for Wales. He later became a member of the first London Welsh team. Rugby caree ...

, Charles Taylor and

Rowley Thomas Rowland 'Rowley' Lewis Thomas (7 November 1863 – 21 January 1949) was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for London Welsh, of whom he was a founding member, and county rugby for Middlesex. Thomas played internation ...

.Jones (1985), pg 6. Williams became a regular player for London Welsh, and was one of the team's players to be included in an 'exiles' team, along with players from London Scottish, to face a London XV in a charity match at

The Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

, in the presence of the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

.Jones (1985), pg 8. By 1888, Williams was playing for Swansea, and on 4 February he earns his first international cap when he is selected for the team to face Scotland, as part of the Home Nations Championship.T. Williams player profile
Scrum.com Under the captaincy of

Tom Clapp Tom Clapp (25 October 1858 – 15 October 1933) was an English-born international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Newport and Nantyglo RFC. He won 14 caps for Wales and captained the team on three occasions. Clapp was the first ...

, Williams came into a very inexperienced pack to face a team that Wales had yet to beat in a rugby international. Williams was one of seven new Welsh caps in the match, which included Swansea teammates John Meredith and William Howell. Wales won an historic match, beating Scotland for the first time, thanks to a debut try from

Thomas Pryce-Jenkins Dr. Thomas John Pryce-Jenkins (1 February 1864 – 6 August 1922) was a Welsh international rugby union wing who played club rugby for London Welsh and county rugby for Middlesex. Pryce-Jenkins represented Wales twice but he is more notable with ...

, who was at the time playing club rugby for London Welsh. Williams was reselected for the very next match, his second and final international for Wales. Played away from home at

Lansdowne Road Lansdowne Road Stadium ( ga, Bóthar Lansdún, ) was a stadium in Dublin owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) that was primarily used for rugby union and association football matches. The stadium was demolished in 2007 to make way for ...

, Wales were beaten by Ireland two goals to nil. Towards the end of 1888, the world's first touring Southern Hemisphere rugby team, the New Zealand Natives, challenged several Welsh teams. The Māoris had already been beaten by

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, Carmarthen. ...

and Wales, and on 24 December, they faced Swansea in a match played in continuous heavy rain.Billot (1972), pg 19. Williams lined up in the pack with his team captain William Towers, but the squad was missing two of their influential backs, Whapham and Gwynn. Swansea had only lost one match that season before the game, and after a clear New Zealand victory, the Swansea team was criticised for its "Boundless complacency".

International matches played

WalesSmith (1980), pg 473. * 1888 * 1888

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, T. Wales international rugby union players Welsh rugby union players Rugby union forwards Swansea RFC players London Welsh RFC players Year of birth missing Year of death missing Missing middle or first names