William Bowen (1862 – 26 September 1925) 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 ...

player 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 was capped 13 times 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 ...

. Bowen captained Wales on one occasion.

Rugby career

Bowen was first selected to play for Wales against England at the Rectory Field, Blackheath in 1886 under the captaincy of

Charlie Newman Charlie Newman (28 February 1857 – 28 September 1922) was a Welsh international three-quarter who played club rugby for Newport. He was awarded ten caps for Wales and captained the team on six occasions. An original member of the Newport squa ...

. Although Wales lost the game, the press were generally positive of the Welsh play and pointed out the forwards for their strong play.Goodwin (1983), pg 13. Bowen was re-selected for the next game of the 1886 Home Nations Championship this time against Scotland 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 1887 Bowen played in all three games of the 1887 Championship, including the draw with England at

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. ...

's cricket ground and the win against Ireland at

Birkenhead Park Birkenhead Park is a major public park located in the centre of Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. It was designed by Joseph Paxton and opened on 5 April 1847. It is generally acknowledged as the first publicly funded civic park in the world. Th ...

. The Scottish game was not a memorable match for Wales, with the Scottish players running in twelve tries without reply, including five for George Lindsay. Although Bowen missed the 1888 tournament he did play against the touring New Zealand Maoris. After playing all five games of the 1889 and 1990 Championships, Bowen was given the captaincy against England on 3 January 1891. Wales lost the game, and the captaincy was passed to Llanelli's William H. Thomas, though at the time the captaincy was normally chosen by the players before the match rather than by the selectors.Goodwin (1983), pg 27. Bowen's last game for Wales was against Scotland at Raeburn Place in another one sided win for the Scottish team.

International matches played

WalesSmith (1980), pg 464. * 1886, 1887, 1890, 1891 * 1887, 1889, 1890 * 1888 * 1886, 1887, 1889, 1890, 1891

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowen, William 1862 births 1925 deaths Rugby union locks Rugby union players from Pembroke Swansea RFC players Wales international rugby union players Wales rugby union captains Welsh rugby union players