Jonathan Davies, OBE (born 24 October 1962) is a Welsh former rugby footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s, and who represented Wales in both

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 ...

and

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

. A goal-kicking backline player, he played his club rugby in Wales, England and Australia. Davies has since become a television commentator for both codes and media personality, in both the

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 peopl ...

and English languages.

Biography

Jonathan Davies was born in

Trimsaran Trimsaran is a community and former mining village which lies on the B4308 between Llanelli and Kidwelly, in the Welsh county of Carmarthenshire. Trimsaran is six miles (10 km) from Llanelli, and from Carmarthen. It is close to Burry Por ...

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known as ...

on 24 October 1962, the son of Diana and Len Davies, who worked in Trostre,

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, Carma ...

. Davies started school at Trimsaran Primary School, where he was part of the Welsh medium class. His teacher Meirion Davies introduced him to rugby, and he started playing Sevens. Although he did not have the strong physique for the contact sport, his talent and flair for the game was recognised by many, including local great

Carwyn James Carwyn Rees James (2 November 1929 – 10 January 1983) was a Welsh rugby union player and coach. He won two Welsh international caps but is most famous for his coaching achievements with Llanelli, the 1971 British Lions and the Barbarians, with ...

. He attended Gwendraeth Grammar School, where he met his first wife Karen Hopkins, whom he married ten years later.

Rugby union

In 1974 Davies played for the very first time at

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 ...

, when he was chosen for the West Wales Under 12s. He started his career at amateur level with

Trimsaran RFC Trimsaran United Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the village of Trimsaran in South Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Llanelli Scarlets. Club badge The club badge is a shield split i ...

. His father Len had also played for and captained Trimsaran Rugby Club. Age 17, Davies left school and became an apprentice painter and decorator. After developing at Trimsaran, he was given a trial with

but was rejected.

Neath Neath (; cy, Castell-nedd) is a market town and community situated in the Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,258 in 2011. Historica ...

gave him another chance and he signed with them in 1982, selected to play 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– ...

. After 35 games for Neath, Davies was selected to play 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 ...

, against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

at the

. After scoring a try and a drop goal, Davies was named Man of the Match in the Welsh victory. He was made captain at Neath before being transferred to Llanelli. In 1988 Davies played a part in the Triple Crown success for Wales and between 1985 and 1997 he won 37 rugby union caps. Injuries during the 1988 New Zealand tour meant Davies captained the side in four games. The two Tests were lost by fifty point margins, although Davies did score a 90-metre try in the second. Davies was blamed in the media for the surprising Welsh defeat by

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

. As Llanelli placed pressure on him from the WRU to commit himself wholeheartedly to them, and despite being widely touted as the first choice fly-half for the upcoming British Lions tour to Australia, he decided for the best interests of his family to move to the

team

Widnes Widnes ( ) is an industrial town in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England, which at the 2011 census had a population of 61,464. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the northern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form th ...

, who signed him for a record fee of £230,000. Davies was recruited into

by Jim Mills and

Doug Laughton Charles Douglas Laughton (born 13 May 1944) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and coached in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. He played at representative level for Great Britain (cap ...

. He would later return to rugby union.

Rugby league

Widnes

Davies commenced his professional

career during the

1989–90 Rugby Football League season The 1989–90 Rugby Football League season was the 95th ever season of professional rugby league football in Britain. Fourteen teams competed from August, 1989 until May, 1990 for the Stones Bitter Championship, Premiership Trophy and Silk Cut Ch ...

with defending champions Widnes. He played for them as a in their

1989 World Club Challenge The 1989 World Club Challenge (also known as the Foster's World Club Challenge due to sponsorship by brewers, Foster's) was the third ever and first official World Club Challenge match. 1989's NSWRL season premiers, the Canberra Raiders travelle ...

victory against the visiting

Canberra Raiders The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby ...

. He was selected to play for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

during the 1989–1992 Rugby League World Cup tournament. During the 1990–91 season Davies played left- and scored 4

conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

s in

' 24-18 victory over

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

in the

1990 Lancashire Cup Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since the ...

Final at

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated ...

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington ...

on Saturday 29 September 1990.

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs

In 1991, Davies took on a further challenge when he spent the summer in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

playing in the

1991 NSWRL season The 1991 NSWRL season was the eighty-fourth season of professional rugby league football in Australia. This year the New South Wales Rugby League experimented with a draft system for the first time. Sixteen clubs competed for the J J Giltinan Sh ...

for the

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the NRL Telstra Premiership, as well as competitions facilit ...

. Davies played mostly as a for the Canterbury side who were struggling to make the Semi-finals. He made an impact with the 'Dogs, scoring 100 points in his 14 games for the club (7 tries, 36 goals), including a personal haul of 18 points (2 tries, 5 goals) in the last round of the season against

Cronulla Cronulla is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Boasting numerous surf beaches and swimming spots, the suburb attracts both tourists and Greater Sydney residents. Cronulla is located 26 kilometres south of the Sydne ...

at Canterbury's home ground,

Belmore Sports Ground Belmore Sports Ground, formerly known as Belmore Oval, is a multi-purpose stadium in Belmore, New South Wales, Australia. The park covers and from 1951 has contained the Belmore Bowling Recreation Club green. It is close to Belmore railway s ...

. Needing a win to force a 5th place playoff with Western Suburbs, Canterbury-Bankstown got off to a slow start and Cronulla took a 16–0 half time lead. Canterbury scored 26 unanswered points in the second half to win 26–16. In the playoff with Wests, Davies first stint in Australia came to an end with Wests winning 19–14.

Widnes

Davies played , and scored a try, 3 conversions, and a drop goal in

24-0 victory over

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...

in the 1991–92 Regal Trophy Final during the 1991–92 season at

on Saturday 11 January 1992.

Warrington

After

got into financial difficulties, in 1993 he transferred to their local rivals

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

. He was also named player of the 1993–94 season, winning the RFL's Man of Steel Award. During the 1994–95 Rugby Football League season Davies played , and scored a conversion in

's 10-40 defeat by

in the 1994–95 League Cup Final at Alfred McAlpine Stadium,

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence i ...

on Saturday 28 January 1995.

North Queensland Cowboys

Davies again played in Australia when he signed with the newly-formed

North Queensland Cowboys The North Queensland Cowboys is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Townsville, the largest town in North Queensland. They compete in Australia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL). Sinc ...

in 1995. He was unable to get out to Australia until midway through the 1995 Winfield Cup Premiership. He scored a full field try against the

Newcastle Knights The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, th ...

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

. Davies finished the season as the clubs top point scorer with 43 points.

International

Davies captained

in the 30-12 win over

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

on 16 Feb 1992 in Perpignan. During his time in rugby league he represented both Great Britain and

, scoring a solo try in Great Britain's last victory over the

Kangaroos Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

at the old Wembley in 1994 where he sprinted 50 metres to score in the corner out-pacing Australian

Brett Mullins Brett Mullins (born 21 January 1972) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s, and early 2000s. A New South Wales State of Origin and Australian international representative back, he played his club ...

. Although he left the field with a dislocated shoulder during the second half, his efforts in both attack and defence (which on the day saw him pull off two try saving tackles) saw him named as man of the match. However the shoulder injury would keep him out of the rest of

The Ashes The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. The term originated in a satirical obituary published in a British newspaper, '' The Sporting Times'', immediately after Australia's 1882 victory at The Oval, its first ...

series Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered sets used in ...

(eventually won 2-1 by Australia) as well as prevent him from playing for Wales in a friendly against the Kangaroos in Cardiff. With the Rugby Football League splitting the Great Britain team into individual nations (Wales, England,

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

and

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...

) from 1995, the test at Wembley would be the last time Davies would represent Great Britain in rugby league. Davies' last rugby league match was as captain of Wales against England in the 1995 World Cup Semi-final at

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wembl ...

, which Wales lost 25–10. Playing as a , Davies kicked 3 goals for Wales taking his total score for Wales to 21 points (10 goals, 1 field goal), all scored in the 1995 World Cup.

Return to rugby union

After the birth of daughter Geena in 1995, Davies' wife Karen was diagnosed with cancer. In need of family support, and as rugby union had turned professional, Davies went back to South Wales and signed to play 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 afte ...

. On a guest appearance on ''

A Question of Sport ''Question of Sport'' (previously ''A Question of Sport'') is a British television sports quiz show produced and broadcast by the BBC. It is the "world's longest running TV sports quiz". Following a pilot episode in December 1968, broadcast on ...

'' in 1995 he was asked what the biggest change was after returning to rugby union. Davies replied: "It's the first time I've been cold for seven years. I was never cold playing rugby league." In 1996, Davies was awarded an MBE and went with his family to

Buckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It ...

to collect his award. In 1997, his wife Karen died.

After rugby

Since retiring from rugby, Davies has worked in the media as a commentator and pundit in both codes, mainly for the BBC in both the English and Welsh languages. Since 2004 Davies has hosted his own rugby themed chatshow, ''

Jonathan Jonathan may refer to: *Jonathan (name), a masculine given name Media * ''Jonathan'' (1970 film), a German film directed by Hans W. Geißendörfer * ''Jonathan'' (2016 film), a German film directed by Piotr J. Lewandowski * ''Jonathan'' (2018 ...

'', on

S4C S4C (, ''Sianel Pedwar Cymru'', meaning ''Channel Four Wales'') is a Welsh language free-to-air public broadcast television channel. Launched on 1 November 1982, it was the first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking ...

, usually before Welsh international matches. Davies was also the President of

Super League The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of w ...

side

Crusaders The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...

, until 2009, when he was replaced by David Watkins. He is a supporter of the

Wooden Spoon Wooden Spoon may refer to: * Wooden spoon, implement * Wooden spoon (award) A wooden spoon is an award that is given to an individual or team that has come last in a competition. Examples range from the academic to sporting and more frivolous e ...

charity. In 2015 Davies was awarded the OBE for his charitable services to people with cancer through his role as president of Cardiff's

Velindre Cancer Centre The Velindre Cancer Centre ( cy, Canolfan Ganser Felindre) is a specialist facility caring for cancer patients in Whitchurch, Cardiff, Wales. It is managed by the Velindre University NHS Trust. History The facility was established as Velindre ...

. He has raised the Centre's profile as well as raising more than £10 million.

Playing records

References

External links

Great Britain Statistics at englandrl.co.uk (statistics currently missing due to not having appeared for both Great Britain, and England)
*(archived by web.archive.org
Profile at BBC Wales
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Jonathan 1962 births Living people BBC sports presenters and reporters British rugby league administrators Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs players Cardiff RFC players Crawshays RFC players Dual-code rugby internationals Great Britain national rugby league team captains Great Britain national rugby league team players Llanelli RFC players Neath RFC players North Queensland Cowboys players Officers of the Order of the British Empire Rugby league centres Welsh rugby league commentators Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league fullbacks Rugby league players from Carmarthenshire Rugby league wingers Rugby union players from Trimsaran Wales international rugby union players Wales national rugby league team captains Wales national rugby league team players Wales rugby union captains Warrington Wolves players Welsh rugby league players Welsh rugby union commentators Welsh rugby union players Welsh television presenters Welsh-language television presenters Widnes Vikings players

Biography

Rugby union

Rugby league

Widnes

Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs

Widnes

Warrington

North Queensland Cowboys

International

Return to rugby union

After rugby

Playing records

References

Further reading

External links