Monthly Archives: January 2017

Rugby’s Greatest Upsets Part 2 – Wales v New Zealand, 1905

Posted on January 23, 2017 by

New Zealand had set down a marker of quality when defeating a tired and injury ravaged British Lions side at the tail end of their tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1904. The tourists had comfortably defeated Australia in … Continue reading →

Posted in New Zealand, Wales | 9 Comments

How to research and write a club history by Keith Gregson

Posted on January 16, 2017 by

Writer and historian Keith Gregson uses his experiences in researching Sunderland Rugby Club’s past to open a debate on writing rugby club histories. In 2011, I was fortunate enough to win a competition organised by Rugby World magazine and MX … Continue reading →

Posted in Clubs | 3 Comments

Jack Dallas – A life devoted to rugby

Posted on January 9, 2017 by

There are many personalities in the history of rugby union who have played a pivotal part in the development of the sport.  Few though have played a significant part as both player and referee in matches that are still recalled … Continue reading →

Posted in International Players, Scotland | 5 Comments

Death of a Forward

Posted on January 7, 2017 by

The Tragic First World War tale of Sunderland Rugby Football Club’s James Harry Edwards (1894 -1917) puts the First World War into sharp focus One hundred years ago on 7 January 1917 James Harry Edwards was shot by a sniper … Continue reading →

Posted in Clubs, Lest We Forget | Leave a comment

Tolkien’s Battle of the Eastern Field

Posted on January 3, 2017 by

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien is best known for his epic Lord of the Rings novels. A lesser known aspect of his personal history was his involvement in rugby union from a young age. Tolkien began playing rugby whilst a student … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 3 Comments