Rugby player
| Birth name | Thomas James Rees | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | (1913-05-08)8 May 1913 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Fleur-de-Lys, Caerphilly Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 19 February 1991(1991-02-19) (aged 77) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Fleur-de-Lys, Caerphilly, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Fleur de Lys Council School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation(s) | miner police officer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thomas Rees (8 May 1913 – 19 February 1991) was a Welsh international rugby union prop who played club rugby for Newport RFC. He was a member of the winning Welsh team who beat the 1935 touring All Blacks.
Rugby career
Rees joined Newport in 1934 after joining Newport Police Force. In 1935 he was part of the Newport team that faced the touring New Zealand team. Newport lost the game 17-5 in a game noted for its physicality in the scrum and during rucks. Rees was also chosen to represent Wales against the same touring New Zealand team, but earlier in the year had already gained his first Welsh cap when he was selected to face both Scotland and Ireland in the Home Nations Championship.
Rees' first international match was against Scotland under the captaincy of Claude Davey. Wales won the game 10-6, mainly thanks to an impressive display from Cliff Jones. His second international, at Ravenhill in Belfast, saw Wales lose to Ireland, the eventual tournament winners. His next international game was against the New Zealand tourists in a close game which Wales won in the last few minutes. In 1936 Rees played in all three games of the Home Nations Championship which Wales won after beating Scotland and Ireland and drawing with England. Rees played in the first two games of the 1937 Championship, with his final game being against Scotland at St Helens.
In 1938 Rees was approached to play for the British Lions in their 1938 tour of South Africa, but turned them down for financial reasons.
International games played
Wales
England 1936, 1937
Ireland 1935, 1936, 1937
New Zealand 1935
Scotland 1935, 1936
Bibliography
- Billot, John (1972). All Blacks in Wales. Ferndale: Ron Jones Publications.
- Godwin, Terry (1984). The International Rugby Championship 1883-1983. London: Willows Books. ISBN 0-00-218060-X.
- Smith, David; Williams, Gareth (1980). Fields of Praise: The Official History of The Welsh Rugby Union. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-0766-3.
References
- Newport RFC player profiles Archived 2011-06-17 at the Wayback Machine
- WRU player profiles
- Thomas Rees player profile Scrum.com
- Jenkins, John M.; et al. (1991). Who's Who of Welsh International Rugby Players. Wrexham: Bridge Books. p. 137. ISBN 1-872424-10-4.
- Smith (1980), p. 471.