| Full name | Llwynypia Rugby Football Club |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1891 |
| Location | Llwynypia, Wales |
| League(s) | Defunct |
Llwynypia RFC was a rugby union club located in the Welsh village of Llwynypia in the Rhondda. The team provided several international players during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, most notably Willie Llewellyn, who was not only selected to represent Wales while playing at the club, but later played for the British Isles on their 1904 tour of Australia and New Zealand.
Llwynypia RFC was founded in 1891, [1] one of several Rhondda teams to emerge with the industrialisation of the valleys, when the mining of the coalfields led to a mass influx of economic immigrants. Llwynypia may have been formed before 1891 as there is evidence of a Llwynypia team being played in the early 1880s. The first mention is a match between Ystrad and a joint Tonypandy and Llwynpia team played on 30/11/1882. [2] The next mention is of a match between Llwynpia and Mountain Ash, played on 01/03/1883. [3] In the early 1890s Llwynypia, along with other local clubs, such as Treorchy, Ferndale and Penygraig, were represented in the newly formed Welsh Rugby Union. [4] By 1895 the Welsh selectors began re-evaluating the needs of the Welsh pack, and began looking for a more physical style of player. These players would be able to jump and scrummage, but would also be able to take and hand out rough play. [5] This forward player was found in the valley clubs, strong colliers who would be dubbed the 'Rhondda forward'. The new breed of forward were first represented in 1896 by Treorchy's Sam Ramsey and Penygraig's Dai Evans, but in 1897 Dick Hellings became the first player from Llwynypia Rugby Club to represent his country. The following match, against Ireland, he was joined by the club's second representative William Alexander.
These were the glory years of success for Llwynypia, during the 1895-96 season, supported by both Hellings and Alexander, they promised much, defeating several top flight opponents. [6] The next season they finished undefeated, [6] a feat normally only achieved by first class teams such as Newport and Cardiff. As the club gained in influence, the team began to attract talent from other clubs; which included Llanelli's three times capped Jack Evans. [7] Llwynypia's backs were described as 'speedy and well drilled', [6] which was typified by the emergence in the early 1900s by Willie Llewellyn, a seventeen-year-old out of Christ College, Brecon. In 1901 Llwynpyia provided three players to the Wales team that faced Ireland as part of the Home Nations Championship.
In 1904, Llwynypia, now seen as a top flight club, [8] found itself a victim of its own success when a number of its players switched to either professional or more 'popular' clubs. Support for the club dwindled and Llwynypia temporarily disbanded in 1905. [8] The club reformed in 1907 but found it hard to gain the support and quality of player it held in the early 1900s. [9] After the First World War, the Rhondda Valleys saw a massive decline in the demand for coal, this created an economic depression which was felt across South Wales. With little disposable income, crowds dwindled, which resulted in many valley clubs facing financial ruin. Llwynypia was one such club and disbanded by the 1930s. [10]
William Alexander (7 caps) George Dobson (1 cap) Tom Dobson (4 caps) Jack Evans (3 caps) William Evans (4 caps) Dick Hellings (9 caps) Bob Jones (1 cap) Mark Lewis (1 cap) Willie Llewellyn (20 caps)
Rugby union in Wales is considered a large part of Welsh national culture. Rugby union is thought to have reached Wales in the 1850s, with the national body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) being formed in 1881. Wales are considered to be one of the most successful national sides in Rugby Union, having won the most Six Nations Championships after England, as well as having reached 3 World Cup semi finals in 1987, 2011 and 2019, having finished 3rd in the inaugural competition and having finished 4th in 2011 in a repeat of the first third place play-off. The Welsh team of the 1970s is considered to be arguably the greatest national team of all time, prompting many experts in the game to suggest that had the Rugby World Cup existed during this period, Wales would be amongst the list of World Cup winners. As of November 2021, they are ranked 8th in the world.
Rhondda, or the Rhondda Valley, is a former coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fawr valley and the smaller Rhondda Fach valley – so that the singular "Rhondda Valley" and the plural are both commonly used. The area forms part of the South Wales Valleys. From 1897 until 1996 there was a local government district of Rhondda. The former district at its abolition comprised 16 communities. Since 1996 these 16 communities of the Rhondda have been part of Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough. The area of the former district is still used as the Rhondda Senedd constituency and Westminster constituency, having an estimated population in 2020 of 69,506. It is most noted for its historical coalmining industry, which peaked between 1840 and 1925. The valleys produced a strong Nonconformist movement manifest in the Baptist chapels that moulded Rhondda values in the 19th and early 20th centuries. It is also known for its male voice choirs and in sport and politics.
Treherbert Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Tynewydd in the Rhondda Valley. Treherbert RFC play home games in red shirts with black shorts and black socks. Today, Treherbert RFC plays in the Welsh Rugby Union Division Four South East league and are a feeder club for Cardiff Blues.
Penygraig Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Penygraig, Wales. Penygraig RFC formed in 1877, one of the earlier rugby clubs to emerge, and by the 1890s were a strong voice in the Welsh Rugby Union, one of four clubs from the Rhondda Valley that held WRU representation.
Treorchy Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the village of Treorchy, in the Rhondda Valley, Wales. They formed in 1886 and by 1891 were a strong voice in the Welsh Football Union and were playing in the Rhondda Division.
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William Morris Llewellyn was a Welsh international rugby union player. He captained Wales in 1905 and London Welsh in 1902. He was a member of the winning Welsh team who beat the 1905 touring All Blacks in the famous Match of the Century. Llewellyn toured with the British Isles to Australasia in 1904 and won three Triple Crown trophies. He played club rugby for many teams, predominantly for Llwynypia and Newport.
Richard Hellings was an English-born Welsh rugby union forward who played international rugby for Wales and club rugby for Llwynypia. Hellings was noted for his strength built from years cutting coal as a Rhondda miner. Hellings later played rugby for Cardiff, Exeter and Devon.
Thomas Williams was a Welsh rugby union forward who played club rugby for Cardiff and Pontypridd and international rugby for Wales. A solicitor by profession, Williams would later become a national selector for the Welsh Rugby Union. Williams was also responsible for suggesting the singing of the Welsh national anthem in a match in 1905, the first time a national anthem was sung before a sporting event.
David "Dai" Evans was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Penygraig and international rugby for Wales.
John Evans was a Welsh international rugby union forward who later 'went North', switching to the professional rugby league code. Evans played for several teams, but is most notable for playing club rugby for Llanelli, and international rugby for Wales.
Tom Dobson was a Scottish-born rugby union forward who played club rugby for Cardiff and international rugby for Wales. His brother George Dobson was also a rugby player who represented Cardiff and Wales.
John "Jack" Rhapps was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Penygraig, and international rugby for Wales. Rhapps later "Went North", when he turned professional, joining rugby league team Salford, and along with Anthony Starks they became the World's first dual-code rugby internationals.
George Alexander Dobson was a Welsh rugby union forward who played club rugby for Cardiff and international rugby for Wales. Although playing in only one international, it was part of the 1900 Wales Home Nations Championship winning season, making Dobson a Triple Crown winning player.
Robert Jones was a Welsh rugby union forward who played club rugby for Llwynypia and Cardiff and international rugby for Wales.
Henry John "Harry" Jones was a Welsh international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Penygraig and county rugby for Glamorgan. Jones played in just two international matches, but became a Triple Crown winner when he represented Wales during the 1902 Home Nations Championship.
Mark Lewis was a Welsh international rugby union wing who played club rugby for Treorchy and Llwynypia and international rugby for Wales.
Glamorgan Police RFC was a Welsh rugby union team that served the Glamorgan Police force before the amalgamation of the four district police forces of South Wales in 1969. The team was the most notable of the four early police rugby teams of Wales, supplying several notable players to the Wales national team.
Rugby union has a long history in Wales. Today it holds tier one status with the IRB. However, compared to Scotland, England, and Ireland, it was a latecomer on the international scene, and was not initially successful. Rugby union is the national sport of Wales, and is a great influence on Welsh culture.
William Henry Evans was a Welsh international centre who played club rugby for Llwynypia and Penygraig. He won four caps for Wales playing in all four matches of the 1914 Five Nations Championship.