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Wales' Grand Slam Triumphs

Thu 13 Mar, 03:09 PM


As Gavin Henson left the Millennium Stadium following Wales' Grand-Slam clinching victory over Ireland in 2005, he laughed: "I suppose we'll all be legends now!"

He was not wrong. In a country which lives and breathes its rugby like no other bar New Zealand, to be a Grand Slam winner is to be considered rugby royalty.

The names trip off the tongue and conjure up enduring images of glorious Welsh victories, stretching back exactly 100 years.

Billy Trew and the four victorious captains of 1908; Ken Jones' try-scoring brilliance in the 1950s; Barry John, Phil Bennett, JPR Williams, Gareth Edwards, Gerald Davies - all stars of the 1970s.

Henson, Ryan Jones, Martyn Williams, Tom Shanklin, Stephen Jones - modern-day heroes of the 2005 campaign, and all chasing a second triumph this weekend.

Victory over France at the Millennium Stadium would secure Wales their 10th Grand Slam triumph, just one day after the 100th anniversary of their first ever clean sweep:

1908 and 1909

Although Wales played in the Home Nations championship, they also beat France in both years so are considered to have won the Grand Slam.

In 1908, Wales fielded a different captain - Arthur Harding, George Travers, Teddy Morgan and Bert Winfield - in each of their four matches. Wales won their first ever match against France 36-4 and sealed the Grand Slam with an 11-5 win over Ireland in Belfast.

The following year, Wales repeated the feat under captain Billy Trew. They edged a 5-3 win over Scotland after but only after kicker George Cunningham missed a late penalty. Welsh full-back Jack Bancroft had been penalised for not playing the ball - even though he was unconscious at the time. Wales wrapped up the Grand Slam with an 18-5 win over Ireland as Trew and Melville Baker each scored a hat-trick.

1911

France were officially admitted to the championship the previous year but were still struggling and Wales won 15-0 in Paris. Trew handed the captaincy for the day to winger Johnnie Williams, who spoke fluent French. Williams was later killed in the Battle of the Somme.

Wales enjoyed a record 32-10 win over Scotland as winger Reggie Gibbs scored a hat-trick and again the decider was against Ireland. Mounted police had to keep thousands away from a packed Arms Park. Inside the ground, Wales won 16-0 to seal their third Grand Slam.

1950 and 1952

After three Grand Slams in four seasons, Wales had to wait 39 years before they reigned supreme again.

Cardiff's Bleddyn Williams was named captain but withdrew because of injury and loose forward John Gwilliam led Wales to glory in both 1950 and 1952.

Wales opened with victories over England and Scotland and were being held at 3-3 in the final minute against Ireland when winger Malcolm Thomas dived over in the corner. Thomas took out the corner flag under pressure from Irish defenders - but the try was given. The Grand Slam was sealed against France as Ken Jones scored twice in a 21-0 win.

Jones, an Olympic sprinter, was the match-winner against England in the opening round of the 1952 championship. Jones scored again in the wins over Scotland - fly-half Rex Willis played on with a broken jaw - and Ireland. He failed to touch down against France but Lewis Jones kicked Wales to victory in his final international before converting to rugby league.

1971, 1976 and 1978

The golden era of Welsh rugby. In addition to the three Grand Slams, Wales also won a Triple Crown and a Five Nations title during the triumphant decade.

Incredibly, Wales only used 16 players during both their 1971 and 1976 Grand Slam campaigns.

The 1972 squad was captained by John Dawes and starred winger Gerald David, full-back JPR Williams, plus half-back Barry John and Gareth Edwards.

The match against Scotland will forever be remembered for John Taylor's touchline kick which sealed Wales a 19-18 victory and was later described as "the greatest conversion since St Paul".Five years later, captain Mervyn Davies played his final Test in the Grand Slam-clinching victory over France. Three weeks, later he collapsed with a brain haemorrhage. Phil Bennett was a star of the campaign, becoming Wales' leading points scorer.

In 1978, Gareth Edwards became the first Welshman to win 50 caps in Wales' win at Twickenham. In the Grand Slam decider against France, Wales came from 7-0 down to win 16-7. Bennett scored two tries and after the match both he and Edwards retired.

2005

Wales' 27-year Grand Slam wait ended with a 32-20 victory over Ireland at the Millennium Stadium after an extraordinary campaign.

Mike Ruddock's side opened the tournament with a dramatic 11-9 victory over England but the turning point came in Paris, where France had dominated the first half but only led 15-6 at the interval.

Wales produced a sensational second-half performance, storming into the lead with two tries from Martyn Williams before staging a defiant goalline stand at the end to seal a 24-18 win.

At Murrayfield, Wales ran in five tries before half-time and then returned home to beat the Irish and spark the mother of all parties in the Principality.

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