Gareth Edwards

Presenter0:00

This download is the only extract the BBC has of this edition of Desert Island Discs. The presenter was Roy Plumley.

Gareth Edwards0:08

Gareth, what part of Wales are you from?

Gareth Edwards0:10

I'm from what to most uh English people is an unpronounceable village in the top of the Swansea Valley called uh Gwancai Geruen.

Speaker 20:17

Yes.

Gareth Edwards0:18

Shut away, obviously, up right at the furthermost end of the Swansea Valley and in between the Black Mountains.

Gareth Edwards0:26

You were brought up to play soccer as well as rugby, weren't you? Yes, although uh basically in the village uh one tended to play rugby, as you'll find in most villages in South Wales, the opportunity did come at a later age to play soccer. And since most of my friends did play it, I participated in as well.

Presenter0:42

There's a story that when you were at Ponto Dawi Technical School when you were 16, you were going to sign up as a soccer professional.

Gareth Edwards0:49

Uh

Presenter0:49

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards0:49

Uh Yes, it was only at the eleventh hour, more or less, that uh I changed my mind when I had uh this wonderful opportunity and I was awarded a scholarship to go to a public school called Millfield. Yes, a great sports school. Oh, without a doubt, yes.

Presenter1:00

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards1:03

Tremendous emphasis placed on sport, obviously as well as academic work, but there was an opportunity for anybody who had any wish to play any particular sport, there was this uh chance for him to do so.

Presenter1:14

In fact, you did um

Presenter1:16

When distinction there at athletics, he won a two hundred yards hurdles championship.

Gareth Edwards1:22

One of my better performances, I believe the funny thing about that was uh the opportunity I had. I won the All England uh Schools Championship and uh I particularly remember the occasion when I was representing England in a white vest. You were doing what? Representing England against Wales in Ireland.

Presenter1:35

Yeah.

Presenter1:38

Patches

Gareth Edwards1:40

I've never been allowed to forget it by my Welsh friends. At that time, what were you planning to do as a career?

Gareth Edwards1:49

At that time all I had in mind was to be a physical education teacher, which I think most of my friends, because of the environment which we've been brought up in, sport minded, etcetera, uh this was the one thing foremost in our minds. And you went on to

Presenter2:03

A Cardiff Training College, with that in view. That's right, yes, I completed three years there.

Gareth Edwards2:08

At that time you started playing rugger for Cardiff? Yes, everything more or less fell into place then. Whilst I was at college I played a little for college and a little for the Cardiff Club.

Presenter2:17

And then you got your trial for Wales and your first cap. What was the first game you played for Wales?

Gareth Edwards2:22

My first game was uh in Cologne against uh France in April of of nineteen sixty seven.

Gareth Edwards2:29

And your first game at Cardiff Arms Park? Followed a fortnight later, yes, against England, and without a doubt I think that'll reign as one of the greater experiences of my life.

Presenter2:39

It must be a great emotional moment when you go out for Wales for the first time with the crowd singing and you're against your traditional enemies.

Gareth Edwards2:47

Boys uh well yes, uh it it's a tremendous experience uh for your first cap, but I can assure you I still feel the same now, you know, a number of years later. There's this superb feeling of uh of togetherness when you go out onto Cardi Farms Park, which uh one has to experience to really appreciate it. Yes. Well you were only nineteen then? Nineteen at the moment when I received my first cap. How many caps do you have now? Uh thirty-two uh to present.

Presenter3:12

Of course, a rugger player in Wales is on a different standing from a rugged player anywhere else. Everybody follows the game. Everybody knows you.

Presenter3:21

Uh

Gareth Edwards3:21

Yes, I believe it's very much on par possibly with the soccer player in England or the baseball or basketball player in America. Every rugby player in Wales has this aura about him. This pop idol image which the not only the children but the grown-ups as well place upon him and there are many occasions when this can get a little bit embarrassing.

Gareth Edwards3:43

How many times did you turn out for Wales before you were made captain?

Gareth Edwards3:47

I believe it was about four or five occasions five occasions I believe. Well, it was within six or seven months from the first time I was cast.

Presenter3:55

Yes, and you were only twenty, the youngest ever international captain. You were a bit too young, weren't you? Uh

Gareth Edwards4:01

Really? Looking back on it, no, yes, I quite agree with you. I think the uh

Gareth Edwards4:05

The burden was proved a little bit too much at that time.

Gareth Edwards4:08

When you're appointed captain, it's for how long? For the season?

Gareth Edwards4:11

Well no, it's actually as good as your last game and I think this proves the same today as it did at that time. So the captain is just selected with the team for each international? Yes. It's uh when the team is

Presenter4:21

announced the captain is chosen for that one particular game.

Gareth Edwards4:24

Mm-hmm.

Presenter4:25

How much free reign does a captain have? D do the selectors dictate strategy?

Gareth Edwards4:29

Okay.

Presenter4:29

Uh

Gareth Edwards4:29

Well in today's game there is far more scope given not only to the captain but to the whole team. Although there is far greater preparation for a game beforehand there is discussion amongst the selectors and the coach and even the team itself on what sort of tactical ploys we should try in the forthcoming game. The only time that the captain is in complete command is on the field of play.

Presenter4:53

Yes. Now you're kept busy playing for your regular club, Cardiff. How much time does the national team have together?

Presenter5:01

Uh

Gareth Edwards5:01

Not as much as most people tend to think, although as I've just said, that we now spend far more time together than we used to. I remember when I first played for Wales, we only used to meet on the Friday evening, and the captain used to take over the training at that time. But now we do have occasional Sunday sessions, we call them, or weekends together prior to an international. And we do now meet on a Thursday evening before a game, have a light run out, and then meet on the Friday evening.

Presenter5:29

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards5:29

What

Presenter5:29

Wales has an advantage, of course, in being a small country. It's easier to get the boys together.

Presenter5:34

What are the problems of of of being kept? And you have to take a an overall view of the whole game, as well as your own corner of it, all the time.

Gareth Edwards5:42

Actually, there's no problems whatsoever as long as we're successful.

Presenter5:45

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards5:45

Yeah.

Presenter5:45

Is

Gareth Edwards5:45

The the key word to it.

Presenter5:46

Now as well as the local internationals, as you can call them, England, Ireland, Scotland, France, you've been on quite a number of overseas tours with the British Lions when you've stopped being Welsh and become a Briton.

Presenter5:59

Where have you been to?

Gareth Edwards6:00

Um I've been to South Africa on a number of occasions, once with the British Lions, I've also been to New Zealand and Australia with the British Lions, plus numerous other tours with Wales and the Cardiff Club.

Presenter6:11

Uh

Gareth Edwards6:12

Uh

Presenter6:12

You had that magnificent partnership with Barry John, your fly half. That was for Cardiff, the Welsh team and the Lions.

Gareth Edwards6:18

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards6:19

Yes, uh I was only too sorry really to see it all end and uh if I may say so, I thought a little bit prematurely and after speaking to Barry he quite agrees with me. But of course uh he's done rather well in his business and uh I think this is the important thing at his stage of life.

Presenter6:35

Uh

Gareth Edwards6:35

Yeah.

Presenter6:35

Uh

Gareth Edwards6:35

Yeah.

Presenter6:35

It was a wonderful double act. I believe you you used to baffle the opposition by communicating with each other in Welsh. It's a much easier one.

Gareth Edwards6:42

We used to play against English sides, it wasn't so effective when we used to play against our our friends at home. Was Welsh your first language? You are bilingual. Yes, I was brought up through the media of Welsh. Like

Speaker 26:49

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards6:53

Very similar to everyone in the family, my wife, everybody in the village was more or less conversing in Welsh.

Gareth Edwards7:00

A rugger is booming now, isn't it? I'd like to think so, yes. I think it's pretty obvious to everybody, insomuch that uh

Gareth Edwards7:07

Crowds uh are more or less on on the on the up and up. Uh international rugby has a tremendous following.

Presenter7:11

Yeah.

Presenter7:14

There are all sorts of new countries coming in. How are Japan going to make out as as newcomers? You certainly saw them all. Yeah.

Gareth Edwards7:21

So, I don't think they thoroughly enjoyed the experience they had in Wales, but on the other hand, I think they're the type of nation that

Gareth Edwards7:29

won't entirely go home with a tail between their legs. They'll more or less learn by their mistakes, and I'm quite sure that if they ever return to these islands they'll be twice as difficult to beat.

Speaker 27:40

Yeah.

Speaker 27:41

What job are you doing now? You're not in physical education nowadays.

Gareth Edwards7:45

No, I after I qualified I tended to find that uh my immediate interest in physical education uh had diminished. I had no wish to carry it on and I more or less uh went immediately into uh industry and within six months I found myself working for my present employer um which is in engineering.

Speaker 28:06

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards8:06

No difficulty in getting time off when you need it? Uh not at present, no. I've got a very good and understanding boss which I tend to find most rugby players in South Wales have to have anyway.

Presenter8:17

I'm sure you must have had plenty of offers. Have you ever been tempted to go professional in rugby league?

Presenter8:22

Yeah.

Gareth Edwards8:22

I've never been tempted and the only doubts when I'd received these offers of course was the fact that I would have benefited tremendously financially.

Gareth Edwards8:31

But I weighed it all up with the fact that I was quite happy in my present situation and uh there is no doubt in my mind I made the right decision. How much training do you do, girl?

Gareth Edwards8:42

This more or less fluctuates between uh between big games. If I've got a an immediate uh big engagement then obviously I train much harder for that particular game.

Gareth Edwards8:52

But um all in all I would say I have to train twice a week with my club Carne. We train at evenings. We invariably play twice a week, so that's four commitments a week. And of course prior to international matches we do have these weekends which I've already talked to you about.

Speaker 28:56

We train

Speaker 29:07

Okay.