Mervyn Davies
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File:Mervyn Davies in Wales strip.jpg | |||
Full name | Thomas Mervyn Davies | ||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | 9 December 1946 | ||
Place of birth | Swansea, Wales | ||
Date of death | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. | ||
Height | 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in)[1] | ||
Weight | 108 kg (17 st 0 lb) | ||
School | Penlan County School | ||
Rugby union career | |||
Playing career | |||
Position | Number eight | ||
Amateur clubs | |||
Years | Club / team | ||
1968-1972 1972-1976 |
London Welsh RFC Swansea RFC Barbarian F.C. Surrey |
||
National team(s) | |||
Years | Club / team | Caps | (points) |
1969–1976 1971–1974 |
Wales British Lions |
38 8 |
(7) (0) |
Thomas Mervyn Davies OBE (9 December 1946 – 15 March 2012),[2][3] often known as "Merv the Swerve", was a Welsh rugby union player who won 38 caps for Wales as a No. 8.
History
Davies was born in Swansea, where he attended Penlan County School.
Davies joined London Welsh in 1968, later moving to Swansea. He won his first cap for Wales in 1969 against Scotland, going on to play 38 consecutive matches for Wales and scoring two tries. During this period Wales won two Grand Slams and three Triple Crowns. He went on the British and Irish Lions tours to New Zealand in 1971 and to South Africa in 1974, playing in eight tests. In a total of 46 international appearances for Wales and the Lions he only ended on the losing side nine times.
Tall and slight of frame, he grew a Mexican moustache to make himself appear more aggressive on the rugby field. He was nicknamed "Merv the Swerve" and is considered to be the greatest Number 8 that Wales has ever produced and one of its greatest at any position.[4]
His career was ended by a subarachnoid hemorrhage suffered when captaining Swansea against Pontypool in 1976. He had collapsed during a game on another occasion, four years earlier, and had been wrongly diagnosed with meningitis.[5] Following the second incident he was a patient in the University Hospital of Wales for several months, and received goodwill messages from all over the world.
In a poll of Welsh rugby fans in 2002, Davies was voted both Greatest Ever Welsh Captain and Greatest Ever Welsh Number 8. In 2001 he was inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame.[4]
He was a smoker and was diagnosed with lung cancer (adenocarcinoma) in November 2011.
Davies had a son and daughter by his first wife Shirley; the marriage ended in divorce. He is survived by his second wife Jeni and his three stepchildren, and by his two children from his first marriage.[3]
Sources
- Mervyn Davies & David Roach - In Strength and Shadow (Mainstream, 2005)
- The Mervyn Davies Story (BBC2, September 2007)
References
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Mervyn Davies international rugby profile Scrum.com
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Independent Sports
- Use dmy dates from September 2012
- Use British English from September 2012
- Pages with broken file links
- International Rugby Hall of Fame inductees
- 1946 births
- 2012 deaths
- Rugby union players from Swansea
- Wales international rugby union players
- Rugby union number eights
- British and Irish Lions rugby union players from Wales
- Wales rugby union captains
- Swansea RFC players
- London Welsh RFC players
- Barbarian F.C. players
- BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year
- Deaths from lung cancer
- Officers of the Order of the British Empire