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For those of you who didn't see it 1st time around it's been shown again tonight Sunday 17th May at 10:30 p.m on BBC1 Wales. It's a must see for any RL fan IMO.

A real insight as to how players were "treated" in Wales when they made the move North.

Don't miss it.

Sky channel 952



https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/th ... is-weekend

Just watching it now. As a History student and a Rugby fan it's the perfect way to kick back after finishing my first year.

As a student and fan of both RL, what's your take on that era, Richy. Be interesting to get a viewpoint on the issues raised ? Cheers.

Nezza Faz wrote: ↑Tue May 19, 2020 8:40 pm As a student and fan of both RL, what's your take on that era, Richy. Be interesting to get a viewpoint on the issues raised ? Cheers.

There were many issues raised, probably can't cover them all.

I thought it was very interesting to see how the working class Welsh towns and villages were not as welcoming to young black lads coming through. I can't recall the name of the bloke who nearly broke down in tears over the fact many young black guys were overlooked based on their skin colour. Obviously this is a reflection of the time and thankfully that is passed us on the whole as a society. But it was brilliant to see these lads welcomed into RL (despite having a target on them due to their price tags). Obviously there will still have been the few who were genuinely racist who will have heckled the black guys (as was stated in the doc.). Fills me with pride in the sport that these guys felt accepted in RL however.

Another issue was the rather unscrupulous way agents would lure players over the border from Wales and RU. Waiting until they were getting married or having kids to give them a cash incentive to play. Obviously this is just capitalising on the fact RL paid and RU didn't but it seemed very brazen and a little hideous at times. An example being when they would send limousines to these small Welsh villages and attract the lads away. Gareth Edwards being a major exception as described in the documentary.

All in all a great piece of history to look into, this documentary got me looking into a few bits of RL history. All my family are/were Union players including me so I am having to find it for myself which I really enjoy (hence the History degree). I wish there was more footage of Jim Sullivan, Billy Boston and alike. I found a few bits of the 1932 ashes series in Australia on Youtube. fascinating to watch.

Thanks for that insight Richy, great to get a genuine opinion from that particular era. You can see why there was an influx of Welsh ru players from their working class roots, as opposed to a mere trickle coming from English ru, which at the time was mainly a Public School game.

Hi all,

Just to add to this , I'm writing a book on the welsh players who played for Wigan and I am trying to get in touch with family members to discuss their lives. I've spoken to a few ex players and their relatives. Can anyone help me with more??

Thanks