Cover Stories
A Win Win centenary Situation
England celebrate Man of the Match James Haskell’s try
RFU Chief Executive Francis Baron and President John Owen welcome Prince Harry to Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham’s Centenary Match was a spectacular occasion. Prince Harry became Vice Patron of the Rugby Football Union at the event, almost 100 years to the day after the stadium’s first ever international. His great-great grandfather George, Prince of Wales, was in the Royal Box for that first game to see England beat Wales 11-6. At the re-enactment on February 6th Prince Harry was joined by Prince William, Vice Patron of the Welsh Rugby Union, for the RBS 6 Nations opener.
The fans were clamouring for an England victory, the BBC cameras revealed grim determination as the teams ran out of the tunnel onto the hallowed turf, the home team in kit modelled on that of a century ago. Honours stood at 53 wins apiece, with 12 draws, the scene was certainly set. And as the occasion demanded, England delivered the result, a three try 30-17 victory, with 15 points kicked by local hero Jonny Wilkinson. The scoreboard said it all as did Prince Harry’s grin, his new ambassadorial duties building on his regular visits to Twickenham as a supporter. During his gap year he also worked with the RFU in its community rugby programme, becoming a Level 1 tag rugby coach. He has also become Patron of the RFU’s Injured Players Foundation, the RFU’s official charity which supports players who have been catastrophically injured playing rugby at any level of the game in England.
At the match, Prince William and Prince Harry played a significant part in the Centenary celebrations, which included the singing of Jerusalem and the National Anthem by massed choirs including over 300 local singers backed by the Royal Artillery Military Band, the official military band of the England team for the Centenary Year. The Princes met injured servicemen from Headley Court and Selly Oak rehabilitation centres all of whom, having been injured in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, overcame great personal, physical and mental obstacles to be in the match day guard of honour. They also met the players on both sides as well as representatives of the RFU and WRU.
RFU President John Owen said: “Prince Harry has been a great supporter of English rugby, from working with us in 2004 as a level one coach as well as supporting our successful bid to host the 2015 Rugby World Cup. His support for the RFU Injured Players Foundation will be invaluable in helping those seriously injured playing the game. To welcome him and Prince William to such an historic match was a tremendous privilege.” Francis Baron, RFU Chief Executive added, “Prince Harry has been a fervent supporter of the team for many years and was present in Australia in 2003 when we won the World Cup. It is fantastic to see that support now translating into a formal role and we are sure he will be a positive force for good for our Injured Players Foundation.”
At half time during the Centenary Match players from England’s 1960 Triple Crown winning side made a walk of honour. This was the only England team to have fielded the same 15 players throughout a Five/Six Nations tournament in its history and mark the halfway point in Twickenham’s 100 years. Those present were: Dickie Jeeps – captain (24 caps), Don Rutherford (14), Jim Roberts (18), Mike Weston (29), John Young (9), Malcolm Phillips (25), Richard Sharp OBE (14), Ron Syrett (11) and Derek Morgan (9).
The Centenary Ambassadors: Rob Andrew, Bill Beaumont, Lawrence Dallaglio, and Dickie Jeeps and RFU President, John Owen, also presented plaques to club Presidents from RFU grassroots clubs celebrating their own Centenary Year. They are: Bancroft RFC, Bournville RFC, Oxford RFC, Huddersfield RUFC, Old Emanuel RFC, Broad Plain RFC and Nuneaton Old Edwardians RFC.
England captain Steve Borthwick said after the match, “It was very hard-fought. Credit to Wales for the way they played and the effort they put into the game – they’re a quality side. The victory’s a great reward, though, for all the England players and the management staff. I think Nike and the RFU, with O2’s help, did a fantastic job with the [retro-style] shirts – I hope the fans liked it. It was a good day with plenty going on to celebrate Twickenham’s centenary, but we managed to focus on the task in hand for the full eighty minutes.”
Centenary Match Programmes
If you couldn’t be at Twickenham’s Centenary Match but would like a souvenir programme and DVD a limited number are on sale for £10 at the Rugby Store at Twickenham Stadium or York Street Twickenham. Or log on to www.rfudirect.com
