St Helen’s ArchivePreserving the past for the future
Two
Transcript:
This is part two of the audio trail on David ‘Dai’ Samuel. This entry discusses the earliest parts of both the Samuel brother’s careers with Swansea Rugby Football club.
This photograph brings us back to that first season for ‘Dai’ Samuel. Taken during the 1889-90 season, it announces them as ‘Premier Team of Wales’, or Welsh Champion club as we may describe the honour today. Notably, Dai Samuel does not appear in the photograph. But his brother Jack Samuel does.
Dai, as explored in the last part of this trail, did play this season but just a dozen games in the middle of the campaign. The team was captained by ‘Billy’ Bowen, who is pictured holding the ball, almost directly centre in the photograph, third from the left in the second row. Jack Samuel, is second from the right standing in the back row. There are five Welsh capped players in this Swansea RFC photograph; the aforementioned skipper Billy Bowen, fellow forwards Tom Williams, Walter Rice Evans and John Meredith, and half-back Evan James. The Samuel brothers would achieve this distinction the following season.
The photograph’s mount itself is gold edged with illuminated letters emphasising the first letters of the words ‘The Swansea Football Team’ before declaring them as ‘Premier Team’ for 1888-89. Whilst the original is now somewhat faded, thanks to the work here at the St Helen’s Archive, the photograph has been digitally restored. Both versions can be found on this page. Each photographed player appears in The Swansea colours of the day – white jerseys and navy knee length trousers and socks. Each wears their cap, and most present themselves cross-armed and relatively stern in demeanour and facial expression, a common affectation of the period, when photographic portraiture was taken very seriously by the subject.
Don’t forget to click next to hear the next part of the trail - Dai Samuel’s Swansea Cap.