St Helen’s ArchivePreserving the past for the future
One (Start)
Transcript:
This jersey belonged to Mervyn Davies, commonly known as ‘Merve the Swerve’. This is Mervyn’s London Welsh Jersey, which he wore between 1968 and 1972. London Welsh, also known as the ‘Exiles’ were formerly a rugby team based in London, formed by and for the city's Welsh community. Mervyn played a couple of games for the third and second XV’s before making the number eight jersey his own for the club’s firsts and beyond.
This jersey marks the start of an audio trail dedicated to Mervyn’s career. This trail also acts as a record of the display of Mervyn’s jerseys, as it stands at St Helen’s. As such, this audio trail is unique in that it is a trail of 11 jerseys from across Mervyn’s career, some of which were worn by Mervyn himself, whilst others are a representation of the culture of jersey-swapping, that this archive has benefitted so greatly from.
Many of the jerseys swapped by Mervyn are the number 8, the position that he was so well known for. Mervyn himself played at number 8 from his time with the London Welsh 1st XV until the traumatic end of his career whilst with Swansea RFC.
This trail begins with Mervyn Davies’ earliest jersey on display, not just for chronological clarity, but also because it is central to his display at St Helen’s. The jersey, as presented, has its rear facing forwards, so that Mervyn’s famous number ‘8’, that became synonymous with ‘Merve the Swerve’, is clear for all to see. Each jersey in this trail, and therefore also on display, was donated personally by Mervyn Davies prior to his untimely passing in 2012. It is a fantastic display, not just in the appeal of such a range of international and national jerseys but also in how it shows just how many lives, places and people Mervyn reached through his play.
To describe the jersey itself, London Welsh played in an appropriate red whilst at home, of which this jersey is a home kit. The London Welsh motif, a red dragon on a white rectangle, is on the left breast. As will become a common feature of descriptions in this trail, on the jersey's rear is the number 8. The jersey unfortunately suffered some damage, in the days before UV protection was applied to the archive, that has caused some minor fading of its colour on its front, rear and right sleeve.
Mervyn’s time with the London Welsh included a ‘golden era’ for the club, culminating in a championship season in 1970-71, led by future Wales and ‘Lions’ captain John Dawes . Evidence of how instrumental Mervyn was to the development of the side’s expansive game can be seen in his nineteen Welsh international caps, achieved during his time there, in just four years. Interestingly, Mervyn had moved to London for work as a primary school teacher, and only played six times for the Exile’s first XV before playing his first Welsh international.
Mervyn Davies also played for the Old Guildfordians, Surrey, the British and Irish Lions, a Barry John XV celebratory match, the Barbarians, as well as Swansea RFC. His Swansea RFC player legacy number is 1901
The next jersey along this trail is Mervyn’s Welsh international jersey, representing his 38 caps. Please don’t forget to click next to follow along to the next part.