Billy Cleaver
![]() Cleaver in New Zealand in 1950 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Birth name | William Benjamin Cleaver[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date of birth | 15 September 1921 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Treorchy, Wales[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Date of death | 29 September 2003 | (aged 82)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of death | Cardiff, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight | 13 st (180 lb; 83 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
School | Pentre School[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
University | University College of Wales, Cardiff | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Occupation(s) | mining engineer[5] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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William Cleaver (15 September 1921 – 29 September 2003) was a
Born in 1921 in
International career
Cleaver was first selected for Wales during the 1947 Five Nations Championship, the first official game for the Welsh team after World War II. His first game was against England at the Cardiff Arms Park and he lined up alongside fellow Cardiff players Matthews, Williams, Evans and captain Haydn Tanner. Unsurprisingly, both Wales and their first opponents, England, were heavy with new caps, and although Wales lost, Cleaver played in all four games during the tournament. He scored his first try for Wales in the 1947 game against Scotland, a match which Wales won 22–8. In the 1950 campaign, in which Wales won the Grand Slam, Cleaver played in all four games, and scored a drop goal against Scotland.
International matches played
Wales[7]
Australia 1947
England 1947, 1948, 1950
France 1947, 1948, 1950
- Ireland 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950
Scotland 1947, 1948, 1950
British Lions
During the 1950 Lions tour, Cleaver played ten provincial matches and in three test games against the All Blacks. For some unknown reason Cleaver was chosen as one of the two full-backs on the tour, this was not his normal position. The other full back, Norton of Ireland, broke his arm early on and Cleaver was forced to play in every match in that position until
New Zealand 1950, 1950, 1950
References
- ^ a b Evans, Howard (6 October 2003). "Bill Cleaver - Wales outside-half who retired into mining (obituary)". The Independent. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
- ^ Billy Cleaver. espn.co.uk
- ^ Smith (1980), p. 309.
- ^ Newport Gwent Dragons player profiles Archived June 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Smith (1980), p. 304.
- ^ Scrum.com player profiles Archived October 21, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Smith (1980), p. 471.
- ^ Thomas, Wayne (1979). A Century of Welsh Rugby Players. Ansells Ltd. p. 103.
Bibliography
- Smith, David; Williams, Gareth (1980). Fields of Praise: The Official History of The Welsh Rugby Union. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. ISBN 0-7083-0766-3.