Cricket Witness No 5 - Whites on Green

28 The Bancrofts his kicking on the run was a highly prized skill, learnt after many years of practice on the outfield adjacent to his family’s cottage. However, Wales only won two out of Bancroft’s first nine appearances and a few questions were raised about his defensive capabilities. These were swiftly answered in 1893 as Wales, under the captaincy of Arthur Gould, won the Triple Crown for the first-ever time. The first match of that season saw England visit the Arms Park – a venue where Wales had never previously defeated England – and in the days leading up to the game, there were doubts that the game would go-ahead, before eighteen tons of coal were burned in braziers on the night before the game to prevent the frost getting at the pitch. It did the trick, and a thrilling game ensued, with England leading Wales 11-9 until a couple of minutes before the final whistle when Wales were awarded a penalty kick, about thirty yards out and just in from the touch- line. Gould called up Bancroft, who insisted on drop kicking the ball rather than opting to place kick. Gould initially disagreed, but Bancroft convinced him that he could win the game. After a heated exchange, Bancroft duly slotted the ball over the posts, and after subsequent victories over Scotland and Ireland, Wales lifted the Triple Crown. Bancroft returned to Swansea as a hero, but despite many fine words on his behalf, plus some magnanimous gestures, he did not derive any financial benefit from Wales’ success as rugby was still an amateur sport. In fact, at the time, cricket was Billy’s main source of income, based on his professional duties with Swansea, topped up by appearances for Glamorgan, and supplemented by his earnings, working alongside his father repairing boots and shoes. The Bancrofts in front of their cottage on the St. Helen’s ground where the family lived until it was demolished in 1891.