Lives in Cricket No 11 - CP Lewis

appeared quite undone. The home team were all of a heap defending their goal as every opening was invaded. Every weak point was tested by the Englishmen, 29 and but for a short time, the Welshmen managed to keep them back.’ C.P. valiantly launched some counter-attacks, but as the newspaper also reported ‘Lewis got a run but soon lost the ball and ‘ere long, the wonderful passing of the visitors proved too much for the home side.’ In January of that season Wales went to Raeburn Place, Edinburgh to play Scotland. This was a game staged on a frozen pitch, and one which saw Lewis became the first Welsh player to play at full-back on his own. It was also a match which saw the Welsh forwards, led by the tall Tom Clapp – another Newport cricketer – manage one move which swept the length of the field and enabled Tom Judson to score a try which Lewis adroitly converted. But the Scots proved too powerful, scoring three converted tries. In fact, it might have been more had it not been for some spirited tackling by Lewis when the burly Scots forwards launched a series of attacks on the Welsh line. The next international was nearly a year later, on 5 January 1884, against England in Leeds, at the St. John’s Ground in Cardigan Fields. Lewis was replaced as captain by Charles Newman of Newport for the match, which was played in heavy rain and on already saturated turf, but he did manage to convert the only Welsh try of the match, scored by the Oxford Blue and Bangor cricketer, Charles Allen, after a ‘grand dash and kick over the English line’. England however crossed the try-line three times and, as in the match against Scotland, Lewis’ spirited defence helped to keep the score down, whilst his accurate drop-kicks launched several counter-attacks. Indeed, the correspondent of The South Wales Daily News believed that ‘praise should be given to the full-back Lewis who defended exceedingly well.’ C.P. kept his place in the side the following week and regained the captaincy when Scotland visited Newport – a game which attracted a crowd of around 7,000, with Wales starting as pre-match favourites. However, the match at Rodney Parade saw Scotland secure a comprehensive victory in what proved to be C.P.’s final appearance in a Welsh jersey. His strong tackling was to the fore again, but Wales needed more attacking options in the backs, and The Lone Full Back 83 29 The English fifteen included seven Oxford University players, and one from Cambridge, indicating the continuing prominence of students at the national level of sport.