Cliff Bowen
| Full name | Clifford Alfred Bowen | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 3 January 1875 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Morriston, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 30 April 1929 (aged 54) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Rickmansworth, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Wing | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Amateur team(s) | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Points) |
| National team(s) | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Points) |
| 1896–1897 | Wales | 4 | ((3)) |
Bowen was first selected for the Wales international team for the opening match of the 1896 Home Nations Championship, against England. Bowen was brought in at threequarters opposite Newport's Bert Dauncey on the wing with Owen Badger and Welsh captain Arthur 'Monkey' Gould at centre. Bowen and Dauncey would both retain their positions throughout the tournament, being the first wing pair to do so since Biggs and McCutcheon in Wales' Triple Crown winning Championship in 1893. The 1896 England encounter at Blackheath was a sporting disaster for the Wales team, losing by seven tries to nil, and the Welsh selectors reacted with sweeping changes to the pack. The next game saw a complete turn around in Welsh fortunes, with a 6–0 win over Scotland. Bowen retained his place, but the match is notable for the introduction of Welsh rugby legend Gwyn Nicholls at centre with Gould. Gould was a changed player in the Scotland encounter, marshalling the game throughout and supporting the inexperienced Welsh pack. Of the two tries scored by Wales in the match both came from the threequarters; one from Gould and the other from Bowen, his first and only international points. The final game of the 1896 series, was an away game to Ireland. The inexperienced pack suffered badly from the Irish kick-and-rush tactic, and new halfback Llewellyn Lloyd was constantly exposed to heavy Irish attacks. Despite a dropped goal from Gould, Wales lost 4–8.
Bowen would win one final cap for Wales, the opening game of the 1897 Championship against England, this time paired at wing with veteran threequarter Tom Pearson. After the humiliation of 1896 the new forward tactics employing several 'Rhondda Forwards', saw a different result with Wales winning 11–0. Wales didn't complete the 1897 tournament, being forced to withdraw from the Championship after the outcome of the Gould Affair, and when Wales were readmitted in 1898, Bowen had moved on and was no longer a part of the Welsh team.
...
Wikipedia