Past Players
Past Players #1 Les Small
Les Small holds the record for the number of Siam Cup appearances, playing 20, on the winning side 18 times, drawing once and losing once; I would be interested to know how many 1st XV games he has played in over the years.
Les has always maintained a high level of personal fitness and has been injury-free for most of his career. He has always played in his favoured position at centre, prefering to focus on perfecting that discipline rather than being a utility back. For the same reason he never took on the captaincy of the island side.
He has not got line-breaking pace nor a huge step; his outstanding quality is his ability to straighten the back line, commit his opposite number and time his pass to perfection - he very rarely wastes an overlap. It is no coincidence that some of the most successful try-scoring wingers, Jimmy Jordan, Steve Lund etc, played outside Les over the years.
Although he restricted himself to centre when playing, he has a great knowledge of back play generally and would pass this on to less experienced players. Les was always the tactician, always thinking about the game, always working out ways to outwit the opposition; he worked on a building site in the seventies with Dick Allan and Tommy Mee where the whole topic of conversation was rugby, rumour has it the team was selected on the job!
Once he had finished his 1st XV career Les gave up playing; he enjoyed top competition but did not get fulfillment playing in the Jersey local leagues. He now passes on his knowledge and experience to younger players and is part of the coaching team for Jersey 2nd XV.
The only problem with having such a successful career is that Les appears on large numbers of 1st XV photos on the club lounge wall and, Les being a slave to hair fashion, his image reflects the tonsorial fashion of the time; the picture showing Les with a ’Mullet’ still draws admirers. His other main characteristic is his inability to purchase personal hygiene items, meaning that his team-mates had to supply him in soap and deodorant for twenty years.
rn
Past Players #2 Dai Burton
Dai Burton played in South Wales for Maesteg and various other clubs before coming to Jersey in the 70’s; he played in numerous Siam Cup encounters and 1st XV games in the seventies and eighties. Unusually,Dai has played as both a forward and a back for Jersey; to my knowledge he has played at scrum-half,fly-half, centre and wing-forward, each position for significant periods - this gave him a great breadth of experience and knowledge which stood him in good stead when he was 1st XV captain and even more so when he turned to coaching the club. Prior to the formation of the leagues, JRFC hosted many of the top sides from the UK; these clubs used a trip to Jersey as a break from their normal fixtures - Dai played against most of these teams and also played during the Club’s Centenary season, when many internationals came over to help with the celebrations. The game that Dai remembers with the greatest affection is when Jersey beat the full Hampshire XV. Dai enjoyed both the physical and intellectual aspects of the game,enjoying the challenge of outwitting the opposition but not backward in coming forward in a confrontation. If one of the lesser club teams were short, he would turn out and play; often at short notice and out of position, to add to his experience. His contacts within the game (ie Paul Turner) helped immensely when he turned to coaching the JRFC, anyone who has coached at any level will know how there are times when inspiration is lacking; it is great to get ideas from other coaches.
Dai has played a big part in bringing the 1st XV up to the current high level in the Leagues, unimaginable ten years ago, giving a huge amount of his leisure and business time to this end - only over the last three years easing back as professional coaches were employed by JRFC. He has ruffled a few feathers in his time, when one is involved in the selection of the island side for a long period it is easy for players who do not make the squad to accuse Dai of picking his favorites, however, all should remember that he can only put fifteen on the park at any one time.
Dai, luckily, as a hotelier,could manipulate his working hours around his rugby commitments so his business career was not too badly affected; indeed many of the visiting sides stay in one of his hotels.
Socially Mr Burton is a very patriotic Welshman with an inbred distain of English rugby, particularly at Six Nations time; he has been known to buy a drink, but it is more likely to be wine rather than beer these days. rn
Past Players #3 Rad Montgomery
Rad Montgomery is probably Jersey’s highest profile English player before the advent of professionalism.
He started playing in 1970, progressing to play for South Warwickshire in the 74/75 season, thence to Kenilworth and Warwickshire Under 23’s in 75/76. Rad moved on to Kingston Polytechnic, University Vandals, Warwickshire and then Harlequins. In 1978 he joined Rosslyn Park and Surrey, playing for the Park for ten seasons, captaining them and also leading the Surrey County XV.
Radley has retained a huge number of contacts in the London rugby community; in fact organising annual tours from Jersey to the capital, attending one of the autumn internationals at Twickenham and playing a South London club.
Rad moved to Jersey in 1989, played for the 1st XV for many years, captaining them three times in the early 90s. Towards the end of his playing career he played for and captained the Wanderers (Jersey Over 35s). He has also representated the players on the General Committee as Club Captain.
He was an aggressive, quick wing-forward with great hands; he was, at his peak in the UK, selected in the London Division Squad that played against Australia, who’s team included the Ella brothers and David Campese, unfortunately Radley could not get off the bench. Other high points in his playing career were playing for England Students and captaining Rosslyn Park in the ’87 Middlesex Sevens, losing to ’Quins in the Final!
Rad was full-on in his involvement in the game, now matched by his involvement in Jersey’s social Scene - he pops up at almost all island events; for a little exercise he rows in a coxed four, he has completed several Sark to Jersey races.
I am currently trying to locate a suitable photo of Rad for this article (ie one that does not have him holding a beer!)