Monday 16 April 2007

The King


I'm back from my trip to London and it's been a nice relaxing weekend. The weather was glorious and even though I drank a little too much at the wedding it couldn't spoil a very good day. By Sunday I was getting some sport withdrawal symptoms so I arranged to meet a mate in Cardiff to catch the EDF Cup Final between the Ospreys and Leicester. Whilst I was waiting for him I couldn't help notice the guy sitting with a couple of friends a few feet away from me - it was Barry John! If you're not familiar with the name then let me explain - Barry was a member of the famous Welsh rugby side that dominated the Northern Hemisphere during the late 1960's and 1970's. He's widely regarded as one of the finest fly halves to have ever played the game and in his playing days his nickname was 'The King'. This made it even more surreal as here he was, enjoying a pint, in an anonymous bar on a Sunday afternoon. Occasionally, someone would notice who he was and wave a gesture but in general he was left to go over old war stories with his mates.
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From time to time things like this happen. Wales isn't a big place which means over the last few years I've bumped into Gerald Davies doing the Christmas shopping, Gareth Edwards enjoying a meal and Jonathan Davies having a drink - to me they're living legends and I'm always in awe whenever I see them.
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I may take a look at the South Africa v England cricket match tomorrow but if not then I'll just save myself for the tried and tested darts on Thursday.
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