Established in 1888, Cefn Cribwr RFC is a historic Welsh rugby union club based in the mining and agricultural village of Cefn Cribwr, near Bridgend. Competing in the WRU leagues and affiliated to Central Glamorgan RFU, the club serves as a major pillar of local social and sporting life. 

Community: Since its inception, rugby has served as a social unifier for the village, helping residents maintain a strong, distinct community identity separate from neighbouring areas.

The Riders
Taken from the the Cefn Centenary booklet compiled by Life Member David Hopkins ahead of the clubs centenary season in 1988-89.

Cefn Cribwr are nicknamed "The Riders" because of the peculiar habits of some of the locals in the mid 19th century. They were renowned for forcing strangers to the village to carry them the length of the village or else, not pass through. Luckily, for the visiting teams, this practice doesn't occur today but the memory will last forever.

Rugby football started in the village in the late 1880's but it was not until 1904, when the Bridgend and District League commenced its duties in the capable hands of Messrs. Tom Schofield, Tom Bennett, Tom Davies and Tom Shell of Cefn, that rugby really became established in the village.

During the early years of the league, Cefn enjoyed fixtures against members of the league including Bridgend Harlequins, Kenfig Hill, Ogmore Vale and Gilfach Goch, to name a few.  The interest in the game, sparked off during this period, saw two Cefn Schoolboys gaining their caps - Johnny Smith in 1905-6 and Ted Caswell a year later. The latter being a star with the senior side some years later before leaving the amateur code and receiving a senior

cap.

The league, and indeed Cefn, continued successfully throughout the 1900's and the first recorded match can be seen in the Glamorgan Gazette of 1912 where Cefn played local rivals Kenfig Hill. This was a very tight match played at Bob Nussy's field with Cefn coming out the victors by 3-0. The scorer that day was Oscar Rees after a fine break by Ted Caswell.

The outbreak of the War brought about the suspension of organised rugby, but when it ended Cefn went back into full swing, and as a result of some remarkable victories Cefn Junior R.F.C. were admitted into the W.R.U. in 1919.  However despite the work of Secretary W. Davies and the high standards of play attained by such players as B. Jones, R.T. Davies and S. Greenslade, the Cefn set-up slumped and they were forced to drop out of the W.R.U. in 1921, a move which was soon to be regretted only a few years later.  In 1922 local rivals Kenfig Hill entered the W.R.U. for the first time and this resulting in Cefn losing many of its stars of the time to its neighbouring club. This move of players "down the hill" throughout the years and indeed up until today, has been a very significant factor in the history of both clubs.

Luckily this has not detered Cefn and have always managed to field teams of a standard equal to any in the area.

The first senior cap came to Cefn in 1927, that of E.M. Ned Jenkins, who went on to gain 21 in all during a period of five years. Although born in Tonyrefail he moved to Cefn at an early age and learnt his rugby there as a schoolboy. Once a senior he did not stop and after a few games for Kenfig Hill he hit success with the South Wales Police, Cardiff, Bridgend and then on to Aberavon, where he played most of his rugby. Ned's souvenir collection is now in the clubhouse and provides visitors with some very interesting information.

Throughout the 20's Cefn were fluctuating and didn't really establish themselves again until about 1929. Then, under the guidance of Committee Member Mr. Gordon Watkins the first cup came to Cefn in the 1932-33 season. This was the W.A. Howells Under-21s Cup, and one of the stars of that side was Mr. Len Avery, nowadays the steward at the famous London Welsh Club.

The 30's strength lay with the youngsters. Five schoolboys represented Mid-Glamorgan in Dewar Shield matches - W.J. Parry, Victor say, Percy Grabham, Spencer Thomas and Tiefy Davies, whilst W.J. Parry went on to represent the Welsh Schoolboys against England. With this strength in depth success was bound to come, and indeed it did. In 1938 the W.A. Howell Cup was won again and in 1939 the senior team won the T.D. Schofield Open Cup. Officials and team members at the time included men such as Gordon Watkins, Billy (Beck) Hopkins and the late Roy Davies, all of whom have furthered the cause of rugby in the village since the war.

War was with us and although many of the players were lost to the forces, enthusiasm still lived in those left behind. Obviously times were hard and difficulties cropped up all the time. Coupons were gathered together to buy jerseys and permission was needed from the Commissioner in Cardiff when they played away matches. Indeed, Cefn had to travel far up the valleys for some of their war-time fixtures, since most of the clubs in the near vicinity had packed up during the war. Home changing facilities at the time were provided at the Farmers Arms Inn and later on in a room behind the Welfare Hall which meant a walk for the players of some 500 yards to the playing field at Mynydd Bach Common.

After the War, on the return in those serving with the forces, Cefn had a very strong side and had one of their best seasons ever. Fixtures at that time included Pontypool Athletic, Chepstow and Gloucester Seconds.

In the 1947-48 season, the players made almost £1,000 on raffles, etc. and used this money for a successful tour of Devon playing Totness and Torquay. One of the stars of this tour and also before the War was Harold Adams. Although returning from the War a sick man and with loss of memory he fought through to play for many years after.

Added success came to the club in the same season when the District Youth Cup was won, bringing many talented youngsters into the limelight. The standard of the teams in the club at that time can be seen by the number of players who graduated into first class clubs at the end of the season. Those such as M. Jenkins, M. Greenslade, H. Adams, S. Jones, H. Greenslade, M. Owen, V. John and J. Edwards.

The following years saw a period of rebuilding for   but, although struggling, one Cefn boy was making a name for himself. In the 1948-49 season Howell Greenslade had two final Welsh trials and although he is said to have outplayed the great Haydn Tanner he was not selected. It is interesting to note here that Howell was officially still a Cefin player when he had his first trial, since the transfer to Bridgend had not then gone through. Howell went on to play for Captain Crawshay's, Glamorgan and gain a club cap with Cardiff before returning to Bridgend in 1951. A year later his younger brother Glyn gained a schoolboy cap and in doing so, made the family name known and respected all over Wales.

a major success came to the Youth side in 1953 when, under the guidance of Teify Davies, they won the District Youth Cup and were presented truly a great season and certainly one to remember and we’re presented with the Western Mail Trophy for being undefeated throughout the season.

The year 1956 saw Paul Stenner receive a Welsh Youth cap and at the end of the season Cefn made history by becoming the first Junior club to play the Cornwall Junior Union XV, and indeed defeat them by 19-6. What is ironical about the event is that, at first the Cornwall side refused to play Cefn because they were so small, but when the game got under way the Englishmen soon realised that Cefn, although small, packed a big punch.

This team has been said to be the greatest Cefn side ever and, indeed; a year later they proved themselves by winning the T.D. Schofield Cup yet again. Captain at this time was yet another Greenslade, Mervyn, a great player at the time and a character in the club today.

After this period many players were lost to neighbours Kenfig Hill although success came for one youngster, Johnny Wintle, who was capped for the Welsh Schoolboys in 1959-60 season and captained them a year later.

During this season the Youth team won the Cup, one of the stars of that team being Colin Standing who later went on to Bridgend, gained a trail for Wales only to be seized up by the professionals.

The early Sixties saw some success for the club in winning the Youth Cup, Under-21s Cup and were runners-up in the W.J.R.U. Sevens.

In 1964 new changing rooms were opened at Cae Gof Recreation Ground and to celebrate this   Bridgend and after an exciting game lost 14-8. During this season, Dilwyn Grabham was playing for the Schoolboys, Johnny Wintle for the Welsh Youth and Keith Bradshaw for the Senior XV. Keith played for Cefn before joining Bridgend some seasons earlier. What is interesting is that he played inside half for Cefn but switched to centre for Bridgend. In the three seasons to follow Cefn were quite successful, playing 91 games, winning 61 and losing 16.

From 1967 to 1971 Cefn were successful in winning the Open Cup three times and finalists the other time when the final wasn't played. In 1967 Adrain Thomas and John Morgan played for the Welsh Schoolboys. A year later Howard Raikes and Viv Wintle were chosen as members of the first W.J.R.U. team who played Captain Crawshaw's XV, the former to receive another Cup in 1970 with the addition of Nigel Lucas and Wyndham Thomas.

The Cup games of the late Sixties proved to  be very exciting and perhaps the highlight was the final versus Pyle at the Brewery Field in 1968. Cefn emerged victors 8-0 after a very hard game although credit must be given to loyal supporters, especially the woman who kept the lads alight throughout the match. An occasion that anyone present will never forget.

In 1971 the club received the tremendous news that they had been accepted into the W.R.U. for a probationary period of three years.

Unfortunately this coincided with the death, later in the year, of a man who had fought for W.R.U. status over the years, Roy Davies. He has been one of the most memorable and hardest working members of the club since its begining. He played for Cefn in the 30s and was a member of the Cup-winning side of 1938, but even at an early age he found real interest in the organisation and administrative side of the game. He became fixture secretary just after the War and was a founder member of the Cefn Cribwr Athletic Club (the official name of the Club). In 1949 he succeeded the great Tom Bennett as secretary of the Mid-Glamorgan District Union and soon after represented the District on the Welsh Junior Rugby Union.

During the early 1950s the Cefn Club and the District grew from strength to strength and the M.G.D.R.U. was regarded as one of the most progressive in the W.J. R.U., being the first District to undertake major tours.

In 1964 Roy was elected as treasurer on the W.J.R.U. and in 1968 he was nominated and represented the W.J.R.U. on the W.R.U. A year later he became chairman of the disciplinary committee and in 1971 he, together with Ray Williams, Handel Rogers and Rees Stevens, represented Wales at the Centenary Congress in Cambridge. Unfortunately even during the time in Cambridge he was suffering from ill health and he died some months later after his return. However, Roy can be contented now, what he worked for has at last materialised, the new extensions and, above all, W.R.U. status. In April, 1974, Cefn paid tribute to Roy with a memorial game versus a Glamorgan County XV and, although Glamorgan won 54-16, the game proved to be very entertaining, a just reward to someone who devoted their life to the game.

Entry into the Welsh Rugby Union has one regret for the club - the First XV are now excluded from the District sides, a team which since its beginning has never been without a Cefn player in its ranks. Indeed the first District side contained 11 Cefn players and eight players were selected for the first tour. To try to name any or some would be unfair, although one must be mentioned. In the club. they are not sure if it's a record, but in 1960 Harold "Nala" Church although picked as reserve for the District at the age of 50, played and became the player of the match. Yes, the club are sorry to see a lot of their plavers excluded from District matches but are hoping that some of the Second XV will work hard and gain places.

CANADA 1982

During the 1980 season it was decided that the club would undertake a tour of eastern Canada.  The date of May 1982 was agreed upon and the committee of Miles Jenkins, Ralph David, Ross Parish, Huw Stenner, Peter Powell, Dave Davies, John Greenslade and Steve White worked very hard throughout the two intervening years to bring the tour party of 45 people together as one unit.

The tour party, probably the most organised to leave Mid Glamorgan in the early 80's was a credit to both the village and Welsh rugby generally.

We played in Toronto against the Saracens, losing 27-15 before proceeding to Kingston - a picturesque University town on the edge of Lake Ontario where on a very hot Wednesday afternoon we drew 10-10. During the course of the "aftermatch" reception at the Canadian R.A.F. Club our drinking prowess was challenged. As you can imagine the draught beer ran dry before midnight, the only time this has happened in their history - Gwyn Tudor and Dennis Jones making a significant contribution towards this feat.

In Ottowa two games were played with the first XV winning 6-3 andthe XL's drawing 3-3. We returned to Toronto for the last games of the tour with the first XV winning in style 18-6 against the "Nomads". The second over 35's

game was won 27-6 against Toronto Saracens - a most satisfactory outcome in reversing the 1st XV defeat by the Saracens in our opening fixture.

All credit for maintaining standards and keeping the players sober and fit must be given to Mal Jelfs the club coach and Ryland Downs the club captain. The success of the tour was mainly down to discipline and respect from the whole party to the tour manager Miles Jenkins.

1984-85

When Ralph David took over the club coaching position in the 1984-85 season, it did not take him long to realise the talent that was available from the previous seasons youth players. Also, wing forward Nigel Baker in his first senior season showed his potential.

During the season a number of notable results were recorded i.e. B.S.C. 37-4; Green Stars 11-3; Heolycyw 24-14; wins over Nantymoel, Pontycymmer, Porthcawl and drawing both games against Pyle.

 Hopkins in his first senior season scored 165 points, the first time a Cefn Player had scored over 100 points for the first XV since Ralph David in 1974 - 109 points and G. Morrell in 1980 - 129 points.

The season ended on a high with the club winning the Nantymoel "7's". Owing to work commitments Ralph David had to finish as club coach at the start of 1985 season. The new coach John Downs and Assistance Coach Jeff Lewis carried on with the open style of rugby that Ralph had started. The season being one of the most successful since 1970, winning 20 out of 32 and the first team winning Division 2 of the Central Glam. League. Top scorer during the season were Andrew Jenkins and Adam Downs.

1987-88 SEASON
When Jeff Lewis decided to finish as club coach in October 1987, it left the club without any coaching staff.

One of the clubs stewards for the past 25 years Bev Downs, decided to apply for the vacant position. He was successful in filling the post and John Briggs was appointed his assistant.

The season went well winning 50% of games playing open, fluent rugby, a few of the games that the firsts lost, were by the odd point, and ended the league season 4th in the 2nd division.

During the closed season most of the players took Bev Downs advise in keeping fit, when the training started in July the squad were alot sharper than in previous season's

On August 20th the first youths started their centenary season by playing in the Bridgend Seven's, while the 1st playing the best rugby in the tournament, got to the final by beating Kenfig Hill, Bryncethin and Bridgend Ravens, unfortunately losing 10-12 to Pyle in the final.

Following their quality Seven's performance in Bridgend they played in the Porthcawl "7" on August Monday.

In Cefn's group where Porthcawl and Nanty, Cefn beat both teams scoring a total of 46 points and 8 against, in the semi-final it was a closer game, but by playing good possession rugby we eventually beat Tondu 18-12.

In the final Cefn were beaten 16-26 by Bonymaen. As a result of the open style in Cefns game Mark Downs scored 8 tries and was awarded player of the tournament.

Both Coach and Assistant Coach together with selectors Gareth Stenner and Halford Stanton were more than pleased with the start of the Centenary Season.

Youth coaches Emrys Jenkins and Gwyn Hodges were pleased to announce that a youth team would be playing during the Centenary year captained by Johnathan Matthew’s.


When time permits, we’ll bring this story up to date!