Newport and Welsh rugby have lost one of its biggest characters and greatest servants with the death of Brian Jones at the age of 89.
‘Mr Newport’ gave almost a lifetime of service to his beloved Black & Ambers as player, coach, secretary, chairman and finally president. He won two caps for Wales, played for the Barbarians and ended his playing career with the distinction of having beaten all three southern hemisphere touring teams.
He made his first appearance against the All Blacks in an 11-6 at Rodney Parade when he was still only 18-year-old and fresh out of Pontywaun Grammar School. He then went on to play in the Newport side that so famously became the only team to beat Wilson Whineray’s 1963-64 New Zealand side.
The 3-0 triumph came courtesy of a drop goal from Dick Uzzell, who was playing alongside Jones in the centre. That victory completed his amazing hat-trick because in 1957 he was in the Newport team that beat Australia 11-0 and in 1960 played for the Barbarians in a win over Avril Malan’s Springboks.
It made Jones only the second person after Percy Bush, and the last, to beat all three major touring teams on Welsh soil.
In an interview for the Rugby Journal he recalled the media interest in him completing his clean sweep: “I got a call from a Western Mail reporter a few days before the game and he said, ‘do you realise if you win on Wednesday, you will be only the second Welsh player to beat New Zealand, Australia and South Africa in Wales?’ I said, ‘no pressure then’”.
Of the win over the Al Blacks itself he added: “Instead of coming with the ball, Dick (Uzzell) turns back inside and makes one of the very few drop goals he’d ever done in his life.
“We were defending the clubhouse end at the end of the game, and when the final whistle went Dick jumps on my back and says, ‘you’ve done it you old bugger, you’ve done it’.”
After leaving school Jones was made captain of Cwmcarn United before being recruited by Newport in the midst of an injury crisis in the three-quarters. He made his debut for the Black & Ambers in a game for Newport United against Llanharan on his 18th birthday and six games later made his first senior appearance against Harlequins on 19 December 1953.
Another half-a-dozen games later he found himself lining up against the All Blacks for the first time. He also faced the Springboks for Newport in 1960, in a 3-0 defeat, before gaining his revenge in a Barbarians jersey.
Although not originally selected for the game, he was called in on the morning of the match to replace fellow Welshman Cyril Davies. The Baa-Baas became the only team to beat the Boks, triumphing 6-0 at a very muddy Cardiff Arms Park.
He had toured South Africa as one of two uncapped players in a powerful Barbarians squad in 1958 and made his first appearance in a Welsh Trial in the Possibles in January 1960 before going o to win two caps that season.
He was one of 10 new caps used in the four-match championship, his debut coming in a 10-9 win in the Five Nations over Ireland in Dublin. He retained his place for the final game against France in Cardiff two weeks later, although this time was forced to taste defeat as the French triumphed 16-8.
He spent two seasons playing at Devonport Services while completing his National Service in the Royal Navy and featured in the Inter-Services Championship at Twickenham. He also played for Devon in the County Championship.
As well as playing for Newport, Jones played for Cross Keys while in the Navy and also spent two seasons at Tredegar, become the club’s record points scorer with 181 points in the 1964-65 campaign, when the side won 27 and drew two of their 36 matches.
He was also an expert seven-a-side player, steering Newport to victory in the inaugural Snelling Sevens at Rodney Parade in 1954. He also starred in the winning Newport sides in 1959, 1961 and 1962.
He returned to Newport for two final seasons as a player between 1966-68 as he also ventured into coaching. He made the last of his 330 appearances for the club against Bridgend on 23 April 1968 and scored his 102nd and final try against Fylde in April 1967.
As coach from 1967-69, he guided the side to a 3-3 draw against the 1966 Wallabies and then to an Unofficial Welsh Championship in 1968-69, working in conjunction with Ian McJennett. He would later go on to become both secretary and chairman of the club before being elevated the presidency in 2019.
“Brian was a man who kept standards high at the club at all times and who championed Newport around the world. He was a giant figure in Welsh rugby for more than 50 years with a Black & Amber heart,” said current Newport RFRC chairman, Mark Workman.
“He played in the side that won the Western Mail Championship title in 1961-62 and then coached the team that won it next in 1968-69. You name it, he did it at the club – and loved every minute of it.
“He was at every game and almost every training session for many, many years. We will pay tribute to him at our Super Rygbi Cymru game against Ebbw Vale this weekend, which is at Rodney Parade, and we will miss him.”
The WRU sends its condolences to the family and friends of Brian Jones and thanks him for his service to the game.
Brian James Jones: Cap No 651 (2 caps). B: 10 October 1935 in Cwmcarn; D: 6 April 2025 in Newport.