Ian Hall, who was the `16th man’ in Wales Grand Slam season in 1971, has died at the age of 78 after a lengthy battle against illness.
The former Aberavon centre and captain and Wales Youth, Swansea and South Wales Police coach won eight caps for Wales, and he was the only change in four matches to the side that won the Grand Slam under John Dawes captaincy.
Having first been capped as a 21-year-old against New Zealand in 1967, he added three more in 1970. Arthur Lewis partnered Dawes in the Welsh midfield in 1971 but injured a hamstring during training ahead of the Round 2 match against Scotland.
That’s when Hall came into the side and played in the epic win at Murrayfield into keep his side on course for a first Grand Slam since 1952. The Scots were leading 18-14 with only three minutes left to play when Delme Thomas stole a line-out 15 metres out from the home line.
The ball was sent down the Welsh back line with Hall coming on a dummy scissors run in midfield to help create an overlap for Gerald Davies to run in. That took Wales to within a point of their hosts and John Taylor nailed the wide-angled conversion to earn a 19-18 triumph
A strong running three-quarter who played both wing and centre for his country, the Gilfach Goch-born Hall earned his first cap in only his second season of senior rugby. He launched his first-class career at Pontypridd before joining Aberavon.
He was selected to face the mighty All Blacks in 1967, receiving his call-up on his 21st birthday after Gerald Davies had pulled out with an injury.
“It’s the best birthday present I’m ever likely to get,” Hall told Daily Mirror reporter Tommy Lyons at the time. “After watching the New Zealanders against England, I know I couldn’t have a tougher start to international Rugby.
“They were terrific. But we shall have the crowd behind us at Cardiff. All that Welsh singing and cheering will be a great confidence booster.”
He was one of four Aberavon players in the Welsh side on that day as Wales went down 13-9. His clubmates Paul Wheeler and Max Wiltshire also made their debuts on the dame day, with Billy Mainwaring being the fourth Wizard in the Welsh ranks.
In 1969, he was a try scorer for the West Wales side that met East Wales at the Arms Park in a special match to mark the investiture of the Prince of Wales and later that season he played for the Combined Aberavon-Neath XV against the 1969 Springboks.
His second cap came against the South Africans in the drawn game at a rain-soaked National Ground in 1970 as a wing. He went on to play in two of the Five Nations matches in 1970, picking up wins over the Scots and England to help Wales share the title with France.
He scored the try that helped Wales U25 beat Fiji 8-6 in 1970, made the first of his five appearances for the Barbarians on the Easter Tour of South Wales in 1970, and was made captain of Aberavon for the 1971-72 season.
Under his leadership they made the semi-finals of the inaugural WRU Challenge Cup competition, losing to Llanelli, and he was in the side that reached the final in 1974, when they went down 12-10 to the Scarlets.
As well as playing for Aberavon, he also dipped in and out of the South Wales Police term. As a serving policeman he was able to represent the force, and he also played for the Welsh and British Police XVs.
He played in the 21-12 win over Cardiff in the first game at Waterton Cross shortly after the establishment of the South Wales Police team and was one of four South Wales Police players who faced the 1972 All Blacks for East Glamorgan in a game badly affected by fog.
In 1973, he was one of five capped players in the West Glamorgan XV that beat the touring Japanese in 1973. He won three more caps or Wales in 1974, against Scotland, Ireland and France, and was in the uncapped Wales XV that faced New Zealand later that same year.
That’s when he picked up a horror injury that kept him out of action for 10 months. The compound fracture he sustained in his left leg was described by the Wales team physio Gerry Lewis “as one of the worst I have seen in 27 years.”
He returned to play for both Aberavon and South Wales Police and was still in occasional action up to the 1978-79 season, featuring at outside half in a notable triumph at Newbridge. In 1979, he began a three-year stint in charge of the Wales Youth team, and he also became an assistant coach at South Wales Police in 1980.
After finishing with Wales Youth, he took over as Swansea coach in the 1982-83 season, leading them to a magnificent season. They beat the touring Maoris, won the Western Mail Unofficial Welsh Club Championship, the Whitbread Merit Table, the Daily Mail Anglo Welsh Championship, the Snelling Sevens for the first time and were voted ‘Team of the Season’ by the Sunday Telegraph.
There was a return to being an assistant coach at South Wales Police in 1985-86 and he took over as head coach in 1986-87. He stepped down from that role midway through the 1987-88 campaign.
His funeral is to be held at Margam Crematorium on Wednesday 2nd July at 10.30am
The WRU passes on its most sincere condolences to the family and friends of Ian Hall.
Ian Hall: Cap No: 715 (8 caps). B: 4 November 1946 in Gilfach Goch. D: 11 June 2025