100 years ago – Bristol’s Ashton Gate debut

Bristol 13 Newport 6 - Saturday February 5^th, 1921

On Friday, February 5^th, Bristol Bears are due to face Sale Sharks at Ashton Gate, and by happy coincidence this date marks the exact centenary of Bristol’s first ever game at the ground.

In the years immediately after the First World War, with the Memorial Ground under construction, Bristol used a pitch at Radnor Road close to the main Gloucester Road. The venue was a Spartan one, with few facilities for spectators, and the players changed at the nearby Old Fox pub. It is not really surprising that occasionally, when crowd-pulling fixtures against the likes of Cardiff and Newport were arranged, the Bristol committee sought to play them elsewhere. Thus, occasional games were staged at Eastville, home of Bristol Rovers, and on February 5^th, 1921 Bristol arranged to play their match with Newport at Ashton Gate. The venue had been used for rugby before when England played Wales there in 1908 in a match famously marred by thick fog, but this was Bristol’s first visit.

Fittingly, the game turned out to be a classic. Bristol, with star backs such as Len Corbett, Reg Quick and skipper Reg Pickles, had a successful and very entertaining side in the early 1920s, while Newport, jam-packed with international players, always attracted big crowds. They too were hugely successful at the time, and two seasons later they enjoyed an unbeaten season. In fact, they had been heading for one in 1920-21, but they lost for the first time just a week before the Bristol game when Gloucester beat them at Kingsholm. The side they brought to Ashton Gate contained ten internationals, plus one future cap, and it is no surprise to read that 14,000 spectators gathered to watch the game.      

Archie Powell, the Western Daily Press journalist who eventually gave 72 years of service to his paper, called the game “the greatest a Bristol team has played in my opinion.” The home side had no internationals of their own at the time, although Pickles, Corbett and iconic forward Sam Tucker would be capped in the future. It was Pickles who began what Archie Powell called “a continuous whirl of excitement” by drop-kicking a penalty from the halfway line after just two minutes. After this, the home backs launched a series of exciting attacks, and despite some excellent defence by Newport full back Fred Birt, they eventually got the try they deserved when Corbett looped outside Quick to take the winger’s pass and cross in the left corner. Pickles converted from the touchline, and Bristol were 8-0 ahead. After this the Newport pack raised its game, and centre Jerry Shea missed the chance of a try by ignoring a two-man overlap and getting tackled by Corbett as he went for the line. Bristol then lost forward Fred Cummings, who was carried off with an injury, leaving his side with fourteen men for the remainder of the match. Just before half time scrum half Charlie Jerman gave a reverse pass to Jack Rees, and the winger got Newport’s first points of the afternoon.

The second half was full of incident. Bristol’s backs again threw the ball around, and an increasingly frustrated Newport pack resorted to rough tactics in an attempt to take control. Mr Burge, the referee, issued several warnings, and eventually he lost patience and sent Dr Bill Roche, Newport’s Irish international forward, from the field. What followed was extraordinary. The absence of Roche would clearly have benefitted fourteen-man Bristol, but Reg Pickles and his players joined Newport skipper Reg Plummer in pleading for Roche to be allowed to continue playing. Mr Burge was won over by the pleas, and Roche was reprieved.

Amid growing excitement, Newport’s forwards pounded the Bristol line, but the defence held firm. Then came the game’s defining moment. Quick caught a misdirected kick from Shea and proceeded to run through the entire Newport defence. He dodged tackle after tackle on a miraculous run to the line to score a truly memorable try. Pickles sealed the result with his conversion, and Plummer’s late try for Newport was no more than a consolation. Bristol had won a famous 13-6 victory.

There is a fascinating postscript to this classic game. The return fixture between the clubs was at the very end of the season, and Newport made rugby history by fielding an entire side of internationals for the game at Rodney Parade. Every one of those selected was a bona fide club member, and Newport gained revenge for their Ashton Gate defeat. Even so, in losing 17-0 Bristol were by no means disgraced. The 1920-21 season had produced two classic encounters between these outstanding sides.  

Bristol: Tries: Corbett, Quick. Con: Pickles (2). Pen: Pickles

Newport: Tries: Rees, Plummer

Bristol: R C W Pickles (captain), R G B Quick, L J Corbett, T G Spoors, H L Feltham, S H Budd, W J Wring, O M V Shaw, J S Tucker, F J Coventry, A T Hore, A E Kibbey, P J Williams, F V Cummings, R Meyer

Newport: F W Birt, J F Rees, J Shea, E D G Hammett, A E G Holland, R C S Plummer (captain), C J Jerman, N C McPherson, J J Whitfield, R Edwards, W J Roche, P L Jones, R Dibble, A E Bell, T Jones

Referee: Mr J H Burge (Bridgwater)