Phil Davies (born 19 October 1963 in
Seven Sisters, Wales) is a
Welsh former
rugby union footballer of the 1980s and 90s.
Rugby career
Davies played his club rugby for
Llanelli and enjoyed a distinguished 46 cap career for
Wales between 1985 and 1995. It was during this period that Welsh packs became far less dominant than in the glory days of the 1970s and Davies, along with the likes of
David Pickering and
Bob Norster, was one of the few class forwards that his side could muster.
The mustachioed Davies was a useful addition to the side mostly because of his offensive ability and the fact that he could play either as
flanker,
number eight or
lock forward.
His career is also memorable for his involvement in the so called "Battle of Cardiff" in 1987, an extremely violent clash between Wales and
England that saw Davies wind up on the wrong end of lock
Wade Dooley's fist. Davies' first international appearance came in a 24–15 victory over England in
Cardiff, a game that saw his brother-in-law,
Jonathan Davies, also make his debut. England, who had not won in Cardiff since 1963, led the game 15–12, before
fullback Chris Martin failed to take a high kick and Davies (Jonathan) scored a crucial
try. Davies' next appearance came in a 40–3 victory against
Fiji at the
Arms Park, and he marked the occasion by scoring two of his side's seven
tries.
The following year Davies played in seven tests in total, but was denied a possible......
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