November 26 down the years
Henry's blunder gifts victory to Boks
Neil Jenkins was controversially replaced by Arwel Thomas on this day in 2000
© Getty Images
2000
Wales lost 13-23 in Cardiff in a Sunday match which turned in favour of South Africa in the last 20 minutes after Arwel Thomas replaced Neil Jenkins. The sides were locked together at 13-13 going in to stoppage time, where Braam van Straaten slotted a penalty for a vital lead. Breyton Paulse sealed the victory by breaking the Welsh line as the home side fought against overwhelming South African pressure. Scott Gibbs had given Wales the lead with a first-half try, but Henry was subdued at the close. "Arwel has won some close games for his club Swansea in recent weeks," he said. "We were behind on the scoreboard, and we thought that he might have produced some magic for us. A couple of drop goals might have turned it for us, but to be honest, we should have put South Africa away given the territorial advantage we had in the third quarter. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, and yes, I am feeling really guilty here. At the end of the day though, you have to go with your gut feeling.''
1899
Ron Cove-Smith was born in Edmonton, Middlesex. A noted physician and one-time vice president of the British Medical Association, Cove-Smith played 29 Tests in the English second-row between 1921 and 1929. In 1924 he took charge of the British Isles as they toured South Africa, losing three and drawing one Test against the Springboks. At club level he turned out for Old Merchant Taylors and King's College Hospital RFC. He died in 1988 and was posthumously inducted on to the World Rugby Museum's Wall of Fame in 2001.
1994
South Africa met Wales for the first time in 24 years following their period of international isolation due to apartheid, winning 20-12 at the National Stadium in Cardiff. Wales' points all came from the boot of the ever-reliable Neil Jenkins, but tries from Andre Joubert, Chester Williams and Rudof Straeuli secured a deserved win for the Springboks.
1927
The New South Wales Waratahs tour side enjoyed their finest hour, beating Wales 18-8 in a full-blown international match at Cardiff Arms Park.
1947
In the 21st match of their tour the Wallabies were defeated for only the second time. Lancashire/Cheshire Combined beat the tourists 9-8 at Belle Vue, Manchester.
1955
Giving their best performance in the County Championship since the War Cheshire head off a much-vaunted Yorkshire side to win 9-6 at New Brighton.
1964
It was announced that Malcolm Sayer, the Leicester Tigers centre, would play out wide for Cambridge University in the annual Varsity soccer match in December.
© Scrum.com
