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March 29 down the years
The early demise of Obolensky
Scrum.com
Alexander Obolensky was tragically killed in a plane crash on March 29, 1940
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1940 Alexander Obolensky, the former Russian Prince who was the hero of England's 13-0 defeat of the All Blacks in 1936, was killed in action during an RAF training flight in Norfolk. Obolensky was only 24 when his Hurricane fighter plane crashed near Martlesham Heath in Ipswich, breaking his neck. Obolensky will forever be remembered as 'the flying Prince' after his stunning solo try on debut for England at Twickenham sunk New Zealand. 2012 England unveiled Stuart Lancaster as their new coach. His permanent appointment followed his successful reign as interim head coach, during which he led England to second place in the Six Nations and rebuilt the reputation of the national team. "I am immensely honoured and proud to accept this role," said Lancaster. "From the hundreds of messages I received during the Six Nations I know what supporting England means to millions of people and I am privileged to be involved. The players, coaches and the management were superb during the tournament and it's down to them that we made such positive steps from when we first met up in Leeds. The challenge now is to take this squad and the players we will see emerge forward to 2015. It is one that I can't wait to get stuck into." 1947 Wales gained a share of the first post-war Five Nations Championship title by depriving the Irish of the Triple Crown in Swansea. A try from Bob Evans and a conversion by lock Bill Tamplin helped the Welsh to a 6-0 victory. 1948 A Five Nations match was staged on Easter Monday for the last time. There were no holiday celebrations for England in Paris after they fell 15-0 to a rampant French side. England finished rock bottom of the table as Ireland recorded a Grand Slam, with only a draw with Wales to show for their efforts. 1952 England beat Ireland 3-0 in a blizzard at Twickenham. The match, postponed from February owing to the death of King George VI, was poorly attended. Through the snow the crowd was lifted only by a try from England centre Brian Boobbyer. 1958 France won at Cardiff for the first time, with tries from scrum-half Pierre Danos and wing Pierre Tarricq securing a 16-6 victory. Legendary Welsh fly-half Cliff Morgan made his last appearance for Wales in the game, ending a glittering career that took in 29 caps for Wales and four for the British and Irish Lions on their 1955 tour of South Africa. 1959 France warmed up for their important Five Nations match with Wales a week later by defeating Italy 22-0 in Nantes. The side that met Wales showed one change, Alfred Roques returning to replace Amedee Domenech at prop. France triumphed 11-3 at the Stade Colombes. © Scrum.com
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