Our History

About Taff's Well

1. The Very Beginnings

Taff's Well (or Ffynnon Taf in Welsh and formerly a hamlet) has a population of around 3,000+ inhabitants (up from 300 in 1841) with a history of Roman inhabitation and was known as ‘Portibello’ at around 1767 thanks to a pub of the same name in the vicinity. The rugby club was formed in 1887 with the old wooden clubhouse burning down in 1998 due to an electrical fault which resulted in the loss of an irreplaceable collection of memorabilia. The modern day clubhouse opened on the Maes Gwyn site in 2001 but even to this day, there are many conspiracy theorists outside of the club who are at odds with the evidence gleaned by expert forensic investigators. The name of the village stems from the only artesian well in Wales and flood waters in 1799 opened up Roman masonry that once adjoined the well. People travelled from all over the world to take advantage of the healing properties that the water was said to possess. During an air raid in 1942, the well (along with a Doctor's house, the local school and some woodland) was to be on the receiving end of a bomber sortie from German planes thought to be looking for the Trefoest Industrial Estate.

The village was once home to two churches and seven chapels, two railway stations, a swimming pool next to the spa well, a weir with a ferry crossing to Gwaelod-y-Garth, a railway viaduct which spanned the Taff’s Well gorge, up to ten railway tracks operating in and around the village, two railway tunnels, a stretch of the Glamorganshire Canal complete with a triple lock system, thirteen pubs, an open-air swimming pool, a reservoir which fed the canal, an abattoir, a Victorian police station which was dismantled with a view to rebuilding it at St. Fagans History Museum, a pop & bread making factory and a unique DIY shop that was thought by many to be the inspiration for the Ronnie Barker ‘Open All Hours’ television series with actor David Jason (Granville) being a regular visitor to it while he was staying with his now late actress girlfriend Myffanwy Talog who lived in Glan-Y-Llyn.

2. First Skirmish with the 'Tyrchs'!

During the 1890/91 season, it was documented that St. Peter's RFC played Nantgarw, Taff's Well and Red Rose - Taff's Well, although there seems to be little information available to build a bigger picture although evidence refers to a rugby league side operating in Nantgarw. The first recorded game was away to perennial rivals Pentyrch which Taff’s Well won by two goals, four tries and seven minors to nil; in those days, you were awarded a point against if you minored the ball behind your own line as a defensive measure. The rivalry continues to this day but I seem to remember slightly more tempestuous affairs from yesteryear when it didn't seem to matter who the best team were - it mattered who wanted it the most.

3. Is it a Hill or a Mountain?

The club is shadowed by The Garth Mountain which was the inspiration for the Hollywood film 'The Englishman Who Went up a Hil but Came Down a Mountain' which starred Hugh Grant. The story stemmed from the memories of Taff's Well born film director Chris Monger whose Grandfather would tell him the story during his childhood. 2017 saw a previously unchartered 1001ft underwater mountain in The Marianas Trench, Pacific Ocean named 'Ffynnon Garw' which was the name of the mountain in the film, the premise of the film being that villages had built an ‘extension’ onto the hill to take it over 1000ft and thus make it a mountain. The original aim was to film on the Garth itself but the area had become too urbanised to recreate the period so filming was switched to North Wales. Thanks to its chartered and unchartered labyrinth of tunnels, the Garth mountain allows Cardiff to lay claim to having the largest underground caving system of any city in the UK.

Ancient burial mounds can be seen on top of the mountain and these are said to have fuelled the fabled stories told to Chris. When pressed throughout a Facebook ‘chat’ with present Taff’s Well villagers, Chris was pressed on the fact that he based some of the characters on actual people who lived in the village but whilst admitting that this was probably the case, he would not be drawn on who they were leaving many of us to jump to our own conclusions. The mountain shows evidence of Bronze Age man with thoughts that man was actually present long before and the modern age provided many ironworks and mines tapping into a myriad of seams. Tragedy was to strike one such mine in 1875 when 16 men and boys were killed in an explosion at the Llan Colliery where there now stands a memorial at the entrance of the mine. There are said to be moves afoot to tell the story through a movie with start actors targetted.

4. The Williams Clan and War Tales

The famous eight Williams brothers all played for Taff’s Well and Cardiff and were frighteningly gifted rugby players, the most famous of them being Harth Edward’s childhood hero - Bleddyn Wiliams MBE the ‘Prince of Centres’ to whom a road in Taff’s Well has been dedicated – Ffordd Bleddyn (Bleddyn Way). He was initially trained to be a Spitfire pilot but was re-trained as a glider pilot and having dropped off cargo during ‘Operation Varsity’ – the crossing of the Rhine River, he found himself sleeping rough and hiding from the Germans for over a week with just a parachute to keep himself warm. On finally meeting up with an advancing British column and being recognised by his commanding officer, he was met with “Williams aren't you meant to be at Welford Road tomorrow playing for Great Britain against the Dominions? They need you. Go now!". He was fast-tracked by supply plane to RAF Brize Norton that night, and although the team didn't win, the newspapers reported that he scored a superb try!

Elwyn Williams played more times than any brother for Cardiff as No.8 or flanker and following a Welsh trial, was considered a cert to start the next international. Unfortunately for him, he fell off a ladder while decorating his home and twisted his knee and was never to get the cap he so deserved. He returned to play with and coach Taff’s Well and was to mould the side into the prolific legends they remain to this day. Having played against all the world’s best players including Wilson Whineray’s legendary All Black side, your thoughts may turn to ask what his ‘fighting’ weight may have been? Any guesses? Wrong – 12 and a half stone! In Elwyn’s words and ever the gentleman ‘Dave, the game has changed a lot since my day’.

5. Boys from the Village

Taff’s Well rugby has produced many notable players who include:

Welsh internationals: Bleddyn Williams, Steve Fenwick, Lloyd Williams, Ian Stephens, Harry Reese and Tom Lewis

Welsh Captains: Bleddyn Williams, Steve Fenwick, Lloyd Williams

British & Irish Lions: Bleddyn Williams, Steve Fenwick, Ian Stephens

…plus so many more at age-grade rugby levels and very recently… Craig Field who represented Wales when winning both the 15-a-side and 7-a-side world deaf rugby cups.

6. The Curious Tale of the Baa Baas and the Village on the Taff

Taff’s Well RFC is the only village club in the world to have played against the famous Barbarians – in a 7-a-side tournament! As part of their 1976 centenary celebrations, Cardiff RFC held a seven’s competition to which they would invite the winners of the Cardiff District 7’s competition for ‘2^nd Class’ clubs. As the eventual winners, Taff’s Well were put into the hat and would draw Cardiff, Ulster and The Barbarians who included the legendary Irish International centre Mike Gibson. The village ‘minnows’ were cheered off the pitch by a large crowd after losing all three matches with distinction. I clearly remember the games as a fifteen year old standing in the crowd that day wearing my Taff's Well scarf and will never forget winger Gwyn Davies racing down the wing and handing off Cardiff winger Chris Camilleri (who was targetted by rugby league scouts and eventually played for Widnes, Barrow and Cardiff Blue Dragons) twice to score and draw first blood against Cardiff.

Results that day: Cardiff 26 v 6 Taff’s Well – Ulster 24 v 10 Taff's Well – Barbarians 22 v 6 Taff’s Well

Taff's Well Squad: Dai Owens - Roger Watkins - Elwyn Williams - Peter Dyke - Gwyn Bowden - Peter Flood - Gwyn Davies - Les Hancock - Carey Collings - Tony Wiliams

7. Tales of Cup Glory

During the 1970’s, Taff’s Well were one of the strongest ‘2^nd Class’ sides in the country with almost fabled success in the WRU Schweppes cup which was competed for by every club in Wales regardless of standard or status. In 1973, Taff’s Well drew Swansea at home and they included internationals Mervyn Davies (Wales & British Lions), Mark Keyworth (England), Trevor Evans (Wales), Barry Clegg (Wales) and Geoff Wheel (Wales) – and that was just the back five of the scrum! After a titanic struggle, Swansea were to emerge as winners by 13-6 but they carried the battle scars after a hercululean effort by the village men.

The following year would see Taff’s Well draw reigning cup champions Llanelli at home featuring legends such as Phil Bennett, JJ Wiliams, Ray Gravell, Derek Quinell, Roy Bergiers et al who had that season, beaten The All Blacks in a match famously recanted in a Max Boyce song but the home side would again cover themselves in glory as they heroically went down 10-6 thanks to a JJ Williams interception try just when the home side were pressing for a try and a highly dubious touchline decision when Taff’s Well were down to fourteen men through injury. The Scarlets with all their British Lions would go on to win the cup again but it was Taff’s Well who stole all the national headlines to propel the players into village folklore forcing their illustrious opponents into the closest game of their campaign. This was the very same Llanelli side that would defeat Ian Kirkpatrick’s All Black side which puts an incredible perspective on what was an incredible performance. The club would eventually get to the Millennium Stadium in season 2015/16 (which also brought promotion) only to lose cruelly in the final of the WRU Bowl 20-18 in the dying moments.

8. Oy – Taffy!

One of the main arteries of Wales, the 64km River Taff winds its way through Taff’s Well and although many non-welsh people consider the term ’Taffy’ to be a slightly derogatory one, but it simply refers to the River Taff! In years gone by, the charity ‘Taff-Tiki’ race was run on the river and consisted of home-made boats/floats but the races were stopped as a result of the pollution present and the risk of infections such as ‘Weil’s Disease from which several people died. Today sees The Taff as a haven for salmon, trout, grayling, chub and barbell and a million miles away from what was effectively an industrial sewer.

9. The Long, Long, Long Road North

The term ‘Going North’ for many years referred to Welsh rugby union players taking the ‘King’s Shilling’ and emigrating to the North of England to play rugby league but it was Taff’s Well Rugby Club who were to re-define the meaning and context of the phrase. As Wales were to take on Scotland at Murrayfield in 1979, it was decided that a representative party would be sent to savour the Scottish Hospitality with some bright spark coming up with the idea of creating a ‘Taff’s Well Rugby Club on Wheels’ which basically consisted of a large HGV lorry supplied by village company and sponsors Rhys Davies Transport.

The mobile ‘clubhouse’ consisted of sofas, arm-chairs, a bar, piano (complete with travelling troubadour pianist), a ‘toilet’, decorations and a stock of anti-claustrophobia medications. Against a background of the national lorry drivers strike, the trip made national headlines as the Rhys Davies lorry was one of the very few lorries on the road at that time. The scars of that fateful trip are evident today as many of the people who took the trip have recurring nightmares and find it difficult to sleep without the light on. As a result of the excursion, there are those who believe that the Road Traffic Act was revised through parliament to stop such lunacy ever occurring again.

10. Who do you think you are – Tom Jones?

Sometime in the 1960’s’s during a performance by a live band on the club stage, a young man as a regular attendee in the audience requested that he be allowed to get up and sing with the band, such were the protocols in those days. Unfortunately, Taff’s Well rugby club legend and then Secretary Alun Jones judged his drape jacket, drainpipe trousers, frilly shirt shoelace tie, brothel creepers and ‘D.A’ haircut to be not conformist enough to grace the stage of the esteemed establishment and vehemently refused the request to the chagrin of the young man who subsequently left the club. The incident could be considered to be a minor blip in the life of the said young man as he was to later establish himself as one of the most famous singers in the world – Tom Jones. Thankfully, he didn’t hold it against the club and was seen as a regular visitor before he hit the big time.