Glen Webbe

Glenfield Michael Charles Webbe (born 21 January 1962) is a Welsh former international rugby union player. Often incorrectly stated to be the first Black Welshman to represent the Welsh national rugby union team, he has since been described as "Wales first black icon".

Early life Webbe was born in Cardiff, the only boy of eight children. His parents, Islyn (a nurse at St David's Hospital) and Mike (a steelworker) were part of the Windrush generation, travelling from St Kitts on the and settling in Ely, Cardiff.

During a tour of South Africa with the Wales youth team during apartheid, Webbe and his team mates were refused service in a restaurant, being told that "we've got a policy, we don't serve black people in here". Recounting the incident for a BBC documentary in 2023, Webbe stated that once the Welsh team's coach realised what had happened he responded "if it's not good enough for Glenn then it's not good enough for us", before he "marched the whole party out of there and I'm still touched now."

Career At the age of 18, Webbe accepted an offer to play top flight rugby with Bridgend RFC. Webbe would go on to play a total of fourteen seasons for the club, becoming a cult figure among both Bridgend supporters and Welsh rugby fans in general. Despite his early successes, Webbe would have to wait five years for his international call up, not being selected until the 1986 tour of the South Pacific and making his international debut on 12 June as a replacement against Tonga. Webbe made his home debut in the 1987 Five Nations Championship win against England and was subsequently picked for the inaugural World Cup in New Zealand that summer.

At the world cup, Webbe was given a rare start in Wales' second match against Tonga, being chosen on the right wing ahead of Ieuan Evans. Webbe took his opportunity, and scored two tries early in the match. However, he was knocked unconscious as a result of a high tackle by Tonga full-back Tali Eteʻaki. Wales had already used their two allocated substitutions and despite there being clear signs of a concussion, the decision was taken to allow Webbe to play on. Although evidently struggling with a head injury, Webbe seemed to play on instinct, and would even score a notable third try, sprinting ninety meters and beating a number of defenders to complete his hat trick of tries, in a 29-16 win for Wales.

After the match, Webbe's concussion was examined and Wales Manager Clive Rowlands decided to send Webbe home on safety grounds, meaning the player would miss Wales' third place finish. Webbe has since remarked that he has no memories of the match after the tackle, including his final try.

"Wales' first black icon" Webbe is often incorrectly stated to be the first black Welshman to play rugby union for Wales. However, Mark Brown was capped in 1983 and is considered to be the first Welsh player of black origin. Webbe stated, "nothing changed to us, he was still the same old Alfie, a good lad."