Jonathan Davies - Trimsaran Boy

Saturday morning, and the citadel of Welsh rugby awaits

the start of another season of internationals.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Fans gather with hopes high of more glory.

And few are more excited than the man seen by many

as the face and voice of Welsh rugby.

Long day today, into Millennium Stadium now.

First game of the autumn series.

First international for Wales against Argentina.

Tough, tough game and a tough autumn series for the Welsh.

A rugby genius, Jonathan Davies enjoyed a rollercoaster career

in the media spotlight.

The quick-witted cheeky playmaker at number 10,

the code-breaker who turned professional for a world record fee,

the history-maker as the first to return to union,

the TV presenter and respected commentator

whose sharp analysis makes headlines.

-Hello.

-You all right?

-Yeah, good.

Welsh rugby fans recognise and often react to Jonathan

wherever he goes - a walking, one-man brand.

One of the best fly-halves we've ever had.

He had the creative ability to make things happen from nothing.

He's always Welsh through and through and sometimes,

even when there isn't light at the end of the tunnel, he sees it

and he makes me smile, I have to say.

He led the way into reality, where you need the money.

He's loved. Genuinely loved.

He makes me feel a bit homesick, actually, when I watch him

because it's that sort of really deep Welsh rooted thing.

For the first time,

Jonathan talks in depth about life off the pitch,

about twice losing loved ones to cancer,

of his personal battles to prove himself.

His drive to carve a new career

and how his family is his greatest achievement.

And underpinning all this success is his upbringing

in the small West Wales village of Trimsaran.

'Wherever I've been, all over the world, I regard myself as being

'100% Welsh and, you know, I was born and bred in Trimsaran

'and I love being Welsh and I'm proud of being Welsh and I love

'the country and the people

'and I'm a Trimsaran boy through and through.'

Trimsaran lies on the outskirts of Llanelli,

just over the hill from the old Scarlets ground at Stradey Park.

The village looks out on the modern Ffos Las Racecourse,

built over the old opencast mine

where many in Trimsaran used to work.

This is fly-half country,

an area fabled as a factory for producing some of the most

skilful and exciting rugby stars the world has ever seen.

Barry John, Phil Bennett, and the one that broke the mould,

the double code-breaker, Jonathan Davies.

As these boys practise, dreaming of maybe one day playing for Wales,

40 years ago, a young Jonathan was here doing exactly the same thing.

Under the expert tuition of ex-Cardiff and Scarlets hooker

Meirion Davies, Jonathan and other local schoolboys enjoyed their

first structured rugby coaching and the discipline that went with it.

He hated kicking so even when we were stuck behind our own line,

we couldn't kick, and if we kicked,

he'd send me off or something like that,

but also the fact that he said, "If you don't do your homework,

"you can't play," and with Meirion's coaching,

we became quite a well-known school

because we had great success in VIIs and in XVs.

I remember Jonathan as a very young pupil at Trimsaran School

and he had this exceptional natural flair for sport.

And especially rugby, he had amazing skills

and he would perform on the rugby field.

He seemed to have a great deal of time when he was playing,

very confident and he had the pace and acceleration of an athlete

and he was quite outstanding.

MUSIC: "Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival

Born in the front room of his grandmother's house

in Trimsaran, Jonathan and his family - his mother, Diana,

father, Len, and sister, Caroline

were part of the fabric of the community,

with the rugby club and rugby at its heart.

The '71 Lions tour, I would've been nine

and because you had no television pictures in those days,

I remember going to a pub called The Miners' Arms

and listening to the game on radio

in The Miners' Arms, like, two o'clock in the morning with my dad.

Jonathan's father, Len, who worked as a buyer

at Trostre Steelworks was a quick and skilful player himself

at the Scarlets before captaining Trimsaran

where he set up a youth side,

naturally with the young Jonathan in mind.

While extremely close as father and son,

Len was still competitive with Jonathan.

In sport or games, he didn't give an inch.

We used to have races because in Cefn Sidan beach,

when the tide goes out, it does go out.

It's in China I think, to be honest.

When we used to go into the sea, we used to walk about three miles

to get into the sea and then walk back

and then on the way back, we used to have a race,

Mum, my dad and my sister and me

and I never beat my dad racing, so he was quite competitive, really.

And also I think everything we played, I had to deserve to win.

There was nothing like, "Oh, yeah, I'll give him that." Even draughts.

But in 1974 when Jonathan was 12,

Len was diagnosed with liver cancer and had to be treated

in Cambridge where he was one of the first to receive a transplant.

At great cost and effort, but with friends'

and rugby club support, the family visited him regularly

not knowing if the pioneering operation would be a success.

I stood in the lift and my dad came to say bye-bye,

me and my sister, and I remember him waving at the lift

and I'm thinking, he was in his dressing gown and pyjamas

and he was on the drip at the time, and I'm thinking, he's waving,

saying bye-bye, whether I'd ever see him alive again.

So that kind of stuck with me through everything, really.

So that's the one vivid recollection I have of the whole illness.

The operation was successful and he came home.

We had another summer. I remember then, you know, he was...

Again, we went down Cefn Sidan beach

and life became as normal as we possibly could,

but unfortunately, there was a secondary cancer

and it spread to his stomach and then he died a couple of years later.

At this time, Jonathan was a 14-year-old teenager

at Gwendraeth Grammar School.

Mr Pierce came walking down the corridor and I could see him

walking past and as soon as he opened the door,

I sensed that something wasn't right because during lunchtime,

I'd accidentally pushed a kid through a window playing football

and I thought, "He's going to come and give me a row,"

but I think as soon as he walked in the door and he asked for my name,

I realised straight away that my dad had passed away.

I didn't cry when I was told. I didn't cry in the car

when my uncle drove me home, but as soon as I got to the house,

my mum answered the door, I started crying then, so...

But it wasn't the pressure of actually...

taking responsibility, I just felt I was the only man...

well, boy in the house and I just had to toughen up a little bit

so it was... My attitude changed towards life then, I suppose.

The loss of his father at an early age still shapes in many ways

the Jonathan of today.

"Jiffy," as he's known by many of his friends and colleagues

remains, like his father, a tough competitor.

It's a quality that's driven him through his amazing playing career

into a second career in broadcasting.

Jiffy's a tough cookie. He's not huge

but his mental alertness, awareness,

capability has pushed him in all areas,

whether it be rugby or life away from rugby, and helped him.

Underneath that mild, affable outer,

deep inside there's a real, real competitive, um...

animal in there and I say that with the utmost respect.

In the press rooms of the Millennium Stadium,

Jonathan joins other familiar faces from the world of Welsh rugby

now working in the media. Over the years,

many former international players have turned TV pundit,

come and then gone

under television's unforgiving bright lights.

But Jonathan's popularity has not only endured, it's grown.

I call him King John in Wales because the only thing

that is missing is rose petals thrown down in front

of where he walks. And I think, when I walk around Cardiff with him,

he's loved. Genuinely loved. And he deserves it. He's worked hard.

So whether player or broadcaster, Union or League,

Jiffy has appeared on our screens

as a regular Saturday afternoon fixture for nearly 30 years.

He's become Britain's Mr Rugby.

But back in the late '70s, thoughts of the limelight

were a far-off dream as the loss of Len and his income hit home.

When my dad did pass away,

my mum had to go to work and try and pass her test

to take me to rugby matches.

Even sometimes, you know... My sister was younger than me by two years,

we used to play a game where we used to hide from Mr Landy

and Mr Landy was the rent man

because we didn't have enough money to pay the rent so,

looking back at it, it's amazing

but I suppose it's those kind of things that keeps it real.

During the sickness and after the death of his father,

the rugby club wrapped around the family with fundraising

and emotional support.

We all gather round. Anything like that happens,

it's a tragedy, especially for the family,

and you just do as much as you can.

I was just a young player at the time but I remember

the whole committee then and the whole members,

they all got together and it's probably like every village

in Wales, the rugby club is an integral part of that

and we all gather round and do as much as we can.

We needed their help, they were absolutely fantastic

so I'm always...

I remember one thing when I played for Wales,

I always wanted to say, where you're from.

I wanted Trimsaran's name on the programme, it meant a lot to me

and I don't live there, I don't go back there very often

yet I'm still proud to say that I'm born and bred in Trimsaran.

But at 17, Jonathan hit a crossroads when one night,

his district school side was playing at the same time

as the village youth team his father had set up.

He had to choose between the two.

He went with Trimsaran youth team but paid for his loyalty.

Offers to join the Welsh schoolboy system were then withdrawn.

He never played for his country at schoolboy level.

At odds with the school and with few qualifications,

he left to work in the local opencast mine.

At this time, Jonathan's mother Diana remarried.

Ken Williams was another Trimsaran man who was recently widowed

and as a stepfather,

became very supportive of Jonathan's career which was soon on the move.

In his first season with Trimsaran senior team,

Jonathan was spotted by Neath and given a game.

A bus-full of us went up from the club, Tuesday night,

wet night in The Gnoll and at the end of the game,

Man Of The Match was Number 10 for Neath, Jonathan Davies.

In 1983 soon after joining Neath,

Jonathan married his school sweetheart, Karen

and with the club's help,

he left the opencast mine to join a painting

and decorating company which backed his rugby.

These were the days of the amateur game.

Top players needed sympathetic employers

to release them for training and matches.

So supported at home and at work

and under the guidance of rugby giants Brian Thomas

and coach Ron Waldron, at Neath, Jonathan's talents flourished.

It's also where he got his nickname, "Jiffy."

Of all his skills, Jiffy was amazingly quick.

COMMENTATOR: ..With the feed deep inside the Bridgend 22.

Jonathan Davies, will he go for another dramatic try?

Oh, it's a textbook try

and exactly the same type of try that he scored against Bath.

I thought, "God, this guy's got something different,"

because he had pace, basically.

That's the big thing that stands out in any player

more than anything else, more than size, more than sight,

is somebody with genuine pace and he had that

and I remember seeing a few of his early games with Neath

where he really made an impact. Scored some lovely tries,

made some good breaks and he was a real cheeky chappie

of an individual, I think, at 10.

He was obviously bound to make an impact in the game.

# It cuts like a knife... #

'There is no substitute for pace.

'I also worked at it because, in the early days,

'I haven't got an athletics coach to work on my acceleration

'and reaction time and I did a lot of endurance running as well

'so once I did make the break, I was very lucky that I had

'the acceleration to get away from people as well.'

Jonathan was soon pushing for a Welsh place and in 1985,

fate paved the way.

Welsh team selection for Number 10 was in disarray.

They left the position blank, naming "AN Other" in their line-up.

Insulted, the incumbent Gareth Davies resigned.

I sort of heard a whisper that the Welsh team to play

England in the last game of the '85 season was going to

be announced on the Thursday and the number 10 position

was going to be AN Other.

And I sort of... Basically an insult really,

in many ways, and I rang the Chairman of Selectors and I said,

if that were the case - I'd heard this rumour -

if that were the case than count me out.

Jonathan, who'd been on the bench for the previous French match,

was suddenly in pole position against the English in Cardiff.

To play for Wales against England, Cardiff Arms Park on a debut,

that's what dreams are made of. But I was so nervous.

I remember singing the national anthem, thinking about my dad.

Mum was in the stands, and just thinking about my dad.

How proud he would have been.

If the English thought he was the weak link, the boyish looking,

naive new cap who they could easily intimidate,

they had AN Other think coming.

Didn't know a lot about him going into the game,

but he was very confident.

I think he gave me a cheap shot early on, which is

a good sign that he was confident.

I had Winterbottom trying to sort him out,

but I don't think Peter could get close to him.

'He's spun it well. What a good kick.'

I was never intimidated by any openside flanker.

In fact, I verbally spoke to them all the time.

In fact, I remember tripping Peter Winterbottom once when he was

going for a loose ball and he was like infuriated.

But if they got hold of me, well, I was in big trouble.

But you know, that's the way I played.

I mean this in the right way, he's probably quite cocky,

in terms of a player. And I mean that in the sense of confidence.

Neck and neck with the English,

fate again smiled on the first cap fly-half

when a wayward kick came good.

It was such a bad kick, that I chased it out of embarrassment,

to be honest. And the pressure

that I put on Chris Martin,

the fullback,

somehow he dropped it and I dived on it.

That was a try and we won the game a little bit more comfortably

than we should have.

At the end of a poor season,

Jiffy had given the fans something to smile about.

I swapped shirts with him in the tunnel area

or as we came off and he said,

"I'll bring you mine in a minute," into the dressing room, because

the players went into each other's dressing rooms to swap shirts.

And he came in and had this Welsh shirt rolled up and gave it

to me and said, "Well done, see you later at the dinner," sort of thing.

And I just put it in my bag, never thought about it.

It was only when I got home and opened it up,

it had number 16 on the back of it.

So he'd obviously kept his own number 10.

He must have nicked the reserve shirt off whoever number 16 was

and gave it to me.

Well, not cheeky. Kind of pessimistic thinking,

"I might not play for Wales again and I don't want to

"swap my first ever Welsh jersey."

But I wanted an English jersey as well.

So, I remember Rob never mentioned anything. Rob was a gentleman.

Until years later, I did a programme, This Is Your Life,

and he mentioned it then how I'd conned him of a jersey.

Over the following seasons, with Robert Jones as a new

scrum-half partner, Jiffy helped spark a Welsh rugby revival.

As soon as I met Jonathan, we sort of clicked.

We became fairly close friends very quickly.

He's that type of guy.

'It comes to David Young, the young, mobile cap from Swansea.'

There was an occasion where he had the ball,

had run round Mickey Skinner, was desperately keen to get

hold of him, but didn't have the speed to get hold of him.

And Jonathan, typically, as he was running around him,

just shouted back "Da bo", which is ta-ta, or bye-bye in Welsh.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Jonathan Davies, the switch of attack.

'Being chased by Skinner.

'Ring's on the far side.

'If Jonathan Davies can get the ball to Ring now.

'Tony Clement in front of this man.

'Ring looking back inside for Paul Moriarty.

'Finding the man. Collins, to Rob Norster. The pass out.

Bleddyn Bowen, back in sideways and Hadley.

'Is he going to get his second try?

'Hadley's going to make it!

'The second try!

'Hadley, and all of Wales at Twickenham erupts.'

One of the differences between then and now, I think,

is that I don't think they have the footballing ability,

the awareness or able to read

a rugby game like the players

I had inside me.

10-0 down against Scotland in 1988,

and time to pull something out of the hat.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'And so real pressure on the Welshman here.'

I think the main thing for me

was to get the ball into Jonathan's hands, because he had

the creative ability to make things happen from nothing.

So, it's always worked on a reverse pass.

He did exceptionally well

to get the pass out to me and then,

because the ball was high,

I couldn't pass it along the line.

I acted instinctively, just stepped with my left foot but

then I had no idea what was going to happen after that.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Oh, good reverse pass.

'Jonathan Davies.

'There's that acceleration.

'Very, very quick. Back goes Derek White.

'The try is scored!

'Wonderful try by Davies. Can you believe it?'

Losing in the mud in the final match to the French prevented

a clean sweep, a Grand Slam.

Nevertheless, it was the best performance by Wales

for nearly a decade, with Jonathan the star attraction.

I remember being on the Wogan show, which was prime-time TV.

I appeared with Samantha Fox, page three model.

'It was kind of surreal, you know, coming from...

'Because I still lived in West Wales.'

Welcome, Jonathan Davies!

But this celebrity status wasn't matched by money and Jonathan

was always wary of being one bad injury away from financial oblivion.

Media speculation was rife that, for financial security,

he was about to turn professional.

CHEERING

Now, what about Rugby League, because, before the World Cup last

year, it was rumoured that you were going to take the money and run.

Well, if somebody comes along and offers you a lot of money,

you have to sit down and think about it.

Have they come along and offered you a lot of money?

-Yeah, I've had a few...

-What sort of money have they offered you?

-Well...

-Tell him not to be so nosy.

-That's right, darling.

LAUGHTER

'They never had any money and'

security was big in his life,

or the lack of security had been big all his life,

coming from a council house in Trimsaran.

A comfortable life, but nevertheless, no embellishments.

And once you're then thrust to

the very top of the public's adulation,

you realise that there's nothing else coming with it.

If you're as good as people say you are, where are the rewards?

Even today, and despite his success and wealth,

Jonathan's need for financial security drives him on.

Here in the city of London,

the money heart of the world, he's out to make an impact.

At the top of the iconic Gherkin tower,

executives gather to make deals, to network or simply socialise.

After some business meetings of his own,

the guest speaker is on his way.

I had a meeting in London today as well, so it's one of these

things that people think I've only got a Saturday job.

You know, I've got other things as well.

Someone asked me to speak at a company called Criticaleye

with CEOs of global companies.

'So it's just Christmas drinks.

'The guy's a Welshman.

'There's a few Welshmen here who I know from a variety of banking

'establishments and other businesses.'

So, on that note, I will pass across humbly to Jonathan Davies,

who is a legend.

LAUGHTER

CHEERING

That's the best support I've ever heard in England, to be honest,

so thank you very much.

I won't keep you long, because I know you all want to dance as well.

I'm from a small village in West Wales...

Jonathan is quick to talk about his upbringing, where he's from.

He's proud of it, and doesn't forget to help those who've helped him.

Financially, he supports us.

And, when he comes down, this year...

next season, sorry,

he'll see the 25th anniversary of the Jonathan Davies VIIs tournament.

And he's been down a couple of times.

Obviously, with his work commitments, he finds it difficult.

But he still supports the VIIs as well.

For the current generation, Jonathan works as a role model,

a skills ambassador, promoting apprenticeships to companies

and helping to inspire in people a strong work ethic.

The reason I became skills ambassador is because I left school at 16,

I think it was and no idea what I wanted to do.

All of a sudden, I was offered an apprenticeship as

a painter decorator and what it did was

it gave me a great work ethic...

He doesn't have a barrier.

He doesn't ever see the fact that you can't do something.

And, from contacting someone,

picking up the phone, making the contacts,

speaking to someone on a plane, he brings it all back.

He doesn't have any fear.

Which is, you know, exactly what he should be doing.

So, to have our learners look up to him, thinking they can do the same...

An inspiration to people here.

APPLAUSE

Whether it be handing out awards to achieving apprentices or

handing out new rugby shirts and teaching technique to aspiring rugby

stars of the future, Jonathan always advocates a professional attitude.

And he was advocating the same 20 years ago, as a player,

but the Welsh Rugby Union refused to listen.

During the disastrous summer tour to New Zealand in 1988,

the All Blacks were in a different league, both on and off the pitch.

Professional in all but name, professional in an amateur game.

They were getting paid for advertising, they were

driving around in sponsored cars,

they were doing TV interviews,

et cetera, whereas, in Wales, we weren't allowed to do that.

If we did interviews for the TV, the money would go to the WRU.

We were just professionally way, way, way behind them.

And, on the pitch, they knew how to beat the Welsh.

They had identified the main threat.

Stop Jonathan Davies and we'll beat the Welsh.

And that's the regard that we held him in.

But Jonathan's rugby genius still came through.

On return home, Jonathan and other leading players wanted to

speak to the whole Welsh Rugby Union, to call for changes,

to at least get them on the same level as the All Blacks.

Their request was denied.

-SEAN:

-'I've obviously spoken to Jonathan a lot about that tour

'and about rugby in general and, you know, he's a proud Welshman'

and he wanted to deliver.

And I think he came away from that game thinking,

"We need to be like the All Blacks," in terms of the professional

approach, on and off the field, the way we prepare ourselves.

And that's what he wanted.

'Probably ahead of his time, you know?

'Probably Welsh rugby wasn't ready for that yet.'

It's ironic, because 15 years later,

when they employ Graham Henry and Steve Hansen,

they said exactly the same that I was going to say 15 years earlier.

We have to have facilities,

we have to have better professional attitude, nutrition.

That's all I was going to say.

But we had to pay Graham Henry

a million pounds, or whatever they paid.

If they'd have listened to Bob Norster and myself, from our

experiences in New Zealand, then they would have changed those things.

But I tried.

I was just disappointed that, you know,

'things weren't going to change.'

Things went from bad to worse

when the Welsh team was further unsettled with

the sacking of the coaches.

For the following Romanian match, Jonathan was made captain.

But it was an embarrassing defeat and he took the blame.

No-one spoke to him the following Monday at training.

Rugby League scouts were always circling.

Now Widnes caught Jonathan at a low ebb.

I wasn't happy. I got blamed for that defeat.

And then, all of a sudden, the unthinkable

came into my mind that I was going to get dropped playing for Wales.

You know, I've got no qualifications to fall back on.

That's when the Rugby League boys came down

and there was an avenue out for me.

I enjoyed living in Wales, I enjoyed playing for Llanelli

and I enjoyed playing for Wales.

The last thing on my mind was thinking of walking away from it.

But I remember bumping into my surgeon and he said,

"I heard you're thinking of going to Rugby League.

"Make the most of that knee."

His ambition at that time was to play for the Lions

and he knew that the team was being thought of by Ian McGeechan

who had just been appointed the coach.

And he thought, "I'm going to get dropped by Wales as captain,

"and that's not going to help my Lions candidature."

And then, Dougie Laughton, very persuasive man who was

coaching Widnes, came down and caught him on the hop.

The headlines tonight.

The Welsh Rugby Union captain, Jonathan Davies,

has joined the Rugby League champions Widnes.

The deal is worth around quarter of a million pounds

and makes Davies the sport's most highly paid player.

Finally, he signed and shocked the rugby world of both codes,

not only for the size of the deal,

but also that Rugby League

had captured the Welsh captain,

the star. In Wales, he was brandished an outcast, a traitor,

by the Welsh media and many fans.

I'm going back home tomorrow morning with a couple of videos

and the rulebook, so...

LAUGHTER

I'm glad I'm not playing and see what Dougie feels, how I go in training.

It's up to him, then.

I don't want to live in Wales and commute up.

The sooner the better I get up here and settle in.

Excitement. Excitement would be the word.

Because, the signing of a really big, well-known Rugby Union

player was a shot in the arm

for the game in those days.

And Jonathan, of course, among the biggest names in British rugby.

But there were doubts whether he was big enough or tough enough to

survive a more brutal brand of rugby.

I drove up with Ken, his stepfather, and Jonathan.

He was sat in the back and he was very apprehensive.

News of his arrival had got around and we parked the car

and there were people appearing from all over the place.

And they were coming up and they were looking at him.

They couldn't believe, you know, a superstar.

You expect to see a man monster step out of the car.

And Jonathan was quite slight.

He bulked up a lot after that, but he was quite slight.

And they were running...

A wonderful, aquiline nose and they were running their fingers

down the bridge of his nose and saying, "That won't last long!"

HE LAUGHS

At his first match for Widnes, Jonathan quickly

showed his worth, putting an extra 6,000 on the gate.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Tremendous attention still from photographers who've come

'from all around the world to see Jonathan Davies this afternoon.

'And now, the moment the crowd have come for

'as Jonathan Davies gets his first taste of

'Rugby League action in a Widnes shirt.'

CHEERING

'And I don't think he'd have got a better reception at the Arms Park.

'The crowd are really hoping it gets into Davies' hands.

'And it has, at long last!

'And he sets off.

'Jonathan Davies going down the wing.

'It's a sensational start for the Welshman.

'He's bundled into touch,

'but he pleased the crowd with that.'

He wasn't in the game much. You wouldn't expect that.

But what he did... Some lovely touches.

But the thing I looked at, one or two people were saying to me,

"Oh, Ray, he's not big enough. He's not big enough.

"Look at his legs, Ray!" You know.

"A little bit like a pigeon, Ray.

"He's not big enough!"

He had character. He had guts.

He had heart. That's what it takes to play this game.

It is a very skilful game, but it's a very physical game.

Jonathan set about beefing himself up,

proving the doubters wrong, determined to succeed.

People will not appreciate how tough it is to go into Rugby League.

You're giving up your family, you know, you're moving away.

You're going to a different job,

totally different job,

because the game is totally different.

And it's all being done in the public eye.

And failure is a massive story for the press.

So, you know, there's a mental toughness to it

and I wasn't prepared to fail.

Jonathan was followed by an exodus of fellow

players from the Welsh international side.

Jonathan, really, was the person who started the trend that left us,

really, with many of our top players deciding to go North.

It was a case of having to rebuild.

Floodgates, wasn't it?

You know, loads of players went.

There was Jonathan, obviously, came after myself.

Then John Devereux, Paul Moriarty, Kevin Ellis, David Young...

Allan Bateman, the Quinnells.

With old friends around him,

financial security for his family,

Jonathan quickly found his feet

and soon began putting in some startling performances.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Davies.

'Oh, beats two men!

'Going south. The sidestep!

'He's going for the line!

'It's back to Davies!

'Oh, that's magnificent rugby!'

'A genius of a rugby player!'

You had to watch him every second,

because he had such incredible acceleration.

He wasn't the biggest of guys, but he was very, very explosive

and his stride length was very, very long.

His speed off the mark and his footwork was very,

very difficult to defend against.

So, you had to keep your eye on him all the time,

otherwise, he'd punish you.

Within 18 months of turning professional, Jonathan had

won with Widnes two Premierships,

two charity shields, a world championship medal

and five Great Britain caps,

as well as Player of the Year.

More importantly, and remarkably, he was relatively unscathed.

Even his nose was still intact, but only just.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Oh, what a head tackle!

'But significantly, Davies has scored.'

And when Widnes ran low on money,

Jonathan switched to nearby Warrington, where he won

the coveted Man of Steel and another First Division Player of the Year.

-RAY:

-I think Rugby League got a genuine star, a big star.

One of the best players ever to have come in the game, to my mind.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Have a look at that! What a try! What a genius!'

A player who could... He could light up a dark day.

He could light up a November afternoon,

just with one touch, with one ball, with one little kick.

Whether in the white of Widnes or the stripes of Warrington,

his creative and instinctive brilliance shone through, seeing

opportunities and acting instantly when other players saw nothing.

He displayed consummate kicking skills,

at goal, downfield

and especially the chip ahead at full flight.

He could body swerve as well as step off either foot at speed.

And, of course, he had a burst of acceleration

and blistering pace to destroy any defence.

And, behind this tremendous talent, was solid support.

Everyone who is successful, I think that, you know, there is

a support mechanism behind you.

Whether that's the coaches, employers, friends.

But, more so, family.

Karen and the family were a great support and, without that support,

I don't think you can achieve what you try and achieve, to be honest.

Because that support mechanism is vitally important.

Most players would have settled for his success, but not Jiffy.

In the out of season break, he decided to play in Australia,

the hardest and most brutal rugby league in the world, where

few from Britain had dared to venture.

But, he was undaunted. He'd learnt to look after himself.

I'd never admit that I was nasty, I suppose,

but I think you have to have an edge.

I think you need an edge.

If you look at maybe the best sportsmen in the world,

they all look after themselves.

I just think that I knew how to look after myself from my upbringing.

With his family following him in support all the way to Sydney,

he joined the Canterbury Bulldogs

and was now playing rugby 12 months a year.

He was quickly dubbed by the Aussie press, "The Welsh Wizard."

In Australia Rugby League is a huge sport.

It's a working-class sport, so, even now,

what he's done is probably pretty unique.

Cos not many people have actually made both sports.

They do revere him a lot.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Gets around Michael Lynagh.

'Get around Andrew Johns.

'Gets around Paul Harragon.

'Gets around Robbie O'Davis.

'Jonathan Davies.

Davies for the line. 15 to go.

'He's going to score the try.

'That is a sensational individual try from Jonathan Davies!'

Within only three years of turning professional,

Jonathan was captaining the Great Britain side, a great honour,

showing the high regard the top League professionals

had for this Union convert from Wales.

But it is the last of his 11 caps for Great Britain which was

probably his greatest, in a packed Wembley in 1994.

Led by Shaun Edwards,

the GB team was taking on a mighty Australian side.

Bradley Clyde stepped inside of me, he was about to score a try

and I stuck my arm out and certainly didn't miss, put it that way.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Oh, that was a high tackle!

'The red card has gone in the air

'and sensation here!'

I went off and then the guys came in, they were all pumped up.

I didn't realise that we'd scored.

Everyone said, "We're winning.

"Jonathan scored a try. We're 8-4 up."

One, it's Wembley, two, it's The Ashes, three,

you're playing against maybe one of the best sides ever in Rugby League.

So, putting it all together,

maybe, yeah, it was my finest moment.

# Tonight

# I'm a rock 'n' roll star... #

-COMMENTATOR:

-'To Davies! Davies! He's got some space!

'He's going for the corner!

'He's got his head back!

'And the Welshman, he's in!'

'I could never thank him enough. Every time I see him,'

I always remind him of... Basically he saved my backside that day.

'The only reason my career kicked on

'was because I scored that try in Wembley.'

But I was going to retire and coming to the end of your playing days,

it's a big decision on when to retire and what you're going to do

and what you're capable of doing

because you've been a professional sportsman.

So I was in a quandary of what I was going to do.

And what overshadowed all that was

that my wife was diagnosed

with cancer and,

at the time, I had three kids

and two of my daughters were born up in Warrington.

And then, all of a sudden, the priority was family.

What did I want to do?

I just wanted to come back to Wales to be near my family

and have the support of the family during this period.

But there was no way back to Wales as a player.

The game was still amateur there.

It seemed he had to retire and look at other options,

while, at the same time, keeping his wife's cancer diagnosis

a secret to protect the family from the ever present, prying media.

Then, suddenly, the unthinkable happened.

In August 1995, the rugby world turned on its head as Union

became professional and Cardiff came looking for Jiffy.

WALES TODAY MUSIC PLAYS

Former Welsh rugby international Jonathan Davies says

he may return to Wales to play Rugby Union now that

the game has turned professional.

It's believed many League players could be tempted back following the

decision by the International Rugby Board to allow players to be paid.

A few weeks later and Jonathan arrived back in Cardiff.

The first in history to sign South,

the first player ever to sign back to Union from League.

All the Welsh exiles who'd gone North

could potentially come home for good.

I was quite excited by signing Jonathan,

for a number of reasons.

Obviously, really respected him as a rugby player and thinking that

coming back would be of great advantage

to Cardiff and to Welsh rugby.

Secondly, it sort of underlined Cardiff's ambition,

if you like, in terms of,

"Hang on, we're serious, game's now professional

"and we want to make a statement."

It probably was the strongest statement at the time,

in signing Jonathan, and the fact that he was the

first player to reverse a century's trends of going the other way.

Karen could now be treated at Velindre, Cardiff's

specialist cancer hospital.

I remember talking to this guy and he said,

cos he was sat in the waiting room with people

with family and friends and you say,

"Have you got cancer or is it one of your family?"

And I remember this guy telling me,

"No, I haven't got cancer," he said.

"Cancer's got me."

It's weird, that's stuck in my mind

and I think that it's just...

You survive it or you don't survive it and there's no happy medium.

I'd learnt a lot from my dad's experience, but it's amazing how you

cope and I think that you've just got to be as normal as you possibly can.

Your priority changes and your kids are first and foremost and it was...

I kept on playing, then come home and then forget about rugby

and go back into the family life.

So, it was very, very tough, but you know,

you do what's best for everyone at that particular time.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'And now that little moment of history. Jonathan Davies...'

CHEERING

'..steps back onto a Rugby Union field.

'Bought by a Union club from a professional club.'

But Jonathan appeared an isolated figure.

Fellow players seemed to resent his special financial package

and didn't seem to pass him the ball.

Yeah, I'd be disappointed if I felt that they did do that.

I never felt that they did, because I would never do it.

It's a team environment and if I come in to better the team,

they should have used me.

At the time, yeah, you know, I was a target for the opposition.

So it made sense, really, to use me as a dummy runner

and, you know, exploit the spaces outside.

Maybe they overdid that a little bit, but you know, I...

I just wanted to enjoy myself and play the remaining

days of my rugby career out in Cardiff enjoying it.

And I was grateful for the opportunity to come home.

As well as the strain of caring for Karen,

looking after his children and playing, Jonathan was under

tremendous public and media pressure to be the saviour of Welsh rugby.

Despite everything, it was a challenge

and an honour he couldn't refuse.

I didn't really want to play for Wales again, to be honest,

but do you ever turn down playing for your country? No, you don't.

I was a lot slower

and I couldn't give to Wales

what I gave maybe ten years before,

but there's no higher honour than playing for your country

and I enjoyed the experiences, but I was past my best then and...

But it was nice to play for Wales again and have that adrenaline rush

of actually going out on the Arms Park. It was unbelievable.

A dozen years after first playing for Wales, Jonathan had come

full circle, to represent his nation in Union again.

But it was short-lived.

Just a few caps before his final international against the

old enemy, England, and old friends in Cardiff.

Despite some memorable moments, Jonathan couldn't save Wales.

They were well beaten.

With his magical powers on the wane,

maybe it was time to hang up his boots.

'It was the last ever international at the old Arms Park,

'before it got knocked down and turned round and rebuilt.

'And I've got this photograph of Jonathan, myself'

and Will at the end of the game and I'm pretty certain that it

was the last international for all three of us and it was

the last ever game of international rugby at the old Arms Park.

So, it was, at one level, a pretty special moment.

'He was under the cosh,

'on the field or off the field, because,'

you know, you know what it's like and it's a pretty tough place to be.

I think, sometimes, you want to say,

"Look, well done, great career, let's go and have a beer."

-STADIUM ANNOUNCER:

-'We once again wish Jonathan Davies the best. Thank you.'

A few months later, at the age of only 34, Karen passed away.

She was the pillar of strength

behind Jonathan's success and now she had gone.

He had offers to keep playing, but Jonathan now had to be

mother as well as father to three children under the age of ten.

His future lay with his family.

I was kind of prepared for it better

because of the loss of my dad,

but I think then, that,

although you're in the public glare,

bereavement is a very private thing.

That was the key, is being strong,

putting a public profile in place,

but then a different one when you're private.

So, how you cope with it is

try and get on with it

as normal as you can

and make sure that being the dad and,

I suppose, the man of the house,

you just have to keep it going as normal as possibly

and you know, I did go off the rails a little bit, I suppose, you know,

in the drinking stakes,

but hey, sometimes you cope with it that way.

But the discipline of TV schedules

and kids going to school was

the key to keeping me on that straight and narrow.

Jonathan has never forgotten the support

and care provided by Velindre Hospital and

with Jonathan as president of the charity,

fundraising has soared £7 million in the last five years.

For me, it was just the fact that, you know, I wanted to support it.

I knew what people went through,

I know how fantastic the medical staff were and, you know,

I just want to raise the money to make it easier for whoever is

so unfortunate to go through it.

To mark his 50th birthday, Jiffy embarked on his biggest

challenge, leading 50 people,

including many former Welsh skippers and internationals,

on a gruelling fundraising bike ride across California,

starting in the Yosemite National Park, down to San Francisco.

I think everyone's been absolutely fantastic,

the way they've responded to it. Everyone's mucked in.

Everyone's helped each other.

We've had great banter over dinner

and when we're cycling together.

I think everyone's gelled very good. It's a great, great bunch of people.

With temperatures over 100 degrees, and sleeping on hard ground

under canvas, even the rugby stars found it tough.

But Jiffy kept them going.

Hang on in there, son, hang on in...

There's only one Jiffy,

and there were his little speeches round the campfire in the evening.

He was fantastic. He's got a great sense of humour.

I think everyone's really enjoying his company.

Tom, which way are you hanging?

He's 50 going on 19.

Fair play to him, he's been, considering he is 50,

he's been putting it in this week. He's been brilliant fun.

He's lightened up the week for everybody.

He's the man who's headed up this whole thing, and we've hung on his coat tails really.

So he's been phenomenal.

Encouraging everybody and just being himself, so it's just been...

For me, you know, he was my hero growing up, so it's been a privilege to spend the week with him.

After nearly 400 kilometres, the group approached the emotional

finishing line of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Everyone involved was raising money for loved ones

who suffered from cancer, or in memory of those who died from the disease.

And the finish triggered outbreaks of emotion and relief.

This event alone had raised nearly half a million pounds.

It's been a great journey, very emotional at the end.

I don't cry very often. But it's... Yeah, it's been amazing.

'The care and support we give to people is over and above'

what the NHS provides as a base, and Jonathan's input

makes a massive, massive contribution to that.

And from our point of view Jon was known and has been known

as a hero to hundreds of thousands of people

from when he was playing rugby, but to us he's purely a hero as a man,

simply because of what he's done for Velindre.

Since the mid-1990s, demand for Jiffy the commentator,

with his quick wit and sharp rugby brain has grown steadily.

'I suppose I'm lucky - I've known him since schooldays,'

and he never tyres of reminding everybody of the fact that

I was head boy when he was a couple of years younger

and I used to throw him out of the corridors at lunchtime.

But he hasn't changed at all - he was a cheeky youngster in school

and I think he's a cheeky chappie now as a commentator.

And I think that's one of his endearing qualities, that's why people like him so much.

But actually, when it comes down to the game itself, he is incredibly sharp.

He just sees things so, so quickly,

and he can then get on to our technical people

and decide what replays he wants, where he wants it played from,

and he can see in an instant

why a try has happened or why a move has failed, or anything else.

He is definitely one of the quickest I've ever seen,

and ever worked with.

Today, Jonathan is not only a leading national commentator,

but an expert in both codes, Union and League.

A unique dual role.

You've got to call it as you see it, because one thing about the rugby

public, supporters, they're very knowledgeable.

So if you don't say what you think, you lose your credibility

and you've lost your support, I suppose.

He tries to keep up with the modern trends in the game,

and I think that's a really, really important thing.

Because if you're not involved in the game for two years,

things move on quickly, both in League and in Union.

Jiffy's great as a commentator because he does understand the game.

Even though the likes of him and myself retired many years ago.

I think when you're a skilful rugby player, as he was,

and not only did he excel in Rugby Union, but he got to the top in Rugby League,

that takes a special quality in an individual to be able to do that,

and as a commentator he can almost see a little bit into the future.

And I think that's a skill also.

While Jiffy's acute analysis,

assisted by modern on-screen graphics, explains the game

to millions, it's his passion that for many makes matches come alive.

..And the centre, you'll be saying, "Get on my shoulder now.

"What are you doing out there? Get on my shoulder!"

But Wales are doing badly - beaten in all four autumn internationals,

extending a bad losing streak as the year ends.

With the 2013 Six Nations tournament imminent,

Wales look to have a thin chance of successfully defending their Championship title.

Fun and games, the day's ended. Maybe with Wales losing today, it's a good time to get out of Cardiff.

So Jiffy is on the move again. A late night flight to commentate

on another international the following day.

Happy to travel, knowing the family and home are in good hands.

Because after finding a new career in broadcasting,

Jonathan unexpectedly found a new love.

I'm very fortunate that I met a fantastic girl, Helen.

We met and I thought, well, who knows what'll happen,

and then we've been married ten years this year now.

And to take three kids on board, at such a young age, was amazing

and Helen has been the power behind my success

in the last ten years.

Jonathan Davies, this is your life!

In 2003, more public celebrations followed with Jiffy's This Is Your Life.

His family joined him in the limelight

while his mum, sister and stepdad looked on,

all enjoying Jonathan's achievement and recognition.

He'd become a national treasure - not only a great former player

but a great broadcaster, a personality in his own right.

A celebrity, with his own chat show on S4C.

If you had told me that I'd be having my own show on S4C

in the Welsh language, I'd have said you're off your head.

But, erm...you know, it's one thing, I'm adaptable I suppose,

and, you know, I think I've got a good sense of humour.

Pen fyny...

Un, dau, tri!

LAUGHTER

The first mistake they did, they named the show Jonathan so they're stuck with me now.

But the viewing figures are good and people seem to enjoy it,

so if it continues, it continues.

It's certainly been successful, and I've enjoyed it.

Now, the established media personality, Jonathan

at the age of 50 knows he's there to be challenged by new stars.

It's the same in life as it is in sport,

and there's always people trying to knock you off your perch

so you've got to do your job as well as you possibly can.

Cos I know there's a lot of boys retiring now

and they'll want new faces on television.

But I'm not ready to give my position in television up yet.

So it's back in front of the nation, and more than 10 million viewers

around Britain, for the finale of the Six Nations Championship.

Remarkably, Wales have turned things around,

won three games on the road,

and could clinch the title if they beat, by seven points, an in-form England, going for a Grand Slam.

They hardly come more highly charged than this -

a decider in Cardiff, with Jiffy trying to keep a lid on his emotions.

-COMMENTATOR:

-'Biggar...

'Leigh Halfpenny, Jamie Roberts, Justin Tipuric. Cuthbert outside him.

'Tipuric... Tipuric! Still going to Cuthbert...

'Cuthbert's second try! Wales are storming to the title!'

'Just watch the brilliance of Tipuric, running on...

'He's in front of the player, receives the ball but just watch him -

'he reads the play, he steps back, and then he gets away...'

'I try and control my emotions when I'm commentating or I'm in studio

'because everyone knows I'm Welsh, and I want Wales to win.'

And when Wales are doing well, it makes my job so much easier and enjoyable.

Wales storm to victory - a record-breaking win

over England, clinching the title for the second year running.

'And the Six Nations trophy is lifted high by the victorious Welsh team

'who are RBS Six Nations Champions for 2013...'

With Wales awash in celebration,

Jiffy's delight does the rounds on Facebook.

He's a fun loving, happy-go-lucky guy, who's got a great family.

I think he must have been a hypnotist in part of his past life

because to get a wife as gorgeous as Helen at his age

is something incredible. But he's managed it.

The biggest achievement of my whole career, and my life so far,

is the fact that I'm so proud of the family, the kids and Helen.

She's been a great mother and a great wife,

and we wanted another one to just bind the family together,

and a miracle happened and little Molly came along,

and now rather than three, I've got four beautiful kids, and it's been fantastic.

My dad died when he was 44.

I've decided that I think I'm going to live till 90.

I told my kids when I was 45, it's half-time.

I might be a pain in the arse to everyone at that time,

but there we are, my goal is to be around when I'm 90 years of age.

# I don't remember, were we wild and young?

# All that's faded in the memory

# I feel like somebody I don't know

# Are we really who we used to be?

# Am I really who I was?

# The lights will draw you in

# And the dark will bring you down

# And the night will break your heart

# But only if you're lucky now. #