|
Prop Phil Blakeway first made his name at Gloucester, a club who supplied many an England forward down the years including Wavell Wakefield, Tom Voyce, Mike Burton and Mike Teague. Phil made his debut for England in 1980 at the age of 29, just two years after nearly quitting the game due to a broken neck. His first match in a white shirt was in a 24-9 victory over Ireland at Twickenham alongside Fran Cotton and Peter Wheeler in the front row. England then confounded expectations by beating France for the first time in Paris since 1964, and Wales for the first time anywhere since 1974.
Both Phil and lock Roger Uttley were carrying injuries in the final game against Scotland, but with so much at stake the coaches did not dare substitute either. England sealed the Grand Slam with a 30-18 victory, including three tries by John Carleton and one each for Mike Slemen and Steve Smith. On the back of this great achievement, Phil and his fellow pack members Fran Cotton, Peter Wheeler, Bill Beaumont and Maurice Colclough all travelled to South Africa as part of the British Lions tour party, though Cotton and Blakeway did not play in any tests.
Phil went on to play in all four matches of the 1981 Five Nations campaign, but the luck that had aided their cause in 1980 was sadly missing, and England finished midtable. The 1982 season was a similar story, and by 1984 England were generally considered the worst of the home nations. After playing in the first test of England's ill advised tour to South Africa, 1985 proved to be Blakeway's swansong, and he started in four matches under the captaincy of Grand Slam teammate Paul Dodge, the last of which was in a defeat by Ireland. (Jon Collins)
|