By Elton Riches

I was researching in The Hockey Museum (THM) library reviewing the early hockey periodicals for photographs or illustrations of player-issued caps. I located a black-and-white photograph in an 1898 publication showing the Welsh men’s hockey team wearing honours caps. Clear evidence that the Welsh national teams were awarded caps early on in their development.

Picture of the Wales Hockey Team from Hockey magazine, 4 March 1898.

The caps appeared very similar to those awarded in rugby. I had a 1906 dated cap similar to this design in my personal collection which was green and I had previously been advised by the Welsh Rugby Union that there was no record of a green cap ever being issued by them. They also had no record of anyone with the initials WEJ playing rugby for Wales during 1906.

And so the work began. I had initials inside the cap “WEJ” but who was this person? The library resources pointed to a WE Jones. With assistance from Hockey Wales, more information about him came to light. Reverend William Edwyn Jones won his first cap on 10 Feb 1906 against Scotland and his final cap on 8 March 1913 against England.

But what of the green? Wales are always red, are they not? Perhaps this wasn’t a Welsh cap after all. Further collaboration with Hockey Wales revealed that the early Welsh teams did indeed use green as a prominent colour and so, now conclusively identified as hockey, I donated the cap to THM. We could at last be certain of its provenance.

Wales cap awarded to Reverend William Edwyn Jones in 1906. Research has proven that Wales played hockey in green in their formative years.		Elton Riches donates Reverend Jones’s cap to The Hockey Museum.

A Second Welsh Cap

The recent discovery of a second cap came about through a research request from the relatives of Roland Bryan Stratton who wanted to know more about Stratton’s international playing career. From records held by Hockey Wales they knew that he had played hockey for Wales with his first match on 2 Feb 1911 against Ireland and his final game on 7 March 1914 against England.

It is likely that this international hockey career would have continued but WW1 meant that Wales did not play an international game between 1914 and 1920. Communications revealed that the relatives still had his 1911 cap stowed away with family memorabilia, and they were now able to know more about it.

Welsh honours cap belonging to Roland Bryan Stratton. Images courtesy of Hockey Wales.

We also discovered that the Welsh caps were made by Ben Evans & Co, Swansea, which is clearly visible inside the lining of Stratton’s cap. The lining of Jones’s cap, however, was too frayed and indistinct to previously confirm this.

The iconic building of Ben Evans & Co (known as the Harrods of Wales) was sadly lost during WW2.

You can discover more about Roland’s story by way of this article from Hockey Wales: click here.

The Ben Evans & Co building in Swansea known as the Harrods of Wales.		Fire gutted the Ben Evans & Co building during WW2 reducing it to rubble.

A Third Welsh Cap

Circulating information about these caps between THM and Hockey Wales also revealed the existence of another 1906 cap belonging to Maurice Stratton, a cousin of Roland, and another family member who played hockey for his country.

Maurice Stratton’s Wales honours cap.

Unfortunately, although the playing careers of all three caps owners were intertwined it appears that they did not play together whilst representing their country.

Maurice Stratton and William Jones both played for Wales in 1906 but not in the same game.

Roland Stratton played for Wales in 1911 and 1914 whilst William Jones played in the two years in between (1912 and 1913).

From the dates stitched onto the caps cross-referenced with the playing records of each, it appears that a cap was awarded to a player on their first game. Quite literally a first cap.

The recent uncovering of these caps leads us to believe that there are others waiting to be identified, researched or requiring a future home for their preservation. A project the Museum, and I especially, would relish.

If you have information about honours caps, Welsh or otherwise, please make contact through the website contact form (click here) and your enquiry will reach me.