All Blacks: Cardiff's win over New Zealand in rugby comic

Bleddyn Williams led his Cardiff team into action against the New Zealand side

In October 1953, the All Blacks set about an epic five-month, 36-match tour of the northern hemisphere.

They swept aside all before them - until, that is, they arrived in Wales.

A 6-6 draw with Swansea and a 13-8 defeat to Wales were shocking enough results, but perhaps the most sensational match came when Cardiff ran out 8-3 victors at the Arms Park.

Now, to mark the 70th anniversary of this feat, the story has been retold in comic-book form.

Authors and self-confessed Cardiff rugby nuts James Stafford and Steve Coombs created "Bleddyn" in honour of Bleddyn Williams, Cardiff's captain that day.

The comic has been illustrated by Garry Erskine who has drawn for Dan Dare, Judge Dredd, Marvel and DC amongst others.

Bledyn Williams's name - and captaincy on the famous day - inspired the comic's title

"Steve has written for comics like Commando, and for years we'd chatted about the potential for a rugby comic, so when nobody produced one we decided to team up with Gary and do it ourselves in time for the anniversary," Mr Stafford said.

"It's a great medium through which to tell the tale, as all the live footage from the 1953 match may seem quite drab and grainy to younger people.

"Gary's illustrations really bring the whole thing to life in a way which black and white footage shot from distance simply can't."

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The trio are hoping their comic will have wider appeal than purely younger readers.

"One of my previous books, How Wales Beat the Mighty All Blacks, was about our first ever win over the All Blacks in 1905, and was an illustrated children's novel," Mr Stafford said.

The comic has been illustrated by Gary Erskine

"Obviously no one is still alive from 1905 so I was able to give the whole thing a more mythical or almost fairytale feel.

"However, with the 1953 Cardiff victory, there are people still with us in their 80s and 90s who were at the match, or at least they can remember their parents telling them about it, so we'd like to tap into the fact it is a game within living memory and we hope for them it stirs up some wonderful nostalgic memories.

"That added another layer of complexity, as we owed it to our older readers to get the street scenes and the architecture of the Arms Park just right, exactly how they remember it from the time."

All the scoring that day was done in the first half.

Cardiff struck first, with a break away from Cliff Morgan finished off by Sid Judd.

Gwyn Rowlands added a conversion and try of his own, leaving Cardiff to defend heroically against a New Zealand onslaught for the entirety of a pointless second half.

The comic book looks at what happened ahead of the eagerly-anticipated game

Though as well as depicting the game itself, the comic also charts the backstories of the players and the events leading up to kick off.

Mr Stafford said: "A main theme we wanted to get across in the words and the pictures was that these weren't remote sportsmen detached from the fans, they were part of the community - your doctor, or a local character you drunk with on a Friday night - and that is what made the result so special.

"Also, many of these players had seen the best years of their careers ruined by the war. We've included a dream sequence of Bleddyn Williams the night before the match, reliving his time in Germany, and being desperate to get back to Cardiff to play again."

"Bleddyn" is available online, and will also be sold at Cardiff Arms Park during Cardiff's Christmas fixtures.