Alan Rees: Sixties rugby and cricket star dies

Alan Rees played cricket, rugby union and rugby league to a high level

Wales fly-half and Glamorgan cricketer Alan Rees has died at the age of 84.

Rees won three rugby union caps in 1962, before switching codes to play rugby league for Leeds.

He was also a regular for Glamorgan County Cricket for much of the sixties, allowing him to play professional sport across the year.

Rees, born in Port Talbot in 1938, represented Maesteg, Aberavon, Leicester and Llanelli at club level in union.

He joined the Glamorgan staff as a teenager, making his debut aged 17, and soon became a regular in their batting line-up.

Rees was capped by the county in 1963 and scored 1,206 runs in his best season the following year- top-scoring with 48 and 47 in Glamorgan's victory over the touring Australia side in Swansea.

He was famed for his fielding skills and was called up to act as a substitute fielder in an England-Australia Test match in Leeds, taking a fine catch off Fred Trueman's bowling.

The exploit meant he achieved the rare distinction of playing on both cricket and rugby grounds at Headingley.

In rugby union, Rees made his debut in a scoreless draw away to England, kicking Wales's only points with a drop goal in an 8-3 home defeat against Scotland and then featuring in a 3-0 victory over France.

Rees then switched to rugby league, playing briefly alongside Wales dual-code great Lewis Jones who was in his final year at Leeds.

Rees retired from first-class cricket in 1968 with 216 appearances to his credit, but re-appeared in several one-day matches in the early seventies.

"Everyone at Glamorgan Cricket is very sorry to hear about Alan's passing," said the club's CEO Hugh Morris.

"He held a very special place in the club's history, being an integral part of Glamorgan's side which defeated the Australians at Swansea in 1964 and 1968.. and will always be remembered as one of the club's finest fielders."