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ball, engaging in prolonged scrums and mauls. Hancock encouraged his forwards to release the ball to the half-backs, and they in turn would neither run nor kick the ball away, but would move the ball out to the centres. The centres job was, through low accurate passing to, transfer the ball to the wings who should take the ball on the run. Solid passing was primary in
Hancock's vision of winning through scoring tries. In the 1885/86 season Cardiff scored a remarkable 131 tries but not a single penalty or drop goal. It is said that Hancock aggressively shouted down one of this team who attempted a drop goal during a game. Hancock was single minded and dictatorial in his approach as a captain, but his tactics were extremely successful, winning all bar one game and seeing just four tries scored against them.
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292:, which left the Cardiff committee with a problem as they wanted to keep their original back players but also wished to play Hancock. The club decided to instead change the balance of the team, from three threequarters to four threequarters. It was a successful tactic and Cardiff stuck with it for the remainder of the 1883/1884 season.
319:
In 1885 Hancock was elected as captain of
Cardiff, and he revolutionised the way the team played. He discouraged kicking and made the team focus mainly on try scoring through the forwards gaining the ball for individual play from the backs. Traditionally the forwards in a rugby side would retain the
331:, but the poor selection of the team resulted in Hancock scrapping the system during the game and switched Gould to full-back; but the damage was already done and Wales lost the match. The trial was judged a failure and the four three-quarter system was dropped for several years.
264:. Hancock is best known as being the sport's first fourth threequarter player, which changed the formation of rugby union play that lasts to the present day. His role in the development of rugby was recognised by the
295:
Within two months of moving to Wales, Hancock was playing for
Cardiff, changed the future formation of rugby and was then selected to play for Wales. He played his first international game under the captaincy of
327:. With the power of captaincy, Hancock tried out his four three-quarter system, the first time this had been done in an international. Hancock was paired up with Welsh rugby superstar
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to become involved in his family's brewing company, which had a brewery in
Cardiff. He joined the Cardiff team in 1884 and was placed at centre as a replacement for the injured
312:, and Hancock was reselected for the very next Welsh game against England in the next years tournament. Hancock played two games in the 1885 Championship, a loss to England at
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Hancock first played rugby in
Somerset, and captained his local club and represented the Somerset county team. He moved to
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This Rugby
Spellbound People: Rugby Football in Nineteenth-Century Cardiff and South Wales
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This Rugby
Spellbound People: Rugby Football in Nineteenth-Century Cardiff and South Wal
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Hancock's first and only international match as captain was against
Scotland in the
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Hancock retired from rugby at the end of the 1885/86 season at the age of 26.
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552:(Press release). International Rugby Board. 6 May 2011. Archived from
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Hancock was also a notable amateur tennis player having won the
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Fields of Praise: The
Official History of The Welsh Rugby Union
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659:"Tournament – West Somerset Archery and Lawn Tennis Society"
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Dragon in Exile, The
Centenary History of London Welsh R.F.C
252:(7 February 1859 – 29 October 1943) was an English-born
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288:. Hancock had an inspiring game and scored two
550:"Hancock and Cardiff inducted to Hall of Fame"
256:centre who played club rugby for Somerset and
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431:Hignall, Andrew; Prescott, Gwyn (2007).
776:Wales international rugby union players
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484:Smith, David; Williams, Gareth (1980).
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488:. Cardiff: University of Wales Press.
16:Wales international rugby union player
771:Rugby union players from Wiveliscombe
304:. Wales won the game with tries from
761:People from Taunton Deane (district)
610:
608:
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450:Jones, Stephen; Paul Beken (1985).
13:
791:World Rugby Hall of Fame inductees
316:and a scoreless draw in Scotland.
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526:Welsh Rugby Union player profiles
353:was also a notable rugby player.
341:, played first-class cricket for
505:A Century of Welsh Rugby Players
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300:against Ireland as part of the
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325:1886 Home Nations Championship
302:1884 Home Nations Championship
268:in 2011 with induction to the
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418:West Somerset ALTS Tournament
537:Frank Hancock player profile
454:. London: Springwood Books.
357:International matches played
345:in a few matches before the
260:and international rugby for
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756:English rugby union players
472:es. Welsh Academic Press.
420:two times in 1881 and 1883.
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786:Wales rugby union captains
781:Welsh rugby union players
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692:World Rugby Hall of Fame
619:. Welsh Academic Press.
433:Cardiff: Sporting Greats
615:Prescott, Gwyn (2011).
663:www.tennisarchives.com
503:Thomas, Wayne (1979).
250:Francis Escott Hancock
44:Francis Escott Hancock
648:Smith (1980), pg 466.
639:Thomas (1979), pg 11.
600:Hignall, (2007) p.164
586:Thomas (1979), pg 10.
700:Rugby Union Captain
574:Jones (1985), pg 14.
191:International career
766:Rugby union centres
751:Cardiff RFC players
713:Cardiff RFC Captain
102:Notable relative(s)
28:
435:. Stroud: Stadia.
118:Rugby union career
24:
729:
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720:Succeeded by
665:. Tennis Archives
626:978-1-86057-117-6
478:978-1-86057-117-6
442:978-0-7524-4286-0
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174:Wiveliscombe RFC
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347:First World War
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139:Amateur team(s)
111:William Hancock
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82:29 October 1943
59:7 February 1859
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351:Froude Hancock
349:. His brother
306:William Norton
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106:Froude Hancock
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86:(aged 84)
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556:on 9 May 2011
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26:Frank Hancock
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707:H.J. Simpson
667:. Retrieved
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558:. Retrieved
554:the original
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425:Bibliography
411:Other sports
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329:Arthur Gould
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286:Tom Williams
279:
276:Rugby career
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95:Wiveliscombe
84:(1943-10-29)
68:Wiveliscombe
21:Rugby player
18:
746:1943 deaths
741:1859 births
298:Joe Simpson
254:rugby union
180:Cardiff RFC
128:Position(s)
735:Categories
669:10 January
513:References
406:1885, 1886
55:1859-02-07
41:Birth name
314:St Helens
310:Tom Clapp
218:1884–1886
170:1884–1886
113:, brother
108:(brother)
97:, England
74:, England
717:1885–86
404:Scotland
343:Somerset
212:(Points)
177:Somerset
160:(Points)
72:Somerset
690:at the
390:Ireland
376:England
282:Cardiff
258:Cardiff
623:
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373:
246:
133:Centre
560:7 May
362:Wales
339:Ralph
290:tries
262:Wales
229:Wales
197:Years
145:Years
671:2023
621:ISBN
562:2011
490:ISBN
474:ISBN
456:ISBN
437:ISBN
392:1884
378:1885
308:and
207:Apps
202:Team
155:Apps
150:Team
236:(0)
737::
661:.
605:^
591:^
579:^
272:.
186:()
70:,
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233:4
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57:)
53:(
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
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