Tommy Bagwell
Tommy Bagwell
By Malc King
Tommy Bagwell was a mere 5ft 4ins tall and just managed to turn the scales at 10st, but that small frame concealed a determined and gifted outside-half and threequarter, who made a huge impression on the rugby field. He was recognised as a fitness fanatic, renowned for his tactical nous, and was very difficult to bring down. But he had a much wider influence on the game in Gloucester, because he was instrumental in demonstrating to the working classes that they could make it to the top in rugby in the City, and to the middle classes that they could benefit greatly from an infusion of working class men into the club.
In its early years Gloucester was exclusively a middle class club, but those early pioneers did feel that they had a mission to promote the game, and achieved this by encouraging spectators from all walks of life, and by encouraging the formation around the city of local clubs. These were often associated with churches, and it was such a club which brought Tommy Bagwell into playing organised rugby.
Tommy was born in Gloucester in 1860, and lived at 55, Mitre Street. He and his bosom chum, George Coates, both became labourers at the Wagon Works, and started to play rugby for their local side, St Luke's Red Cross. Tommy's first games were in 1879, when he was age 18. Given this platform on which to perform, the two friends forced themselves by sheer merit into the Gloucester team. Existing members of the Gloucester club were concerned that their presence would erode club values, but Tommy in particular came to be valued as much for his conduct and attitude as for his formidable playing skills.
In fact, George was the first to break into the Gloucester first team in 1881. Tommy was invited to play for the Colts team that same year, but did not step up to the first team until 1883. He soon made an impression - on team-mates, opponents and the media. Reports of his early matches speak of his "collaring and dodging powers", his explosive hand-off, and that "he knows how to get tries". He first played for the Club as a centre three-quarter, but soon took up the outside-half position, "where he performed brilliantly" and was "a positive delight". However, he was adaptable, and very early in his career in 1883, he was selected to play against the first London team to travel to Kingsholm, a game in which Gloucester were particularly keen to perform well. The only score of the match was a try by Tommy Bagwell - "a marvellous individual effort, in which he zig-zagged practically through the whole opposition".
He went on to accomplish many other heroics for Gloucester and for the County team. In 1890, A W Vears, otherwise known as the Commodore from his days in the Navy, and one of the most respected officers of the club, proposed Tommy as club captain. This met with approval, and so Tommy became the first working class captain of Gloucester. His first season was very successful, with all but two matches won. This was no flash in the pan - under Tommy's leadership, the club enjoyed some of their most successful seasons.
In October 1891, Tommy was captain of Gloucester in the first match played at Kingsholm, when Burton were defeated 18-0. Although he always conducted himself properly, Tommy had a good sense of humour and was not shy of expressing an opinion - at the dinner after that first match, he described that afternoon's encounter as "a very pleasant match, which I attribute to the presence of a good referee [Rowland Hill, Secretary of the RFU], which the Club does not often get, especially in Wales". At the AGM at the end of the season he joked that Sydney Starr the club's secretary ask permission of the committee before he applied salt to the Kingsholm pitch (a reference to the reason why the club were obliged to leave the Spa ground).
By this time the matches against the Welsh clubs were regarded as the most prestigious of the season. Tommy was always keen to put right a loss, and after defeat in Cardiff in 1891, he was quoted as saying "wait till we get 'em on Kingsholm, we'll give 'em Taffy-whack".
At the end of season dinner in 1891, and despite the fact that he had not missed a game for more than two seasons, Tommy announced that he was ending his playing career with Gloucester. He gave as his reasons that he had been playing for 12 seasons, that his home ties were growing, his advancing years, and his desire to make way for younger players. "Younger but not better, Tommy" was the response shouted from the floor. And indeed during the close season he was prevailed upon to play on, and to remain as captain.
However, he retired from the captaincy at the end of the 1891-2 season, when age 32. The Gloucester Amateur Dramatic Club held a series of well-attended benefit performances for him, which raised over £11.
Tommy played on for Gloucester into the 1894-5 season, and on finally retiring from senior rugby, he played for the local St Catherine's side for a while. However, Gloucester rugby had become his life and he soon returned to the club, initially as trainer, and later as baggage and kit man. He was made a life member of the club, and served on the committee. Although he was never given an administrative post, he was held up to succeeding generations as the role model for the working man at Gloucester Rugby.
In summarising Tommy's career, that doyen of Gloucester rugby journalism, Bill Bailey, wrote: " a stickler for training, Bagwell made great sacrifices to keep fit, and what success the veteran achieved on the field he attributed largely to this fact","he was a most difficult player to check when on the run, for he possessed remarkable dodging powers, and was up to every move in the game", and he had a "specialty hand-off, which opponents, after one experience, took every precaution to avoid".
Tommy died in 1943 after 60 years association with the Gloucester club.