Glenfield Michael Charles Webbe
Webbe is an established Welsh rugby player, and he is often referred to as Wales’ first Black icon because he is thought to be the first Black Welshman to play rugby. He became the first Black player for Wales.
1962
Tiger Bay, Cardiff, Wales
Caribbean (Saint Kitts) and Welsh
1986 – he made his debut against Tonga Club
1987 – he was a squad member in the inaugural Rugby World Cup and he scored three tries
1988 – he was picked for Wales as a right winger
Glen has eight siblings who grew up with him in Cardiff. In his secondary school he played Welsh baseball and athletics.
Webbe professionally started playing rugby at the age of 18 for Bridgend RFC, where he played fourteen seasons. He made his first international appearance on 12 June 1986 against the Tonga national rugby team. In 1987, he played in the Five Nations Championship, and he was picked for the inaugural World Cup in New England. In Wales’ second match against Tonga, Webbe played in the game, and he got a concussion while being tackled. He however continued playing because at the time, Wales had used their two allocated substitutions. Despite the concussion, he scored a third try and completed his hat trick of tries. In his time with Bridgend, he played in more than 400 games and scored nearly three tries.
Webbe is married to Sally and has two daughters called Lily and Marcy. He participated in the British TV show called Gladiators and was eliminated in the first round. He is the Sales Director and Head Designer of The Kitchen Bureau. He has since written a book titled The Gloves are Off .
Alan Pearey, ‘Book Review: three decades on, Glenn Webbe is still packing a punch’ Rugby World,
https://www.rugbyworld.com/countries/wales-countries/book-review-three-decades-on-glenn-webbe-is-still-packing-a-punch-108223 [accessed 8th March].
Delme Parfitt, ‘How life turned out for Glen Webbe, the cult rugby player Wales ignored for so long’, Wales Online, https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/how-life-turned-out-glen-15213382 [accessed 8th March] .
Rhodri Jeremiah, ‘Glen Webbe: Welsh rugby’s Black icon, Sky Sports,https://www.skysports.com/rugby-union/news/12325/12100976/glenn-webbe-welsh-rugbys-black-icon [accessed 8th March].
Glen Webbe- The gloves are off-Autobiography of Welsh rugby’s first black icon’, GWales, https://www.gwales.com/goto/biblio/en/9781912631155/ [accessed 8th March].
