Graham_Walters

Graham Walters

Graham Walters

Wales international rugby league footballer

For the fictional character, see Graham Walters (Home and Away).

Graham Walters (born 1 March 1953 in Carmarthen, South Wales) is a Welsh rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s; he is also a member of the Welsh Guards and the British Army. He played club-level rugby union (RU) for Swansea RFC, as a Centre, and representative level rugby league (RL) for Wales, and at club-level for Hull FC (Heritage № 750), Wakefield Trinity, and Cardiff City (Bridgend) Blue Dragons, as a centre.[1][2]

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Rugby career

Hull FC

Walters joined rugby league club Hull FC in October 1979.[3] He played right-centre in Hull's 5–10 defeat by Hull Kingston Rovers in the 1980 Challenge Cup Final during the 1979–80 season at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 3 May 1980, in front of a crowd of 95,000.

International honours

Graham Walters won caps for Wales (RL) while at Hull, and Bridgend Blue Dragons 1980-1984, earning 2 caps + 1 cap (interchange/substitute).[1]

Military career

Graham Walters, Military Career
Graham Walters receives Monmouthshire Trophy

At the age of 15, Graham Walters joined the junior Welsh Guards as a boy soldier. He was soon made Lance Corporal and climbed his way up the ranks, eventually making junior Sergeant Major. He took on the role of PTI instructor and speedily achieved the status of Judo black belt, and also became ABA champion boxer of the British Army. With his enormous talent for sport, it was inevitable he started to play rugby for the Welsh Guards and the British Army, previously playing for his home country Wales for the under 15-17s.

Graham Walters joined the 1st Battalion of the Welsh Guards after leaving the position of junior guardsman. Being a marksman of all weapons, he also was assigned as a sniper. Following on from this, he became a Guards Para for 18 months, then joined the SAS regiment; he did 6 tours of Northern Ireland of which three were undercover. During this time, Graham Walters was in active service in Belize and Cyprus.

Note

Before the start of the 1984/85 season, Cardiff City Blue Dragons relocated from Ninian Park in Cardiff, to Coychurch Road Ground in Bridgend, and were renamed Bridgend Blue Dragons.

References

  1. [1]
    "Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  2. [2]
    Williams, Graham; Lush, Peter; Farrar, David (2009). The British Rugby League Records Book. London League. pp. 108–114. ISBN 978-1-903659-49-6.
  3. [3]
    "Hull snap up Welsh R.U. centre Walters". Hull Daily Mail. 1 October 1979. p. 16 – via British Newspaper Archive.
Graham Walters, Hull F.C. Rugby Team
Graham Walters and Jimmy White
Security to the stars, Graham Walters with Terry Wogan
Graham Walters with Ricky (The Hitman) Hatton MBE. British former professional Welterweight, Light Welterweight boxer.
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