Charlie Faulkner: The 1 and Only

The long-awaited autobiography of Anthony George ’Charlie’ Faulkner, Welsh rugby legend. Immortalized in the Max Boyce song ’The Pontypool Front Row’, he was a key member of the 1970s Golden Era Wales team in a period in which they dominated Northern Hemisphere rugby and managed an incredible winning record. He helped to achieve Grand Slams in 1976, 1978 and 1979, and four consecutive Triple Crowns. The glowing foreword by fellow legend Gareth Edwards gives a good idea of the esteem in which he is held in the rugby world. The book looks briefly at his background, upbringing and early years in rugby, before moving on to concentrate on the glory years with Pontypool, Wales and the 1977 Lions, and his time as a coach with Newport and Cardiff. He discusses his own coach at Pontypool, Ray Prosser, his Pontypool and Wales colleagues, his favorite players (for Wales, for Pontypool and his opponents) and his take on the game today.