{"id":34800,"date":"2019-03-08T16:47:06","date_gmt":"2019-03-08T16:47:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jomec.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/?p=34800"},"modified":"2019-03-08T16:47:06","modified_gmt":"2019-03-08T16:47:06","slug":"the-man-wholl-never-give-up-rugby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2019\/03\/08\/the-man-wholl-never-give-up-rugby\/","title":{"rendered":"The man who&#039;ll never give up rugby"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><figure id=\"attachment_34829\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-34829\" style=\"width: 4032px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-34829 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_3597-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"4032\" height=\"3024\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-34829\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-34829 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_3597-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"4032\" height=\"3024\" \/><\/noscript> Getting stuck in: John Lyons played rugby until he was 48 but is now focused on leading Glamorgan Wanderers into the Championship.<\/figcaption><\/figure><br \/>\nOF all the places to meet, John Lyons chooses a quaint pub in Rhiwbina.<br \/>\nThe Glamorgan Wanderers chief jokes we&#8217;re actually here to check out the opposition for tonight\u2019s must win tie with Rhiwbina, but then he lets on that he was in the area for work.<br \/>\n\u201cNothing wrong with a bit of Squirrel-bashing on a Friday night, sneaking into enemy territory\u201d he joked, referring to Rhiwbina&#8217;s nickname.<br \/>\nEvery time we talk, John, 56, seems to always reiterate how many \u2018characters\u2019 there are in rugby but never once acknowledges how much of one he is himself.<br \/>\nI ask him where it all started. \u201cSchool. We played full contact rugby. At Catholic school we only played rugby. I went on from there to Mostyn and played Rugby through till fifteen-ish.<br \/>\n\u201cPlus, my father was a rugby man, played for Canton. Played for the Wales army cadet or whatever it was back in the day.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cIt was just ingrained in you, there was a different ethic about people those days.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This early in his life, rugby was not John\u2019s only love; football had nudged its way in as well.<br \/>\nPlaying for a Welsh league rugby side, John also played for Chepstow Town FC for a couple of seasons under a certain ex-Arsenal player, Barry Vassallo. He would train once or twice a week then play on the Saturday.<br \/>\nJohn would find a way to play both sports over Saturdays and Sundays.<br \/>\n\u201cI got a couple of suspensions, a couple of red cards when I was playing for Cardiff Civil Service in football so I was guesting for their rugby team when I was suspended from football,\u201d he said.<br \/>\nIt was in his thirties that his true love for rugby returned.<br \/>\n\u201cI spent a couple of years with Dinas Powys, enjoyed my time there immensely and then Llandaff North where I spent over 10 years. I was first team captain and I enjoyed every minute of it. Such a good feel club,\u201d he said.<br \/>\n<figure id=\"attachment_34837\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-34837\" style=\"width: 181px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-34837 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY-181x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"181\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY-181x300.png 181w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY.png 354w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY-293x486.png 293w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 181px) 100vw, 181px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-34837\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-34837 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY-181x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"181\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY-181x300.png 181w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY.png 354w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/JOHN-IN-RUGBY-293x486.png 293w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 181px) 100vw, 181px\" \/><\/noscript> John playing for the Wanderers. Now at the helm, Wanderers will be determined to move up to the Championship after the disappointment of last season.<\/figcaption><\/figure><br \/>\nRemarkably, John only stopped playing rugby four years ago. He shows me several pictures of the whacks and bruises he picked up from playing which would usually be enough to make anyone stop.<br \/>\n\u201cI finished a game not so long ago with a broken arm,\u201d he said.<br \/>\nIt was not the broken arm however that ended John\u2019s enjoyment of playing the game, it was a motorcycle accident.<br \/>\n\u201cI fractured my femur, cracked my pelvis in two places, did my posterior cruciate, broke my wrist, shoulder, ankle, a whole load of sh*t.<br \/>\n\u201cIt took a lot of time to recover and I was knocked on confidence as well, but I have played since.<br \/>\n\u201cI had a replacement knee a couple of years ago and I played after that, but then ill health has caught up with me again. So I just can\u2019t play anymore,\u201d he said.<br \/>\nThe more I learn about John, the humbler he becomes. The accident was not his toughest recovery.<br \/>\n\u201cI had kidney cancer, renal cancer. I had parts of my kidney taken away,\u201d he said.<br \/>\nBefore I can intervene, he said: \u201cIt\u2019s just life, mate.<br \/>\n\u201cI\u2019m sat in a consultant\u2019s office and he says, \u2018That tells me it\u2019s a solid mass\u2019 and you go \u2018Right so it\u2019s cancer?\u2019 and he went \u2018Yeah\u2019.<br \/>\n\u201cI said &#8216;What\u2019s the plan?&#8217; The doctor froze, he said, \u2018No one\u2019s ever said that so suddenly.\u2019<br \/>\n\u201cWell there\u2019s gotta be a plan hasn\u2019t there? Then you discuss all the options then. Radiotherapy, chemotherapy, zap it, laser it, do this, do that.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>\u201cWhy don\u2019t you cut it out? Just cut it out. Go in, do your best, cut it out if you can do it, I said. But one thing, if you can do it don\u2019t bother waking me up to ask permission. If you\u2019re gonna take the whole kidney just do it. We\u2019ll all be good that way.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>He turns the conversation towards his wife Mel, who he has been with for 33 years and, who\u2019s \u2018as good as gold.\u2019<br \/>\n\u201cBeen married for 23 years she\u2019s really long-serving to have to put up with me, I suppose. She\u2019d have been out by now otherwise, to be fair,\u201d he said.<br \/>\n<figure id=\"attachment_34836\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-34836\" style=\"width: 169px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-34836 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263-169x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"169\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263-169x300.png 169w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263-293x521.png 293w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263.png 360w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 169px) 100vw, 169px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-34836\" class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-34836 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263-169x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"169\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263-169x300.png 169w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263-293x521.png 293w, https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2019\/03\/IMG_4263.png 360w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 169px) 100vw, 169px\" \/><\/noscript> John and his wife, Mel.<\/figcaption><\/figure><br \/>\nBefore his diagnosis, John was at the club for three years. After two years away for recovery, John came back and has not looked back since.<br \/>\nAt this level, you do not earn money for rugby to be your full-time job. John does it for the \u2018thrill\u2019 of it rather than anything else. When he\u2019s not at the Memorial Ground, he works as an after-sales manager.<br \/>\nOn top of his job, I ask him if he ever tires of it, \u201cNot really, it keeps you going. When you\u2019ve done it for so long and been involved in sport semi-professionally and whatever else from sort of 14. At 57 this year, it\u2019s still there.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><em>\u201cThe spark is still there. The emotion is still there. The body can\u2019t do it but the mind sort of is still there.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>It is his admiration and respect for other sides that tells you John has no intention of ever stopping.<br \/>\n\u201cI\u2019ve been to some great places. We went to Gilfach the other week. You\u2019re in Gilfach, a pub called the Wrecker, and the owner? What a lovely chap. He came over and spoke to Alyn (ex-chairman) and myself after the game, we had a fantastic conversation about rugby and different bits and pieces and his family, all sorts of stuff,\u201d he said.<br \/>\nHis credit to others is never-ending, with the club\u2019s recent successes attributed to everyone who is a part of the club.<br \/>\n\u201cWe\u2019ve got some great people at the club. Like Steve Charles, does all the kit. We\u2019ve got a fantastic coaching team \u2013 Dan Fish from Cardiff Blues. Martyn Fowler, Lee Highgate, well-respected player for many years in the Wanderers and Caerau Ely.<br \/>\n\u201cThe fitness coach, Will Cusack, is a good guy. That coaching team is probably one of the best coaching teams around in terms of experience, qualifications, and just what they bring to the table,\u201d he said.<br \/>\nAfter the heartbreak of missing out on the playoffs to Ystrad Rhondda RFC last season, things are very different this time around at the club.<br \/>\nJohn, however, is only focused on the games that his club have left, two of which are against their title rivals, Rhiwbina.<br \/>\n\u201cWe don\u2019t want to be on the backfoot going to our ground. We\u2019ve got Rhiwbina, Llantrisant then Rhiwbina again. These are a massive couple of weeks, season defining weeks. Then we\u2019ll sit down, do what we do.<br \/>\n\u201cWe\u2019ve just gotta win and be there. The boys have to be revved up for it which they will be, and it will be a hard-fought game between two good sides.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>OF all the places to meet, John Lyons chooses a quaint pub in Rhiwbina. The Glamorgan Wanderers chief jokes we&#8217;re actually here to check out the opposition for tonight\u2019s must win tie with Rhiwbina, but then he lets on that he was in the area for work. \u201cNothing wrong with a bit of Squirrel-bashing on a Friday night, sneaking into enemy territory\u201d he joked, referring to Rhiwbina&#8217;s nickname. Every time we talk, John, 56, seems to always reiterate how many [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":157,"featured_media":34804,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,151,4,113],"tags":[1291,95,6362,6553,3164,1538,154,339,1030],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-34800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-longer-reads","category-rugby","category-sport","category-uncategorised","tag-cardiff-2","tag-football","tag-glamorgan-wanderers","tag-long-form","tag-personal","tag-rhiwbina","tag-rugby-2","tag-wales","tag-wru"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The man who&#039;ll never give up rugby - The Cardiffian<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2019\/03\/08\/the-man-wholl-never-give-up-rugby\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The man who&#039;ll never give up rugby - The Cardiffian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"OF all the places to meet, John Lyons chooses a quaint pub in Rhiwbina. The Glamorgan Wanderers chief jokes we&#8217;re actually here to check out the opposition for tonight\u2019s must win tie with Rhiwbina, but then he lets on that he was in the area for work. \u201cNothing wrong with a bit of Squirrel-bashing on a Friday night, sneaking into enemy territory\u201d he joked, referring to Rhiwbina&#8217;s nickname. 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