Former Wales and British and Irish Lions fly-half Barry John dies aged 79

04 February 2024 , 17:03

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Barry john has died at the age of 79 (Image: Mirrorpix)

Former Wales and British and Irish Lions fly-half Barry John has died aged 79, his family have said.

John played 25 times for Wales and appeared in five Tests for the Lions, one of those coming in South Africa in 1968 before he played a further four times in New Zealand in 1971.

Whilst he represented his country they won three Five Nations titles, a Grand Slam and two Triple Crowns. He also excelled against the All Blacks whilst representing the Lions as they secured a historic 2-1 victory which saw him land the nickname John 'The King'.

A family statement read: "Barry John died peacefully today at the University Hospital of Wales surrounded by his loving wife and four children. He was a loving Dadcu (Grandad) to his 11 grandchildren and much-loved brother."

John is the second Welsh 1970s legend who has died this year following the passing of full-back JPR Williams. The fly-half retired at the tender age of just 27.

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He made his debut when Wales beat Australia 14-11 in Cardiff in December 1966. It was later that year that he first played with Sir Gareth Edwards with the pair regarded as one of the greatest half-back partnerships in the history of the game. John finished with 120 points for Wales and the Lions in his 30 internationals.

In his autobiography, John’s famed half-back partner Edwards wrote: “He (John) had this marvellous easiness in the mind, reducing problems to their simplest form, backing his own talent all the time. One success on the field bred another and soon he gave off a cool superiority which spread to others in the side.”

John was part of a triumphant Lions side in New Zealand

John continued to be part of rugby after retirement and enjoyed jobs in journalism. He was a rugby correspondent at the Daily Express, a columnist with Wales on Sunday and Wales Online and co-commentator on BBC Radio Five Live.

The great fly-half was one of the inaugural inductees of the International Rugby Hall of Fame in 1997. The accolades continued to come his way as he was named in the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame two years later and then, in 2015, he took his place in the World Rugby Hall of Fame.

John previously reflected on his decision to call it a day and said: “I didn’t want to retire, but it was the circumstances. People didn’t understand how you had to go to work, how you had to be fit for international-level rugby. I was getting lethargic, tired. You can’t be like that on the international stage, especially at number 10.

Samuel Meade