Billy Douglas (rugby union)
Billy Douglas, born William Matthew Douglas on 2 July 1863 in Barry, Wales, was a Welsh rugby union forward and later a referee. He played club rugby for Canton RFC (1880–1883) and Cardiff RFC (from 1883), serving as Cardiff’s senior captain in the 1885–86 season after Frank Hancock.
Douglas won four caps for Wales between 1886 and 1887. His international debut came in the 1886 Home Nations Championship against England, one of three Cardiff players earning their first cap in that game, which Wales narrowly lost. He then played Scotland, a match Wales also lost. In the 1887 Championship he appeared in the first two games, with the opening match a drawn game against England at Llanelli—Wales’ best result against England at that time. His fourth and final game was the away defeat to Scotland.
About four years after ending his international playing career, Douglas began refereeing. He officiated four internationals: Ireland vs England in 1891 at Lansdowne Road, England vs Ireland in 1894 at Rectory Field, and England vs Scotland in 1896 and 1903. The 1903 match featured Scotland’s John Dallas, who scored a try and would later referee the famous 1905 Wales vs New Zealand game.
Douglas died on 24 September 1943, aged 80.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 07:02 (CET).