Long standing members of London Irish will be very sad to hear of the recent death of Willie Jones.
Willie was born in Belfast and joined the club when he came to London in the mid 1960’s; he played for the first team on many occasions and subsequently captained the Wild Geese. He played on the wing, had a great burst of speed and, although not a big man, was a determined and devastating tackler. When Willie hit you, you knew about it!

He continued to play with the Veterans for some years and, after retiring from playing, was a constant supporter at Sunbury every Saturday either in Fitzy’s or the “Buildings”. He and Danny McCarthy had a flat in Earls Court for many years which soon became a second home and refuge to many young Irishmen arriving in London for the first time —and the parties there were legendary!

Willie was a great friend, great fun, and was always welcomed in any company. He was a regular habitue of the “Bermuda Triangle” of the Bunch of Grapes, the Turk’s Head and the Kensington Arms, via the Handsome Cab in the days when many London Irishmen were able to live around those parts and gathered every week to enjoy each others’ company.

He was very proud of London Irish Rugby Club and his fiery spirit was revealed on one occasion when he was at Rosslyn Park as Geese Captain but unable to play through injury. Willie acted as a touch judge but when, behind the posts awaiting a conversion after London Irish had scored, he heard the Rosslyn Park full back make a very derogatory remark about the club, he dropped his flag and hit the full back with a punch that floored him. He always packed a punch on or off the field! He gained a certain notoriety when, the following morning, some papers ran with the headline: “London Irish Touch Judge KO’s Park Full Back”. Although duly censored by the rugby authorities, Willie, and many of his friends, kept copies of the newspapers as historical mementos and the story travelled wide and far.

Willie returned to Ireland some years ago but always kept up his interest in the fortunes of London Irish. He is very fondly remembered with a smile by all of us who knew him—a great character, a firm friend, a good man.

Jim O’Hara