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Wales Online
Wales Online
Sport
Ben James

Phil Bennett honoured with touching Barbarians tribute from players moments before kick-off against England

Barbarians players formed the shape of a number 10 in honour of Phil Bennett ahead of their match with England on Sunday afternoon.

Former Wales, Llanelli and Lions fly-half Bennett died peacefully last Sunday at the age of 73. 'Benny', as he was so affectionately known, was one of the most recognisable and celebrated figures in Welsh rugby history.

He won 29 caps for Wales from 1969 to 1978, played for the Scarlets 413 times and starred for the Lions on two tours, to South Africa in 1974 and New Zealand three years later.

Read more: Fourteen-man Barbarians 'make mockery of England' with hammering at Twickenham

But his exploits for the the Barbarians - particularly his contribution to Gareth Edwards' famous score against New Zealand in 1973 - were just as memorable. His 20 appearances placed him as the second highest 'Welsh Barbarian', with only fellow Llanelli legend R H Williams playing more times for the famous team (on 22 occasions).

He also scored 181 points in the black and white shirt, toured Canada in 1976, played against Scotland, Fiji, Canada and Australia as well as the All Blacks twice, and, for good measure, captained the club on 10 occasions.

So fittingly, ahead of the Barbarians' clash with England at Twickenham, tributes were paid to the legendary fly-half from Felinfoel. As a minute's applause was observed by the crowd, players representing the famous club formed the shape of a 10 on the pitch in honour of Bennett.

Another tribute saw Bennett's name marked out specially on the back of the fly-half jersey, worn by Antoine Hastoy. The Barbarians' jerseys had the names of former players written out in their number, however Bennett's was marked out in red rather than grey.

Earlier this week, Barbarians president John Spencer said: “The rugby world will feel keenly the loss of Phil Bennett. He was a true icon of our sport and a loyal club man, for Llanelli, for Scarlets, for his country, the Lions and of course the Barbarians. On behalf of all the Barbarians across the world, we would like to extend our wholehearted condolences to Phil’s wife Pat and all of Phil’s family and friends. We have lost one of the greatest Barbarians but Benny’s memory will always be in our hearts.”

Read more: 'Sorry, boss' — England v Barbarians marred by first-half red card as unwanted record claimed

Read more: 'I'm going to be really rude' — George Kruis cuts live TV interview short after helping Barbarians to thumping win

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