Rugby Memorabilia Society

Rogers Jones Auction

Rogers Jones Auction
12-09-2020

Norman Gale

Norman Gale running onto the Cardiff Arms Park for the International match
vs New Zealand on the 11th November 1967


Rogers Jones Auctioneers ‘Selections and Collections’ sale on Saturday 12th September was the place to be (well online that is, due to Covid restrictions), where they had an extensive collection of match worn Jerseys going under the hammer. The majority of the items in the sale came from the family of the late Norman Gale (1939-2005), the former Llanelli, Swansea and Wales Hooker. Norman made his debut for Wales in 1960 against Ireland in Dublin in a 10-9 win for the Wales, but would have to wait until 1963 for his 2nd Cap against England in Cardiff and then became a regular in the side. He would go onto win 25 Caps for Wales with his final appearance coming in 1969 against Australia, he also captained Wales on 2 occasions and was Llanelli club Captain for the 1964/65 & 1967-68 seasons. Listed below are some of the standout LOTs from the sale.

For this sale the buyer’s premium was 26.40% (inc VAT), For those who used the saleroom to bid live there was an additional fee of 5.94% (inc VAT) = Making it a Total of 32.34% on the hammer price to be added on top of the hammer price.

Sellers fees (that apply to the mentioned items).
25% on LOTs that sell upto £50 hammer price, 20% on LOTs £51-£300, 18% on LOTs £301-£600, 15% on LOTs £601-£5000
VAT was charged on the commission, not the hammer price

1960 Wales Rugby Cap - Norman Gale

Norman Gale’s Wales Cap including a congratulatory letter from Swansea & District Supporters Club
Sold for £800 hammer (£1011.20 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£656 goes to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


Wales Rugby Jersey - Norman Gale (2) Wales Rugby Jersey - Norman Gale (1)

Wales Jersey numbered 2, worn by Norman Gale
Sold for £800 hammer (£1011.20 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£656 goes to the vendor after sellers fees taken off

1964 South Africa Jersey - Abie Malan (1) 1964 South Africa Jersey - Abie Malan (2)

South Africa Jersey numbered 2, worn by Gabriel Frederick ‘Abie’ Malan
In the match against Wales in 1964, at Kings Park Durban which South Africa won 24-3
Sold for £3600 hammer (£4550.40 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£2952 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off

This LOT I am glad to hear was bought by the family of Abie Malan, who despite fierce competition during the bidding process were able to beat off the opposition and secure it for future generations of the Malan family to appreciate. The Jersey will be returning home for the first time in 56 years. It’s nice to see the family of a former international treasure the items of someone, not just because he was one of the Great Springboks but because he clearly meant so much more to them.


1967-69 New Zealand Jersey - Bruce McLeod (2) 1967-69 New Zealand Jersey - Bruce McLeod (1)

New Zealand Jersey numbered 2 worn by Bruce McLeod
In either the 1967 Wales v NZ in Cardiff or the 1969 NZ v Wales 2nd Test at Eden Park Auckland
Sold for £1800 hammer (£2275.20 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£1476 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1968 Argentina Jersey - Ricardo Handley (2) 1968 Argentina Jersey - Ricardo Handley (1)

Argentina Jersey numbered 2 worn by Ricardo Handley
in the 2nd Test between Wales and Argentina on 28th September 1968 at Buenos Aires
Sold for £600 hammer (£758.40 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£470.40 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1960 Ireland Jersey - Tom Kiernan (1) 1960 Ireland Jersey - Tom Kiernan (2)

Ireland Jersey numbered 15 worn by Tom Kiernan
in the 1960 five nations match against Wales at Lansdowne Rd
Sold for £800 hammer (£1011.20 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£656 goes to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1964 France Jersey - Andre Hererro (2) 1964 France Jersey - Andre Hererro (1)

France Jersey numbered 5 worn by Andre Herrero
In the 1964 five nations match against Wales in Cardiff
Sold for £1200 hammer (£1516.80 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£984 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1963 Llanelli Jersey - Norman Gale (1) 1963 Llanelli Jersey - Norman Gale (2)

Llanelli Jersey numbered 9 worn by Norman Gale
In the 1963 match against New Zealand
Sold for £650 hammer (£821.60 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£533 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1963 Scotland Jersey - Norman Bruce (2) 1963 Scotland Jersey - Norman Bruce (3)

Scotland Jersey numbered 2 worn by Norman Bruce
In the 1963 match against Wales
Sold for £420 hammer (£530.88 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£329.28 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1964 Western Counties Jersey - Norman Gale (1) 1964 Western Counties Jersey - Norman Gale (2) 1964 Western Counties Jersey - Norman Gale (3)

Western Counties Jersey numbered 2 worn by Norman Gale
In the 1964 match against Fiji at Stradey Park (Llanelli)
Sold for £180 hammer (£227.52 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£151.50 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1968 England Jersey - Brian Keen (2) 1968 England Jersey - Brian Keen (1)

England Jersey numbered 1 worn by Brian Keen
In the 1968 match against Wales at Twickenham
Sold for £360 hammer (£455.04 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£282.24 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


1969 Australia Jersey - No-17 (1) 1969 Australia Jersey - No-17 (2)

Australia Jersey numbered 17
From the 1969 match between Australia and Wales at the Sydney Cricket Ground
Sold for £500 hammer (£632 inclusive of RJ Buyers Premium)
£392 to the vendor after sellers fees taken off


Also in the sale was a Wales jersey purported to be from the 1924 international with New Zealand and worn by Wales Captain Jack Wetter, sadly it had lost its number at some point in time. With a £3000-£4000 guide price, bidding commenced at £1800, but it failed to sell against a strong pre auction estimate.

Another notable item was an extremely rare and stylish 1955 Combined England/Wales Jersey worn by 1955 British Lion, Wales and Swansea’s Billy ‘Stoker’ Williams at Lansdowne Rd against a Combined Scotland/Ireland side. (See our archive section for a detailed report on the match). This sold for £1200 hammer (£1588.08 inclusive of RJ & The Saleroom Buyers Premium) £984 will go to the vendor after sellers fees have been taken off.



1955 Combined England - Wales Jersey - Bill Williams (1) 1955 Combined England - Wales Jersey - Bill Williams (2)

1955 Combined England/Wales Jersey of Billy ‘Stoker’ Williams


The above numbers are figures are as accurate as I can make them out to be, if there are any errors please let me know.



References:
Rogers Jones Auctioneers
The saleroom
The family of Abie Malan
Michael Bruce
Peter Douglas-Davies
Rugby Memorabilia Society

09/10/2020