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25 Jul, 2025
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Jac Morgan's mentor can't stop crying as tiny Welsh village left almost empty
@Source: walesonline.co.uk
It used to be the case that when you searched up Jac Morgan's parents on Google, the search engine would only get half the story right. It was getting its facts right when it said that Morgan's dad was indeed called Rhodri. But when it comes to the Wales captain's mother, Google might be a bit wide of the mark with 'Bertie Roberts'. That said, few know Morgan better than Bertie, who coached the British and Irish Lions openside as a junior at Cwmtwrch RFC. Bertie has also known Morgan's dad all his life - with Rhodri telling him this week that he's probably more famous than Jac now. Bertie's not the only one from Cwmtwrch Down Under. In fact, there's likely no one left in the small village in the Swansea valley. "Well no, not many!" Bertie tells WalesOnline in Melbourne. "We'd planned to come two-and-a-half years ago. "We always had a little eye on it, thinking it would be nice if Jac made it. He was involved with Wales then. "We had our fingers crossed, then he became captain of Wales. When the announcement came, it was like 'get in there!' "I saw the video when he was in South Africa with the Ospreys . I was in work, going through it on my phone looking at the squad. Watching it come through alphabetically..." At this point, another of the club's supporters chips in, explaining how emotional Bertie tends to get. In fact, the biggest surprise after leaving him at the Lions' fan zone is that he's yet to cry. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. "I'm terrible," Bertie admits. "I'm awful. Saturday, forget it! "I've already gone quite a lot out here. I fill up all the time. "I get quite emotional. The harder I try not to do it, the worse it gets! My wife's got her head in her hands, but she's used to it. "They're all used to it. What is it you call me, Emma? Tiny tears?" Another Cwmtwrch faithful, Emma Morris, confirms the nickname, adding: "Speak to anyone, they know. Jac knows! Look, he's starting to go now!" "We'll have tears Saturday," adds Bertie, "if there's anything left! "It's been hectic, but emotional as well. Obviously Jac wasn't involved in the first Test which, I won't lie to you, was a bit of a downer. "There was no Welsh player involved so you felt for the whole of Wales. Wherever we've been over the last week, whoever you speak to, they're Welsh. "It's mad! It's very rare you bump into someone who isn't Welsh. Maybe they're all in the same bars, I don't know! "We've been wearing our Jac T-shirts. We were on the Gold Coast on Tuesday when he was playing. But to be there on Saturday when he's in the Test squad, it's massive." They've yet to see the Welsh fans wearing the Morgan facemasks, nor the two men dressed up fully as lions with 'Jac' and 'Tomos' on their chests. But they know that when Morgan's name is read out at the MCG, the place will erupt. "Just hearing he was in the squad was tremendous," says Bertie. "We were hoping that he'd be coming off early on Tuesday. "When they kept Henry Pollock and Josh van der Flier on, we thought he had a chance. Until then, he'd been solid. "So 50 minutes, get him off! I messaged his dad and said that looks good. He said he hoped so. "None of us have been to Australia before. We're from a small village, Cwmtwrch. A small club, one of the smallest in Wales probably. Jac played for us from under-six to under-16s. "The only other international we've had was Clive Rowlands. Clive would have been so proud of Jac. "Oh my god, he would have," he adds, with just the hint of those eyes welling up. Earlier in the week, Morgan spoke about the support from back home, even namechecking Bertie in his post-match interview. Bertie's not had a chance to meet up with Morgan yet, but the back-row certainly knows he's got some support out here. "I've been messaging him," he adds. "I'm hoping to meet up with him soon. "I always tell him to play with a smile on his face. And he always does. "And he always bleeds. No matter what jersey he wears, he's bleeding. But he's so down to earth..." "He's a gentleman," adds Emma. "He's so humble. "He'll never forget his roots. He used to babysit my kids. Well, they had to babysit him I think! "We're his super fans. He's always got time for you. I don't think I've ever met anyone say one bad word about him." The truth is you won't. For all the 100s of texts the Wales captain has likely received, he always makes sure to get back to the Cwmtwrch faithful. "I saw a comment from (Maro) Itoje today, saying whenever he sees Jac, he's got a smile on his face," says Bertie. "That's Jac for you. And that's coming from Itoje. "He's a great ambassador for Welsh rugby. That's why he's captain. "He leads by example on the field. He's a credit to the country." Another points out that he's not a shouter. No one would accuse the quietly-spoken Morgan of that, but, as they point out, when he speaks, people listen. "Exactly, he's respected," adds Bertie. "Parch is the word, but he plays with calon, as Clive would say. He plays with heart." On Saturday, he'll play with heart again. Given they're all out here watching 'their Jac', there probably won't be a soul left in Cwmtwrch. The tiny village club, one of the smallest in Wales, will have its own little corner in Melbourne's sporting cathedral. And, as Bertie would readily tell you, there won't be a dry eye among them.
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