Francis Emeruwa

RUGBY LEGEND Francis ‘The Cat’ Emeruwa

Francis Emeruwa (OE1972-79) is widely regarded as one of the finest rugby players Emanuel School has ever produced and if not for a horrific ankle injury in the 1984 Richmond Sevens would undoubtedly have played for England at the highest level. Few players had such a fearsome on-the-field reputation. Over the years, numerous school histories have rightly noted the exceptional quality of the ‘70s rugby sides, with the most prominent figure always being Francis Emeruwa, also known by his contemporaries as ‘The Cat’. OE Nigel Kirby remarks; “Once he learned how to swerve, sidestep and change pace, he was almost unstoppable,” and another OE quipped, “best to dive at his feet and hope he tripped over you!”

Born in Nigeria, Emeruwa’s family moved to England when he was four years old. At Emanuel, he competed for Clyde in a range of activities including cricket (also for the school XI), athletics, badminton, water polo and even bridge. OE Andrew Anderson recalled of Emeruwa’s time as a School Prefect that he was “very fair, kind and approachable”.

In the 1970s, Emanuel had some superb rugby teams, including Emeruwa’s U13 squad which lost only one of 17 fixtures and was the only Emanuel team to win the prestigious Rosslyn Park National Sevens. Emeruwa was soon playing for Surrey and was selected for the England Regional trials in 1979. Around this time, he also competed for the Old Emanuels and their newsletter regularly eulogised his strength in defence and the manner in which he terrorised the opposition in attack. OE Gary Patching remembers: “Even with only one good leg he was head and shoulders the best player on the field and easily the greatest player I have ever played with.”

After leaving Emanuel, he studied Chemistry at Manchester University where his consistently powerful rugby performances attracted rave reviews in the local and national press, playing a key role in his side reaching the semi-finals of the University Cup. In 1982, during the early stages of his career at Wasps, he was selected to play on the flank for England ‘B’ against Northern Ireland in Belfast. Also, in those days there were divisional teams that played against the big touring sides, and Emeruwa played against the legendary All Blacks for London and the South East. By this stage he was well known for his aggressive power, fantastic work-rate, his tackling and great timing. He also later played for Surrey in the County Championships.

After leaving Manchester University, Francis entered teaching and continued to play for Wasps during the period when the sport was still amateur. He is remembered as one of Wasps’ finest players. However, he caught gangrene after an operation to fix a broken ankle and at one stage it was feared he might never walk properly again, never mind play competitive sport. This exceptionally serious injury robbed Emeruwa of his very best playing years and he eventually made a slow comeback which began with playing a season for the Old Emanuels, before later returning to Wasps five and a half years after his first spell there. His recovery from this terrible injury was seen to be nothing short of miraculous and in 1990 The Daily Mail ran a major story on his return from the brink. During his recovery he also played for London Nigerians and later coached them, guiding them into London Division 1.

Had Francis played for England he would have been the first black player to win a full England cap since 1908. In November 1982 Geoffrey Nicholson in the Sunday Observer wrote “personally, I thought I detected a trace of Welsh blood in him, and no doubt there are genealogists at Aberystwyth working overtime on the question. But I’m afraid it will all prove wishful thinking”. This was a major comment, coming from the highly respected Welsh journalist who would obviously have liked to see his country poach Francis!

In his heyday Francis Emeruwa had a truly awesome reputation on the pitch. Off the pitch, he was known to be very quietly spoken and a real gentleman. He still works in education and can be spotted at OE gatherings and supporting grassroot rugby competitions in south London.