STEVE Bale had more, far more than a voice worthy of the Albert Hall on the Last Night of the Proms or any other night for that matter. A mastery of English harnessed to an innate understanding of Rugby Football enabled him to illuminate the pages wherever his words appeared, from the Neath Guardian to the Sunday Times.
He had the rare ability to detach himself from the common herd and remain not just one of the lads but among the most revered, a status reinforced by his sharp wit during the badinage of long tours. He had a lofty disdain, rightly so, for chumminess between interviewer...