A fan who travelled from Brisbane to Cardiff to collect a print of The Greatest Try painting by Abergavenny artist Elin Sian Blake was surprised to have it hand-delivered by the rugby legend

It’s not every day you get to meet your heroes–but that’s exactly what happened when Darryl from Brisbane, Australia, travelled all the way to Wales to collect a limited-edition rugby print.

Arriving in Cardiff, Darryl was surprised and delighted to find that his print of The Greatest Try painting – which depicts one of the most memorable moments from Gareth Edwards’ rugby career – would be handed over by the legendary player himself.

Commissioned by two close friends of Sir Gareth’s, The Greatest Try painting depicts a scene from the opening moments of the Barbarians v All Blacks 1973 match which has lived on in history, known by many simply as ‘That Try’. Scored by Sir Gareth Edwards in the opening three minutes of the match, the try is cemented in history as one of – if not the – greatest try ever scored.

Rugby fan Darryl Schwass, a New Zealand native who lives in Brisbane, Australia, decided to travel in person to collect one of the limited edition signed prints now available, but he had no idea his trip would give him the opportunity to meet Sir Gareth Edwards in the flesh.

After handing the framed Greatest Try print to Darryl, Sir Gareth reminisced about his rugby career and the most memorable moments from it, as well as signing a book and a grogg of himself in his famous number nine jersey.

Speaking about the meeting, Sir Gareth Edwards said, “I’ve met fans all over the world who remember that game and that try, and of course I remember it like it was yesterday–though at the time I had no idea it would be celebrated like it is.

“Australia is a long way to travel and of course when I heard about Darryl’s trip, I wanted to be there. I hope he enjoyed watching the Wales v New Zealand match on Saturday – though of course we were cheering for opposite teams!”

The Greatest Try painting was commissioned by two close friends of Sir Gareth’s, in celebration of his 75th birthday, and the forthcoming 50th anniversary of the try in January 2023.

The painting is available as a limited edition, framed and numbered Giclée print, signed by both Elin Siân Blake and Sir Gareth Edwards, with a portion from the sale of each print going to two charities: Working Options in Education, and the Sir Gareth Edwards Cancer Charity.