Stevengraph picture - st216: The First Touch

by Austin Sprake:
An rugby match in progress with the spires of Coventry in the background.

by Geoffrey Godden:
This lively picture shows a rugby match with one player in possession of the 'pill' running for a 'touch'. It is amusing to note that the players all wear caps and breeches.
The title was first included on label 22 of about 1881 and continued into the twentieth century. It is noteworthy that the bracketed description always read A FOOTBALL MATCH, without reference to the fact that it is, in fact, a rugby football match. The subject is normally found on type B card-mounts [as above] or, more rarely, on type C mounts.

Other comments:
Words on card-mount say 'Registered' but this design was infact not registered.
Note too, that although Godden is correct that this title first appeared on label 22, the TYPE B silk whose image appears above, had a 20 title label on the reverse, (without THE FIRST TOUCH title of course).

Reference Number:-	Sprake Number:-	Godden Number:-
st 216	STG173	24

Words:	Woven on silk:- Printed at bottom of card-mount:- WOVEN IN SILK BY THOMAS STEVENS, INVENTOR AND MANUFACTURER, COVENTRY AND LONDON, (REGISTERED.) The First Touch.
Size:	Card-mount: 12.4 cm deep by 19.0 cm wide silk: 5.0 cm high by 14.6 cm wide
Comments:	by Austin Sprake: An rugby match in progress with the spires of Coventry in the background. by Geoffrey Godden: This lively picture shows a rugby match with one player in possession of the 'pill' running for a 'touch'. It is amusing to note that the players all wear caps and breeches. The title was first included on label 22 of about 1881 and continued into the twentieth century. It is noteworthy that the bracketed description always read A FOOTBALL MATCH, without reference to the fact that it is, in fact, a rugby football match. The subject is normally found on type B card-mounts [as above] or, more rarely, on type C mounts. Other comments: Words on card-mount say 'Registered' but this design was infact not registered. Note too, that although Godden is correct that this title first appeared on label 22, the TYPE B silk whose image appears above, had a 20 title label on the reverse, (without THE FIRST TOUCH title of course).