Austin Sheppard, a long-serving tight head prop for Bristol, won two England caps. The first of these was in 1981 when he replaced hamstring victim Fran Cotton in the first half of the 21-19 defeat against Wales in Cardiff. England captain Bill Beaumont moved Gloucester prop Phil Blakeway to Cotton’s loose head position, allowing Sheppard, who was so unfamiliar to the England chairman of selectors that he mistook him for Gloucester’s Gordon Sargent, to play in his specialist front row place. Despite England’s defeat the pack played well together and there was much local delight that the popular Sheppard had been capped on what was his first call-up to the England squad. Sadly, he was not even amongst the replacements for England’s next game and he had to wait until 1985 for his second cap when he appeared in the final match of the championship, again at Cardiff, when Wales won 24-15.

Sheppard attended Colston’s School where he captained the first XV with Alan Morley as his vice captain. During his schooldays he appeared for Bristol Public and Grammar Schools and Somerset Schools, and also had an England hockey trial. An apprenticeship in undertaking took him to London, where he joined Harlequins, playing for their lower sides as a number eight forward. On returning to Bristol he became a member of Old Colstonians, captaining them for two seasons and appearing in over 100 consecutive games. He made his Bristol debut as a second row at Pontypool in 1974, but was switched to prop in the following season when he made 37 appearances and won his Bristol cap. He played 43 matches in 1975/76, won his blazer in 1977 and led the forward appearances with 40 in 1977/78.

Austin Sheppard made 26 appearances for Gloucestershire, including the finals of 1977, 1981 and 1983. He also played in various local selections against tourists, facing Australia and New Zealand twice each and Romania once.

He continued to be a Bristol regular into the 1980s, frequently partnering Kevin Bogira and John Doubleday in the front row. They played together in 1983 when Bristol won the cup and Sheppard also played in the 1984 final. He was Bristol’s vice captain in 1981/82 and played his greatest number of games in a season in 1983/84 when he appeared 46 times. His last full season was 1985/86, after which he played only occasionally, devoting more time to coaching.