Rugby-Pioneers

"Vantage Out" E.Kinsella tennis postcard...

No rugby today ! just a kind reminder that Roland Garros French Open has started !

I hope that nobody will notice that this early XXth century postcard relates more to Wimbledon lawn rather than Paris clay...

June will be a very tough month for work... starting with tennis, followed by the World Cup in Germany... really tough, indeed... (and what about the Tour de france later in July... ?)

My friend Jerôme has bet a bottle of Champagne that Martina Hingis could make it... let's wait...

PS : last year, I wrote a fairly elaborated post to explain that Roland Garros was a rugger... check it here...





Technorati Tags: rugby, roland garros

Pat "Nimmo" Walsh's representative caps

Let me tell you this : I am collecting rugby memorabilia because I like to recall of the real men and the real stories behind all these cards, prints, pictures or whatever... So, no doubt that I have been very pleased to receive this contribution from Down Under ... Pat Walsh is here introducing some souvenirs of his great father... Pat Walsh !

Australian rugby historian Sean Fagan - just check its wonderful websites www.rl1908.com and www.colonialrugby.com.au - has written a short bio here. Here is an abstract :
 

"By 1904 Walsh had become one of the most highly regarded footballers in the young nation. In that season he represented NSW and Australia (3 tests) against the visiting British rugby union teal. Walsh also played for Northern Districts (Newcastle) aginst the tourists. It was following events in this match  that Walsh and many other footballers felt they had been betrayed by the NSWRU.

The repercussions continued through the 1905 season, culminating in Walsh's shock exclusion from the Australian rugby union team that was to tour New Zealand. The omission of Walsh had nothing to do with his on-field form, which had been highly praised throughout 1905. Despite a huge public outcry, and much discontent voiced by his NSW team mates, the Australian selectors refused to add Walsh to the tour party.

Utterly dismayed, Walsh left Australia, before taking up with an Auckland club in 1906. Meanwhile his team mates supporters, notably Alec Burdon and James J. Giltinan, felt that the poor treatment of Walsh (on the back of earlier instances of footballers suffering at the hands of the NSWRU), was enough to ignite the move to form a rival professional rugby league competition."

I have recently posted a team picture of Pat Walsh with the 1904 Warratahs here.

Let's Pat explain what he's brought to us :

This is an image of my Grandfather's Representative Caps.

Rugby Union :
Australia 1904.
New South Wales 1903,1904,1905.
Auckland N.Z.1907.

Rugby League : Australia 1908/09

The Gold Watch was presented to him in 1908 by the Auckland Rugby Union on his departure to Australia to play Rugby League.

This is a press clipping (larger pic here) of a rugby match New South Wales Vs Queensland (June 1904). Pat Walsh is the N.S.W. flanker in view.

Edited May 30 : Pat Walsh (the grand-son...) has sent me another team picture featuring his grand-father in 1904, plus some newspapers clippings (one, two and three) about the unexplained exclusion of Pat Walsh from the Australian team touring in New Zealand.

Again, thank you, Pat ! By the way... do you know that I like caps a well... ;-)

Edit June 3rd, 2009 : let's also share this picture of Pat "Nimmo" Walsh wearing Huddersfiled colours (1909-10 - cf this other post)

Tags: rugby, pat walsh,

Você fala o português ? « Os Belenenses » 1928

Second contribution on « www.rugby-pioneers.com » : I am pleased to introduce o Senhor Rui Vasco Silva from Lisboa, a Portuguese rugger who pinged me this afternoon to introduce his rugby club. I am very pleased to see that my small “venture” (I mean this website…) reaches people everywhere around our rugby planet (check the visitors’ map…) !

Thanks a lot, Rui Vasco, and here we go !


My name is Rui Vasco and I'm a Portuguese rugby fan.

Knowing that your need contributions to your website, I decided to send you a photograph which is the first photo of my own Portuguese club : CLUBE DE FUTEBOL «OS BELENENSES».

The Club is one of the four major clubs in Portugal. We are a football club, but our Rugby team is probably the best in Portugal, and we are the oldest team in our country (1928).

This photo is from our first game against SPORT LISBOA E BENFICA (31.12.1928), which we won 11-0. You can read about it here (in Portuguese, in my own website).

Photo credit to «A BOLA» (a Portuguese daily sports newspaper)

Related links (both of them about rugby and Belenenses…):

Rui Vasco's website
Rui Vasco's blog



Technorati Tags: rugby, belenenses, print

French "Art Deco" rugby print

I have already posted this print a long time ago... but I like it very much, so here we go again

This is a great artwork (handmade pochoir) by French Art Deco painter George Barbier.

It's called (obviously...) "Rugby" and was published in 1914 in a French arty fashion magazine named "La Gazette du Bon Ton" (approx. 6000 ex.)

You could find one (a replica...) at the Boston Fine Art Museum and another one (an original...) ... in my bedroom...


Technorati Tags: rugby, print, barbier

 

French postcard : Rugby at 1924 Olympics

A great "art deco" postcard (illustrated by Yves Roowy) celebrating rugby at the 1924 Olympic games in Paris.

This postcard comes out of a series of 10 : soccer, swimming, boxing, tennis, hurdles, discus, etc... that I will post one of these days...

Next time, I will tell you some more about the 1924 Olympic tournament - the last one in Olympics history - eventually won by... the USA.




Technorati Tags: rugby, olympics, roowy, 1924

French "Belle Epoque" postcard : Stade Français - RCF

This is a wonderful early 1900s postcard from French artist Harry Eliott (yes, he is French... his real name is Charles-Edmond Hermet...  I have found a website solely dedicated to this artist here) despicting the classical Parisian opposition between Stade Français (in dark blue jersey) and Racing Club de France (in light blue stripes)

A "must have" for every rugby postcard collector !


Technorati Tags: rugby, postcard, harry eliott

Rugby postcard : rag-time !

An early XXth century comic rugby postcard from England...

It illustrates a double myth...

First, that rugby is a gentlmen's sport where the decisions of the referee (the umpire...) are (quite) never discussed...

Second, that England is the country, among all others, where the referees are the most respected...

Let's quote Mr H.H.Almond, umpire of the first international match of rugby history between Scotland and England in 1871, who later gave his philosophy for overseeing games : "the team which protested the loudest was usually in the wrong"...


Technorati Tags: rugby, postcard, referee

Cpt. R. Johnston VC, Taddy cigarette card, by Paul Warden

Great ! this is the first contribution that I have received. Thank you Paul !

Paul is an "Englishman in Paris" . That was his previous nickname on eBay... (now "rugbyfootballcards"). Actually, we don't know each "in real life" but I "met" Paul for the first time back in December 2002 when I bought this nice rugby trade card from him on eBay... and it was the very very start of my collection (my second eBay purchase out of 470 today... but a nice card which is framed at home...)

Paul, the floor is yours... :

I'm a tobacco card collector.  One hundred years ago, cigarette packets were made of paper and so a piece of card was inserted to stiffen the packet and protect the cigarettes.  From the early 1880's, it became the fashion to produce a picture on the card and in fact, a series of pictures to encourage smokers to buy the same brand of cigarettes so as to collect the set of 25 or 50 cards.  Some say that the idea for this early form of marketing has its roots in the decorative cards issued in the nineteenth century by Au Bon Marché in Paris.  Certainly, millions of cigarette cards were produced throughout the English-speaking World but surprisingly and to my knowledge, not a single cigarette card was produced in France.

Between 1885 and 1954 around 2,600 cards were produced on a theme related to rugby.  Many of these show the pioneers of rugby and I have so far collected around 2,100 of them.  The most rare can reach as much as €500 each at auction although many are available for just a few euro.  I have several favourites amongst my collection and will share these with you over the coming months.

The first is related not only to rugby.  Let me explain.  Britain's highest award for bravery is the Victoria Cross.  First given in 1854, only 1,354 have ever been awarded.

Four of these were awarded to International rugby footballers:

• Captain Robert Johnston VC (2 caps for Ireland, 1893) of the Imperial Light Horse in Elandslaagte, South Africa on 21 October 1899
• Surgeon Captain Tom Crean VC (9 caps for Ireland, 1894-96), 1st Imperial Light Horse, Tygerkloof Spruit, South Africa on 18 December 1901
• Lieutenant Frederick Harvey VC (2 caps for Ireland, 1907-11), Lord Strathcona's Horse, Canadian Expeditionary Force, Guyencourt, France on 27 March 1917
• Lieutenant Commander Arthur Harrison VC (2 caps for England, 1914), the Royal Navy, Zeebrugge, Belgium 22&23 April 1918

Interestingly, three of these players all played their club rugby for The Wanderers Club in Dublin; there must be something in the water!

The scans shown below are of both the front and the back of a card commemorating the Victoria Cross awarded to Robert Johnston.  Part of a sub-set of 20 cards and of a larger set of 125 card Victoria Cross Winners issued in the UK by Bristol-based cigarette company James Taddy, it indicates that Johnston "is famous in the world of football".

To my knowledge, although the French rugby team appear on several tobacco cards from Germany, only two British cigarette cards depict a French rugby theme.  One shows a lineout during a match between Blackheath and Racing Club de France in 1923 but who is the famous French player shown on the other?  A clue?  The card was produced in 1931.  Answer (and a picture) in the next instalment.  A+.  Paul   

Technorati Tags: rugby, cigarette card, taddy

McGill comic rugby postcard

A recent eBay acquisition...

This is a nice early XXth century (posted in 1912 actually...) rugby postcard illustrated by Donald McGill.

I have read in this article from Wikipedia that Donald McGill lost a foot in a rugby accident at school... that's crazy !

I have already posted other rugby cards from the same artist... here they are again... but the last three cards belong to John...






If you want to retrieve larger size pictures of these postcards... just type "McGill" in the "Google Box" middle of the left column... it will drive you there...


Technorati Tags: rugby, postcard, mcgill

Take him low !

Another early XXth century comic rugby postcard...

Title says it all...



Technorati Tags: rugby, postcard

I need you : call for contributions !!

Ladies and Gentlemen, dear visitors, I am calling for your contributions !

I would like to open this space to other rugby memorabilia collectors !

I would like to publish here nice rugby items from your collection, i.e. prints, postcards, photography, trade cards, cigarette cards, etc... whatever provided that it illustrates the early days or rugby (I mean before the 30s...)

The rules are simple :

a) you send me one or several pictures of your favorite rugby item from your colection, with a short (long if you like...) comment about it (what it is... why you like it... in French, Spanish or English)
b) you send me a few words about you (and your website or your blog if any...)
c) there is no point c)...
...

I hope to earing from you soon ! You can reach me at : fhumbert (at) gmail.com

John, Phil, Paul : the ball is on your side...

"Phosphatine Falières" : French trade card...

Early XXth century French rugby trade card advertising for "Phosphatine Falières" (ready-made baby food...)

Caption reads : "Les vrais joueurs de football préfèrent de beaucoup la boite de Phosphatine Falières à la balle en cuir traditionnelle" ("Real football players prefer by far the Phosphatine Falières box, rather than the traditionnal leather ball")

Smart, isn't it ?

At least, another sign of the prominence of rugby among sports in those days...

Technorati Tags: rugby, phosphatine

New South Wales Waratahs 1904

The guys from Sydney in their sky blue jersey (the same as today...)

Some botanics for my French readers : the "warratah" is this Australian flower on their chest.

I have asked Sean Fagan (www.rl1908.com and www.colonialrugby.com.au) to tell me a bit more about the guys here, and he kindly returned me a copy this newspaper photograpghy evidencing that the NSW team was then visiting Brisbane (Queensland) in June 1904. This paper was provided by PatWalsh's grandson (Walsh is sitting on the front row, first from the left). It gives the name of all the players.

Sean has also identified another famous Warratah, i.e. Arthur Hennessy (front row, second from right), who just over 2 years later founded the now famous South Sydney "Rabbitohs" rugby league club (now NRL). Arthur Hennessy was the first captain of the Kangaroos (Australia national XIII team).






Technorati Tags: rugby, postcard, print, warratahs, "pat walsh", "arthur hennessy"