Cyril Woolford ( – 30 November 2018) was an English professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who played in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. He played at representative level for

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

, and at club level for

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historic counties of England, Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the town centr ...

( Heritage No. 313),

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated i ...

(Heritage No. 52), and

Featherstone Rovers Featherstone Rovers are a professional rugby league club in Featherstone, West Yorkshire, England, who play in the Championship. Featherstone is a former coal mining town with a population of around 16,000 and Rovers are one of the last "small ...

( Heritage No. 370) ( vice-captain), as a , or , i.e. number 2 or 5, or, 3 or 4,David Smart & Andrew Howard (1 July 2000) "Images of Sport - Castleford Rugby League - A Twentieth Century History". The History Press Ltd. Bailey, Ron (1956). ''The Official History Of Featherstone Rovers R.L.F.C.''. Wakefield Express. ASIN: B00O1TLDPC he was a committee member at

for a number of years.

Background

Cyril Woolford's birth was registered in

Tadcaster Tadcaster is a market town and civil parish in the Selby district of North Yorkshire, England, east of the Great North Road, north-east of Leeds, and south-west of York. Its historical importance from Roman times onward was largely as the ...

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

, England, he lived in the

Featherstone Featherstone is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, two miles south-west of Pontefract. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, in 2011 it had a population of 15,244. Featherstone railway stati ...

area, he was a

domestic appliance A major appliance, also known as a large domestic appliance or large electric appliance or simply a large appliance, large domestic, or large electric, is a non-portable or semi-portable machine used for routine housekeeping tasks such as cookin ...

technician A technician is a worker in a field of technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use ...

Playing career

County honours

Cyril Woolford won

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

s for

while at

; he played right-, i.e. number 3, in the 25-11 victory over

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a Historic counties of England, historic county, Ceremonial County, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significa ...

in the 1957–58

County Championship The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It b ...

during the 1957–58 season at Naughton Park,

Widnes Widnes ( ) is an industrial town in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England, which at the 2011 census had a population of 61,464. Historically in Lancashire, it is on the northern bank of the River Mersey where the estuary narrows to form t ...

on Monday 23 September 1957, and played , i.e. number 5, and scored a try in the 38-28 victory over

in the 1959–60

during the 1959–60 season at Hilton Park,

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Sta ...

on Wednesday 11 November 1959.

County Cup Final appearances

Cyril Woolford played , i.e. number 5, scored a try, and was vice-captain in

' 15-14 victory over

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and wer ...

in the 1959–60

County Cup Final during the 1959–60 season at

Headingley Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingl ...

Rugby Stadium,

Leeds Leeds () is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the thi ...

on Saturday 31 October 1959.

Club career

Cyril Woolford made his début for

on Saturday 7 April 1956,Bailey, Ron (20 September 2001). ''Images of Sport - Featherstone Rovers Rugby League Football Club''. The History Press. he broke

Eric Batten Frederick "Eric" E. Batten (13 June 1914 – 3 September 1993) was an English rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s, and coached rugby league in the 1950s. He played club level rugby leagu ...

's "most tries in a season" record for

, by scoring 31- tries during the 1959–60 season, this record was later extended to 48-tries by

Paul Newlove Paul Newlove (born 10 August 1971) is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. A Great Britain and England international representative, he competed in the Super League competition, featur ...

during the 1992–93 season (albeit at Second Division level), and he played his last match for Featherstone Rovers during the 1960–61 season.

Honoured at Featherstone Rovers

Cyril Woolford is a Featherstone Rovers Hall of Fame inductee.

Personal life

Cyril Woolford's marriage to Elizabeth (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth ...

Bradburn)
birth registered
during third in

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wake ...

district) was registered during second 1954 in

district. They had children; the future rugby league who played in the 1980s for Featherstone Rovers ( Heritage No. 604); Neil M. Woolford
birth registered
during first in

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population ...

district). Cyril Woolford was the grandfather of the

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is t ...

er;

Martyn Woolford Martyn Paul Woolford (born 13 October 1985) is an English former professional footballer who last played as a midfielder for Frickley Athletic. He has played in the Football League for Scunthorpe United, Bristol City, Millwall, Sheffield ...

References

External links

Cyril Woolford at marklaspalmas.blogspot.co.ukMemory Box Search at archive.castigersheritage.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woolford, Cyril 1927 births 2018 deaths Castleford Tigers players Doncaster R.L.F.C. players English rugby league players Featherstone Rovers players People from Tadcaster Rugby league centres Rugby league players from Yorkshire Rugby league wingers Yorkshire rugby league team players