Frank William Whitcombe (29 May 1913 – 17 January 1958), also known by the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

of "The Big Man", was a Welsh

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

, and 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 1930s and 1940s. He played rugby union (RU) for

Cardiff RFC Cardiff Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Caerdydd) is a rugby union club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876Parry-Jones (1989), pg 59 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, shortly afte ...

London Welsh RFC London Welsh Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Cymry Llundain) was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seasons, ...

, Aldershot Services and

Army Rugby Union The Army Rugby Union (ARU) is the governing body for rugby union in the British Army and a constituent body of the Rugby Football Union (RFU). The ARU was formed on 31 December 1906 and marked the fulfilment of Lieutenant J. E. C. "Birdie" Partr ...

, as a

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...

, i.e. number 1 or 3, and representative level rugby league (RL) for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It ...

( Heritage No. 175),

Rugby League XIII The Rugby League XIII was an invitation team run along the same lines as the Rugby Union Barbarians team. Particularly in the Second World War, when international fixtures were restricted to England V Wales. The Rugby League would play representat ...

, and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

( Heritage No. 164), and at club level for

Broughton Rangers Broughton Rangers were one of the twenty-one rugby clubs which met at the George Hotel, Huddersfield, in 1895 to form the Northern Rugby Football Union. They were originally based in Broughton, Salford, but in 1933 moved to Gorton, Manchester ...

and

Bradford Northern The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is pre ...

, as a , i.e. number 8 or 10, during the era of contested scrums.Graham Williams, Peter Lush, David Farrar (November 2009). "The British Rugby League Records Book ages 108–114. London League Publications Ltd.

Early life

Whitcombe was one of ten children growing up at 52 Wedmore Road in Grangetown. His Father Frederick William Whitcombe worked as a

Blacksmith's striker A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such as gates, grill ...

at the Dry docks His sport was as a prize fighter, Bare-knuckle boxing, at Cardiff Docks known locally as Tiger Bay. Times would be hard for Gertrude Whitcombe, Frank's mother, but she was a resourceful woman, for income the family firstly had her brother and Samuel & Emily Leonard as lodgers. Mrs Whitcombe would send one of the children to the brewery for a jug of

yeast Yeasts are eukaryotic, single-celled microorganisms classified as members of the fungus kingdom. The first yeast originated hundreds of millions of years ago, and at least 1,500 species are currently recognized. They are estimated to constit ...

, and would brew her own beer, the children would sell this to the neighbours, and she would also make Sloe gin to sell in the Autumn Along with brother George Whitcombe, Frank attended Ninian Park Council School in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

. On leaving school at 14 he worked for McNeil's The Coal and later as a van boy with the

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

Rugby union career

Army Rugby Union

Then after a period of unemployment on 17 January 1931 Whitcombe enlisted as a

Sapper A sapper, also called a pioneer or combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparin ...

number 1869154 in 38th Field Company,

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is head ...

as a Motor Driver. This was an outstanding sporting unit, in his first year of service, 38th Field Company won the Athletic Challenge Cup, the Boxing cup and the Rugby cup. This was the start of Whitcombe's rugby union playing career with the

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

. He had a sparkling career playing twenty seven times for the Army team and won two caps. on 23 February 1935 Whitcombe played on the winning Army team v Territorial Army at Taunton R.F.C. by 18 – 5. A game used as a trial match for the upcoming inter services. He then won his first cap on the winning

team against the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...

11–8, on 2 March, in a famous victory with the Army team having only 13 players, due to injury for most of the match. His fellow prop was the England Captain Douglas Kendrew who was one of the players who had to leave the field injured after only 15 minutes. Then on the losing side 3–6 to the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

on 23 March at

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boro ...

in a game dominated by the RAF standoff Gus Walker, making the Inter-Services title of 1935 a Triple Tie. While serving in the Army, Whitcombe reached the rank of lance corporal, very few

non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...

s made the Army side at this time. Prior to turning professional, Whitcombe played at Twickenham in the final of the Middlesex Sevens on Saturday 27 April 1935 for

London Welsh London Welsh Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Cymry Llundain) was a rugby union club formed in 1885. Based in Old Deer Park, Richmond-upon-Thames, London Welsh RFC played in the English Premiership in the 2012–13 and 2014–15 seaso ...

losing 3–10 to

Harlequin Harlequin (; it, Arlecchino ; lmo, Arlechin, Bergamasque pronunciation ) is the best-known of the '' zanni'' or comic servant characters from the Italian '' commedia dell'arte'', associated with the city of Bergamo. The role is traditional ...

's. The following week Whitcombe returned to Cardiff to play in the Welsh final trial On 25 July 1933, in Cardiff, Whitcombe married Doris May (

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 re ...

Bryan) who lived at 15 Sussex Street also in Grangetown. Whitcombe's father-in-law, Alfie Bryan, was an amateur boxing trainer who worked in the gym with Jim Driscoll. Whitcombe had a brief boxing career while in the army. He won his first eleven bouts, but when he lost his twelfth he decided eleven good wins were not worth one good hiding.

King George V Silver Jubilee Trust

While playing rugby union for

Whitcombe was selected to play for The Rest V Wales on 4 May 1935 in a special rugby union match arranged to benefit the

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

Silver Jubilee Trust at

Cardiff Arms Park Cardiff Arms Park ( cy, Parc yr Arfau Caerdydd), also known as The Arms Park, is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. It is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green. The Arms Park was host to the British ...

. From a Welsh point of view this game served as a guide to discovering fresh talent for the next season. The game particularly showed that there were some very good young forwards in Wales, including Whitcombe. Some of the players who took part in this game went on to be rugby league greats. On the Wales side that day playing at

Stand off ''Whole Lotta Sole'' (known as ''Stand Off'' in North America) is a 2012 independent criminal comedy film co-written and directed by Terry George and starring Brendan Fraser, David O'Hara, Colm Meaney, Yaya DaCosta and Martin McCann. Plot H ...

was a teenager from

Swansea Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the C ...

still attending Gowerton county school, one W T H "Willie" Davies a future Lance Todd trophy winner and teammate of Whitcombe's at Bradford Northern and Great Britain. Playing on the wing for Wales was Arthur Bassett of

Aberavon Aberavon ( cy, Aberafan) is a town and community in Neath Port Talbot county borough, Wales. The town derived its name from being near the mouth of the river Afan, which also gave its name to a medieval lordship. Today it is essentially a di ...

, who would also become Whitcombe's teammate for Great Britain. Bassett famously scored a hat-trick of tries in Great Britain's Ashe's clinching victory over Australia at Brisbane in 1946. In the rest side with Whitcombe on the wing was Alan Edwards of Aberavon, also a future Bradford Northern and Wales teammate. Edwards has the distinction of being one of only five players in the history of the game to win all six major rugby league cups in his career. A quirk of fate here is Arthur Childs also played in the rest team with Whitcombe, a back row forward from

Abertillery Abertillery (; cy, Abertyleri) is a town and a community of the Ebbw Fach valley in the historic county of Monmouthshire, Wales. Following local government reorganisation it became part of the Blaenau Gwent County Borough administrative area ...

who also turned professional with the Halifax club. Twenty nine years later Arthur's son, Rodney Childs, and Whitcombe's son, Frank Whitcombe Jr, were the two prop forwards for the North Eastern Counties side against Sir

Wilson Whineray Sir Wilson James Whineray (10 July 1935 – 22 October 2012) was a New Zealand business executive and rugby union player. He was the longest-serving captain of the national rugby union team, the All Blacks, until surpassed by Richie McCaw in ...

's 5th New Zealand

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987, ...

team on their tour of Britain in 1964 Wales defeated the Rest 13–5. A special jersey was made for this game and given to the players afterwards. All the proceeds from this match where donated to the Kings Silver Jubilee Trust Fund

Rugby league career

Despite the efforts of his brother George to persuade him otherwise, an earlier offer, in March 1935 from the Wigan Rugby League Club was turned down by Whitcombe. When a second offer came on 18 September 1935 from the

club, Whitcombe accepted. He was paid £100 for his services along with two new suits. Of his signing fee, £90 was to buy him out of the

, leaving him £10 to start a new life at 5 Cawdor Road, Fallowfield, a suburb of

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, with his young family. Whitcombe shared his house with former Llanelli RFC, and Wales rugby union player,

Bryn Howells Bryn Howells (9 February 1911 – 6 June 1983) was a Welsh rugby union, and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for Wales, and at club level for Llanelli RFC, as ...

, who like Whitcombe had made the decision to 'Go north' and seek a better life for their families. He was now the Broughton Rangers , Howells was also a professional Lancashire League cricketer. Whitcombe's new club provided him with a job as a zookeeper at Belle Vue Zoological Gardens where Rangers played at the

Belle Vue Stadium Belle Vue Stadium was a greyhound racing track in Belle Vue, Manchester, England, where the first race around an oval track in Britain was held on 24 July 1926. It has also been used for motorcycle speedway, as the home ground of Elite League ...

inside the

Motorcycle Speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...

track. At this time Belle Vue was the leisure centre for the North West of England. Whitcombe made his début against Swinton at home on 19 October 1935 and played his last game for Broughton Rangers against St. Helens away on 17 December 1938. During his career at Rangers he played in a memorable victory on Christmas Day, 25 December 1937, when Broughton Rangers defeated

Wally Prigg Wally Prigg (1908–1980) was an Australian rugby league footballer. He was a for the Australian national rugby league team. He played nineteen Tests for the Kangaroos between 1929–38, seven as captain and was the first Australian player to ...

's touring Australian rugby league team 13–0 on their 1937/38 Kangaroo Tour of Great Britain. Soon after this Whitcombe was signed by

for a record fee and the family crossed the

Pennines The Pennines (), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of uplands running between three regions of Northern England: North West England on the west, North East England and Yorkshire and the Humber on the east. Common ...

, and settled in Wibsey. Extract from

1948

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...

Final brochure:

Genial giant Frank is the wit as well as the heavy-weight of the team. He turns the scales at over 18st. And opposing forwards really know they have been in a game after 80 minutes with him. But as a boy in Cardiff, where he was born in 1913, Frank was a full back. He turned to the pack after joining the Army. He played 27 times for the Army team and won a Welsh international trial.

In 1935
Broughton Rangers Broughton Rangers were one of the twenty-one rugby clubs which met at the George Hotel, Huddersfield, in 1895 to form the Northern Rugby Football Union. They were originally based in Broughton, Salford, but in 1933 moved to Gorton, Manchester ...
signed him and he gained his first Welsh
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 ...
International cap the following season. He has been
Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
' first choice as ever since, he played in Australia with
Gus Risman Augustus "Gus" John Ferdinand Risman (21 March 1911 – 17 October 1994) was a Welsh professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1920s through to the 1950s, and Coach (sport), coached in the 1940s through to the 1970s. A devastating ...
's team and played in the first two tests. Bradford Northern made one of their best moves ever when they signed him from
Broughton Rangers Broughton Rangers were one of the twenty-one rugby clubs which met at the George Hotel, Huddersfield, in 1895 to form the Northern Rugby Football Union. They were originally based in Broughton, Salford, but in 1933 moved to Gorton, Manchester ...
. He takes a well earned benefit this season.

Following Whitcombe's world record transfer fee of £850 to Bradford Northern in 1938 – Rugby League secretary John Wilson added "He is the best in the game", (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £141,700 in 2016).

Welsh international honours

After turning professional, Whitcombe went on to win his first cap for

while at the Broughton Rangers, and further caps following his move to

. Between 1938 and 1948 Whitcombe won fourteen caps. His first cap for Wales was in their 17–9 victory over

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

on 10 November 1938 at

Stebonheath Park Stebonheath Park ('' Welsh: Parc Stebonheath'') is a multi-use stadium in Llanelli, West Wales with a capacity of 3,700. It is primarily used as a football ground and is the home of Llanelli Town A.F.C. It was also used for athletics and Llanell ...

Llanelli Llanelli ("St Elli's Parish"; ) is a market town and the largest community in Carmarthenshire and the preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is located on the Loughor estuary north-west of Swansea and south-east of the county town, Carma ...

's football ground. The Welsh team was captained by the record points scorer Jim Sullivan. Whitcombe's second cap against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

away in

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...

in front of a crowd of 25,000 on 16 April 1939 resulting in a 16–10 defeat for Wales. Wales finished runners-up in the 1938–39 European Champions. His last game was against Australia on 20 November 1948 at St. Helens

; Australia won 12–5.

International Games for Wales 1938 to 1948

*1938 Saturday 5 November Wales 17 V England 9 –

(Llanelli) – Crowd 15,000 *1939 Sunday 16 April Wales 10 V France 16 – Stade Chaban-Delmas (Bordeaux) – Crowd 25,000 *1939 Saturday 23 December Wales 16 V England 3 –

Odsal Stadium Odsal Stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, is the home of Bradford Bulls Rugby League team. It has also been used by the Bradford Dukes motorcycle speedway, speedway team, BRISCA F1 and F2 stock cars, the Association football, footbal ...

(Bradford) – Crowd 15,257 *1940 Saturday 9 November Wales 5 V England 8 – The Watersheddings (Oldham) – Crowd 5,000 *1941 Saturday 18 October Wales 9 V England 9 – Odsal Stadium (Bradford) – Crowd 4,339 *1943 Saturday 27 February Wales 9 V England 15 –

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban park in the United States, with an estimated ...

(Wigan) – Crowd 17,000 *1944 Saturday 26 February Wales 9 V England 9 – Central Park (Wigan) – Crowd 16,028 *1945 Saturday 24 November Wales 11 V England 3 – St Helen's (Swansea) – Crowd 30,000 *1946 Sunday 24 March Wales 7 V France 19 – Stade Chaban-Delmas (Bordeaux) – Crowd 18,000 *1946 Saturday 12 October Wales 13 V England 10 – Station Road (Swinton) – Crowd 20,213 *1946 Saturday 16 November Wales 5 V England 19 – St Helen's (Swansea) – Crowd 25,000 *1947 Saturday 18 January Wales 5 V France 14 –

Stade Vélodrome The Stade Vélodrome (; oc, Estadi Velodròm, ), known as the Orange Vélodrome for sponsorship reasons, is a multi-purpose stadium in Marseille, France. It is home to the Olympique de Marseille football club of Ligue 1 since it opened in 19 ...

(Marseille) – Crowd 24,500 *1948 Saturday 20 March Wales 12 V France 20 – St Helen's (Swansea) – Crowd 12,032 *1948 Saturday 20 November Wales 5 V Australia 12 – St Helen's (Swansea) – Crowd 9,224

Great Britain international career

Whitcombe was selected for the Great Britain tour to Australia in 1940 which was cancelled due to the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. However he won two caps for

while at

in 1946 against

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

on the famous "Indomitables" tour. On tour Whitcombe did not start the first game against Southern Districts, but then played nine successive matches including the

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

game in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, and the two games against

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

. He scored the second Great Britain try in the 8–8 drawn first test at the

Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) is a sports stadium in Sydney, Australia. It is used for Test, One Day International and Twenty20 cricket, as well as, Australian rules football and occasionally for rugby league, rugby union and association f ...

on 17 June in front of a crowd of 64,527. This game was dubbed the 'Commando Test' due to the brutal exchanges in the first test. Shortly before Great Britain centre Jack Kitching was sent off, Whitcombe 'King Hit' his opposite Aussie Frank 'Bumper' Farrell. When the unfortunate St. John Ambulance man ran on to administer the Australian forward with

smelling salts Smelling salts, also known as ammonia inhalants, spirit of hartshorn or sal volatile, are chemical compounds used as stimulants to restore consciousness after fainting. Usage The usual active compound is ammonium carbonate—a colorless-to-w ...

to bring him round a still groggy Farrell lashed out at him mistaking him for Whitcombe. He then played in the winning side against Australia 14–5 in the second Test at the

Brisbane Exhibition Ground Brisbane Showgrounds (formerly known as the Brisbane Exhibition Ground) is located at 600 Gregory Terrace, Bowen Hills, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia and was established in 1875. It hosts more than 250 events each year, with the largest bei ...

on 6 July 1946 the crowd was 65,000. Great Britain won the 1946 Rugby League Ashes series. Following this game Whitcombe was referred to as "The Steam Roller" by the

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

newspaper 'The Truth'. Despite the damage the Australian and Great Britain forwards had inflicted on each other only hours before after the third Test,

Ken Gee Kenneth Gee (23 September 1916 – 17 April 1989) was an English rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. He played at representative level for Great Britain winning 17 caps between 1946 and 1951, England winning 18 ...

, Joe Egan, Whitcombe, Ike Owens, Arthur Clues, 'Bumper' Farrell and Noel Mulligan drank heartily together at The Dolphin Hotel in Surry Hills until the early hours of next morning. Fellow tourist Trevor Foster said of Whitcombe. "He was an outstanding player on the 1946 Indomitables tour, scoring tries and was the best forward in the scrum. He took on the Aussie pack on his own and was genuinely feared by the Australians. It took sometimes three and often four men to get him down in the tackle. He was strong and fearless". Whitcombe's performances on tour attracted the attention of the

based club, St. George. Club official Jack Moggridge offered Whitcombe a two-year contract at £600 per season as

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

plus costs of transport and a lucrative job, (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £59,340 in 2016). Whitcombe signed the two-year contract with St George, however on his return to Bradford the family decided to stay in Yorkshire. On 21 July the touring party left Australia for the New Zealand leg of the tour over a nine-day period Whitcombe played for Great Britain on 29 July 1946 against West Coast losing 8–17 then five days later on 3 August he played against

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

winning 9–7 and again three days later on 6 August against South Auckland winning 42–12 and scoring a try. He played against Auckland again on 12 August winning 22–9 his last game for Great Britain. Whitcombe played 19 games on the 1946 tour of Australia and New Zealand more than any other player. The Great Britain team left New Zealand aboard the RMS Rangitikei on 14 August arriving in

Tilbury Tilbury is a port town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. The present town was established as separate settlement in the late 19th century, on land that was mainly part of Chadwell St Mary. It contains a 16th century fort and an anc ...

on 22 September at 10pm, four days late. When the party returned home after the five-month tour they had travelled more than 25,000 nautical miles around the world

formed a team that relaunched

in a world devastated by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Many regard them as the most famous touring team of all time and who remain the only Great Britain team to be unbeaten in a test series in Australia. The tour was historic as it was the first major event in any sport after the war ended. The

Australian government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Governmen ...

made a personal plea to the

British parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...

to enable the tour to go ahead, as it wanted to lift the morale of its people, struggling to come to terms with the tragedy of the war. At that time

vessels were the only way to travel, but the team managed to secure berths and made the trip aboard the aircraft carrier, the touring party stoked the boilers to keep fit on board , from where the nickname came. The journey took almost six weeks to make the journey. The ship was instructed to leave the Great Britain party in Perth and then divert to Singapore to collect injured prisoners who had been incarcerated in Changi jail during the Japanese occupation. The tourists were then forced to complete the arduous journey to Sydney by train, which took five days. There was no sleeping accommodation on board and the train stopped for refreshments at army camps en route with players drawing lots for the right to sleep on the wire-netting luggage racks

Rugby league Challenge Cup Final appearances

Whitcombe played in 5 Rugby League

Cup finals; *

's 8-3 aggregate victory over

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington ...

in the 1943–44

Final, the 0–3 defeat at

on Saturday 15 April 1944, and the 8–0 victory at

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

, on Saturday 22 April 1944. Whitcombe scoring the decisive try in the game *Bradford Northern's 9-13 aggregate defeat by

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence i ...

in the 1944–45

Final, the 4–7 defeat at Fartown Ground, Huddersfield, on 28 April 1945, and the 5–6 defeat at

on 5 May 1945 three days before the Second World War ended. Whitcombe played , in three consecutive Wembley

Finals of 1946, 1947, and 1948. The first time any rugby league or Football club had appeared in three consecutive Wembley finals. *

's 8–4 victory over

Leeds Leeds () is a 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 third-largest settlement (by popul ...

in the 1946–47

Final at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

on 3 May 1947, won the Lance Todd Trophy, *

's 3–8 defeat by

in the 1947–48

Final at

on 3 May 1947 and won the Lance Todd Trophy, on 1 May 1948, becoming the first player to be awarded The Lance Todd Trophy while on the losing team, as well as the first forward and the oldest player. This was the first rugby league final attended by a reigning monarch,

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of In ...

. *

's 12–0 victory over Halifax in the 1948–49

Final at

on 7 May the first Challenge Cup final to be "sold out" the crowd was 95,050 spectators.

1947. Teammate

Trevor Foster Trevor John French Foster MBE (3 December 1914 – 2 April 2005) was a Welsh rugby footballer, and coach. He played rugby union for Newport and rugby league for Bradford Northern. Trevor Foster was a Sergeant Physical Training Instructor in ...

remembered "On our bus journey to the stadium we were caught up in a traffic jam and running late. The driver was in a state of panic, it could have been something to do with him not being sure of the route through London. Much to our amusement the great character, Frank Whitcombe, took over the driver's seat and proceeded to bypass all traffic in front and put his foot on the pedals. We sailed through the centre of the big city. Past the

Palace of Westminster The Palace of Westminster serves as the meeting place for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords, the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Informally known as the Houses of Parliament, the Palace lies on the north b ...

with motorists bellowing and waving fists at our bus. Frank, with a huge smile sailed away to get us to Wembley bang on time". A personal record came in the 1948–49 Challenge Cup Final when, just 29 days short of his 35th birthday, he became the oldest as well as the heaviest player to play in a Challenge Cup final.

played in five of the six

finals between 1944 and 1949, the first two finals; the 1943–44 Challenge Cup Final against

, and the 1944–45 Challenge Cup Final against

were played over two-legs, five Bradford Northern players played in all five of these finals, they were;

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 leag ...

, Vic Darlison, Donald Ward,

Ernest Ward Ernest Ward (30 July 1920 – 9 July 1987) was an English rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s and 1950s, and coached in the 1950s. He played at representative level for Great Britain, British Empire, Combined Nationalities and En ...

, and Frank Whitcombe. On Saturday 30 April 1949 Bradford Northern played

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It i ...

. Harry Hornby Managing Director of Bradford Northern had a bronze medal struck by Edouard Fraisse of Paris to commemorate Whitcombe's achievement of winning the Lance Todd trophy the previous year and for his services to Rugby League. This was presented to him after the match

Rugby Football League championship

Frank Whitcombe played in 5 Championship play-off finals; *1939–40 Championship play-off final played both legs, against Swinton away won 21–13 home won 16–9. Whitcombe scoring a try in each game *1940–41 Championship play-off final against

played in both legs away won 17–6 home won 28–9 away. *1941–42 Championship play-off final against

Dewsbury Dewsbury is a minster and market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Calder and on an arm of the Calder and Hebble Navigation waterway. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Hudd ...

losing 0-13. *1944–45 Championship play-off final against Halifax Won losing 9–2 away before winning 24–11 at home. *1947–48 Championship Final was lost to

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

5–15 at

Maine Road Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England, that was home to Manchester City F.C. from 1923 to 2003. It hosted FA Cup semi-finals, the Charity Shield, a League Cup final and England matches. Maine Road's highest a ...

County Cup Final appearances

Whitcombe played in 4

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

County Cup The county football associations are the local governing bodies of association football in England and the Crown dependencies. County FAs exist to govern all aspects of football in England. They are responsible for administering club and playe ...

Finals; *1940–41: Bradford Northern win the 1940–41

Final won 15–5 against

at Fartown Ground,

, on Saturday 5 April 1941 *1941–42: Bradford Northern win the 1941–42 Yorkshire County Cup Final won 24–0 against Halifax at Fartown Ground,

, on Saturday 6 December 1941 *1945–46: Bradford Northern win the 1945–46 Yorkshire County Cup final won 5–2 against

Wakefield Trinity Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, that plays in the Super League. One of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, between 1999 and 2016 the ...

try being scored by Whitcombe, at Thrum Hall, Halifax on Saturday 3 November 1945 *1948–49: Bradford Northern win the 1948–49 Yorkshire County Cup Final won 18–9 against

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. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins th ...

at Headingley Rugby Stadium,

on Saturday 30 October 1948

Yorkshire League

County League winners during the 1939–40 season *Yorkshire County League winners during the 1940–41 season *Yorkshire County League winners during the 1947–48 season

Testimonial match

Whitcombe's Testimonial match for

was on Saturday 10 April 1948 at

, against

Honoured at Bradford Northern

Whitcombe made his début on

Boxing Day Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. It ...

1938 in a 25–7 victory over Bramley at

. He scored his first try for Bradford Northern against

in a 22–0 home win on 2 January 1939. Whitcombe's only goal for the club was in a Yorkshire League game against

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 ...

on 2 June 1941 when Whitcombe kicked the only conversion in the Bradford northern score in their 29–5 win. His last game for Bradford Northern was the last match of the 1948–49 season against

, fittingly at Odsal in a 10–9 win. Prior to this game Whitcombe shook hands with

on the field so the 19,000 Bradford Northern supporters could say farewell. The Bradford Northern captain described Whitcombe as a great player. During his career at Bradford Northern Whitcombe played in eighteen major finals and league wins, including five Rugby League Challenge Cup finals, five Rugby League Championship play-off finals, won four Yorkshire cups, and won three Yorkshire league titles. In total he made 331 league and cup appearances. On Wednesday 10 November 1948 he played on the losing Bradford Northern side 7 – 21 to

Col Maxwell Colin Maxwell (1917–2001) was an Australian international rugby league footballer whose career ran from the 1930s to the 1950s. He was a centre for the Australian national team in one Test in 1948 in which he captained the side. Club career ...

's Australian 1948/49 Kangaroo Touring Team. At the end of the season he flew from Ringway Airport to France on Northern's first ever overseas tour on this end of season 'treat' for everybody connected with the club, after the disappointment of losing both Challenge Cup and Championship finals. Bradford Northern played Toulouse Olympique winning 21–17 on 15 May 1948. The following day they beat

AS Carcassonne Association Sportive of Carcassonne are a semi-professional rugby league football club based in Carcassonne in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie in the south of France. They play in the French Elite One Championship and a ...

16–10 The second game was also the first time the Bradford club had played on a Sunday. Whitcombe was included in Bradford Bulls Millennium Masters. Harry Hornby, the Chairman, and financial power behind

in those days paid a world record fee for Whitcombe. Whitcombe was a hard player during an era when the game was at its toughest. His rivalry with the great Australian and

i.e. number 11 or 12, Arthur Clues who played for

was legendary. Clues was the first Australian to join an English club after

. Their confrontations on the field during the

v Leeds

local derby Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

games are part of rugby league folklore. Trevor Foster recalled an incident after Bradford Northern's 8–4 victory over Leeds in the 1946–47 Challenge Cup Final, ironically against Leeds in a fierce fought 11–9 Yorkshire cup tie win. Clues kicked out violently at Bradford Northern Gwylfa Jones at a scrum missing his head by inches. Immediately Whitcombe stood up from the scrum and confronted his reckless action. He ran towards Arthur with both fists clenched Whitcombe drove the full force of his 18 stone frame in to Arthur Clues chest and pole-axed him. Clues could not get his breath and for ten minutes received emergency medical attention in front of the 17,000 Odsal crowd. Before the

referee A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other tit ...

could send Whitcombe off, Whitcombe was all ready walking towards the changing rooms knowing what was coming. Arthur Clues was carried off on a stretcher and also sent off. In time honoured tradition the two men shook hands after the game to show their mutual respect for each other. Clues later confessed that no one had ever hit him so hard. Whitcombe received a 9-week ban for his actions Whitcombe and Clues became great friends when their playing days were over. They used to spend a lot of time in Whitcombe's

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

The Kings Head in

. Whitcombe took on the role of self-appointed 'minder' for Bradford Northern's slightly built, mercurial Welsh stand-off Willie Davies when he was targeted by opposing teams.

Honoured by the City of Cardiff - European Capital of Sport 2014

The city of Cardiff celebrated the sporting achievements of 3 'local sporting heroes' as part of the city's celebrations as European Capital of Sport 2014. Frank Whitcombe along with his brother George were two of them, along with boxer Jack Petersen. A special event was held in their home town of Grangetown, in the local library, on 8 April 2014. Here their sporting achievements were recognized, which included the Challenge Cup being brought back to Ninian Park School and to 52 Wedmore road where Frank was born and grew up as a boy. Key note speakers included, Rugby journalist Peter Jackson,

Wales Rugby League Wales Rugby League is the national governing body for rugby league football in Wales. In 1907 The Welsh Northern Rugby Football Union was formed in Wrexham, but the English Northern Rugby Football Union refused it affiliation as they wanted th ...

team manager Mike Nicholas, and Simon Foster, son of Frank's teammate Trevor Foster. Simon presented a talk on the 'Indominatables' tour to Australia. A poem composed by the Foster family as a tribute to Whitcombe was read out. Frank Whitcombe – Super prop Who us this man called Whitcombe, This man all forwards fear, A prop who's always dangerous, Whenever he gets near (the try line) The sturdily built Welshman, since moving up t'north, Has proved to be a man of power, A titan moving forth. Every team opposing him, are put into the 'blue', None of them, who played back then could big Frank not subdue. We know just how to deal with him; they all said that at first, But he's difficult to stop, when once he's on the burst. Opposing forwards made their vows, that he'll not score again, But somehow it's beyond their powers, their efforts all in vain. Most of his team just wait for him, he is afraid of none, It's nothing new to see him cross, with three (Nay 4) men hanging on. If they decide to tackle him, by going for his knees, Just when they think they've got Frank taped, he'll hand them off with ease. But these are not the only ways in which he rose to fame, In scrummaging his mighty shove, was how he played the game. Who is this giant called Whitcombe, spectators well might ask, Those men, who tried to tackle him, endured no easy task!

Wartime service

During the Second World War Whitcombe worked as a long-distance lorry driver for Harold Wood Ltd Bulk Liquid Transporters of Heckmondwike, a

reserved occupation A reserved occupation (also known as essential services) is an occupation considered important enough to a country that those serving in such occupations are exempt or forbidden from military service. In a total war, such as the Second World War, w ...

. Harold Wood had government contracts to deliver

aviation fuel Aviation fuels are petroleum-based fuels, or petroleum and synthetic fuel blends, used to power aircraft. They have more stringent requirements than fuels used for ground use, such as heating and road transport, and contain additives to enhan ...

in the early part of the war to RAF airfields, and later oil to Royal Navy mother ship's off the coast of

Rhyl Rhyl (; cy, Y Rhyl, ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire, Wales. The town lies within the historic boundaries of Flintshire, on the north-east coast of Wales at the mouth of the River Clwyd ( Welsh: ''Afon Clwyd''). To the we ...

for the re supply of

submarines A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

. He also delivered

Toluene Toluene (), also known as toluol (), is a substituted aromatic hydrocarbon. It is a colorless, water-insoluble liquid with the smell associated with paint thinners. It is a mono-substituted benzene derivative, consisting of a methyl group (CH3) ...

for explosives. This job involved driving all over the country, he often drove through the black out, and on several occasions when delivering aviation fuel took refuge under his wagon during air raids. Many men in reserved occupations joined civil defence units. Under the command of

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

"Two pips" Teddy Lightfoot, Whitcombe served as a sergeant major in the Wibsey branch of the Home Guard, meeting at the Park Hotel, Reevy Road, Wibsey

Genealogical information

Frank Whitcombe was the brother 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 ...

er for

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

and

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

; George Whitcombe, and the baseball player for Grange Albion; Teddy Whitcombe, and he was the cousin of the rugby union footballer; Frank Trott. He was the father of the

footballer for Bradford RFC;

Brian Whitcombe Brian Whitcombe (13 October 1934 – 2 January 2021) was a Rugby Union footballer for Bradford RFC in the 1950s and 1960s, playing at Flanker i.e. 6 or 7. Early life Born at 15 Sussex Street Grangetown, Cardiff, Brian Whitcombe and his brothe ...

, and the rugby union

for North Eastern Counties,

, Bradford RFC;

Frank Whitcombe Jr Frank William Whitcombe (21 July 1936 – ) was a rugby union footballer of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s who played Rugby Union (RU) for Bradford RFC, Keighley RUFC Northern Command and Army Rugby Union, playing at Prop, i.e. number 1 or 3, and ...

, the grandfather of the rugby union prop for England 'B' and

Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...

;

Martin Whitcombe Martin Alun Whitcombe (born 14 September 1961 in Keighley, West Riding of Yorkshire) is an English former rugby union footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, and coached in the 2000s. He learnt to play rugby at Keighley RUFC and ...

, and the great-grandfather rugby union prop for

(Under-20s) and Leicester Tigers (2019/20 Development Squad); James William Whitcombe (born 20 November 2000).

Outside of rugby league

When Whitcombe first arrived in

from Fallowfield, he drove an Omnibus for The Blythe & Berwick Bus Company and later a wagon for Ryburn United Transport Ltd, off Wakefield Road, also in Bradford. With his wife Doris they were the

landlord A landlord is the owner of a house, apartment, condominium, land, or real estate which is rented or leased to an individual or business, who is called a tenant (also a ''lessee'' or ''renter''). When a juristic person is in this position, t ...

, and landlady of two public houses in Bradford. Firstly in 1947 Whitcombe took on The Hallfield Hotel a Melbourne Breweries 'Ale House' on Trafalgar Road opposite Busby's Department Store on Manningham Lane. He then took The Kings Head, a Heys Brewery

Public House A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

on Westgate in the city centre. This was from 8 December 1948 until September 1952. Running a city centre pub in Bradford was challenging especially at weekends when the family had the opportunity to take The Airedale Heifer Inn also owned by Heys Brewery's at Sandbeds near

Keighley Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parish in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford. Keighley is north-west of Bradford city centre, north-west o ...

it was too good to turn down. The family ran this pub until 1983. Following his retirement from rugby league, Harry Hornby invited Whitcombe to sit on the

board of directors A board of directors (commonly referred simply as the board) is an executive committee that jointly supervises the activities of an organization, which can be either a for-profit or a nonprofit organization such as a business, nonprofit orga ...

,at various times he served as deputy Chairman & Chairman over his eight years in office between 1950 and 1958. On 10 September 1957 the Rugby League Council unanimously voted to accept Whitcombe as Bradford Northern's representative to The Rugby Football League replacing Harry Hornby after his resignation

Tributes following Whitcombe's death

Whitcombe died of

Pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...

at home on Friday 17 January 1958 aged 44 years. Next day on 18 January Bradford Northern played

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 in ...

. As a mark of respect to the then Bradford Northern Vice Chairman the players, officials and spectators stood in silence before the game at Bentley Road, Bradford Northern players wore black arm bands. Cyril Bunney, Bradford Northern Chairman said: " I don't know what to think. This is a terrible blow. He will be a tremendous loss to his family and hundreds of friends at Bradford Northern. No man is irreplaceable but Frank was as near to me as possible in all the help and guidance he has given me personally and to Bradford Northern. His loyalty knew no bounds – this season alone he has travelled thousands of miles at his own expense looking at players for Odsal". C E 'Ted' Horsfall Rugby Football League Council Chairman said: "What bad luck for his family and Bradford Northern in the help he was giving in re building the club. He was always a great sportsman and could take it and give it with a smile, in addition to being a wonderful forward". Bill Fallowfield Rugby Football League secretary, said: "What a pity. I liked Frank immensely. He was one the game can ill afford to lose. He has only been a member of the Rugby League Council a short time but his knowledge and genuine love of the game would have been most helpful". Dai Rees (rugby) Bradford Northern coach, said: "Frank Whitcombe had a great part in putting Bradford Northern on the Rugby League map. The name of Frank Whitcombe and Odsal are synonymous. He was one of the game's greatest personalities. Genial Frank has gone but his name will live on at Odsal". Arthur Clues Australian Rugby League international "Many's the tussle I've had with Frank. But off the field we were the greatest of pals. I reckon he was one of the best front row forwards for his size ever to play football" Gideon Shaw, Chairman of the Rugby League selection committee, asked Whitcombe to apply for the team manager's post for the 1958 Ashes tour to Australia. Gideon added: "and who better? He's been out there, he can handle the players, he knows the game thoroughly. Eric England had the typed application ready today". Due to Whitcombe's untimely death, this was a position he never held. He is buried at Morton Banks Cemetery, not far from the Heifer, with his wife Doris, who died on 18 August 2003. in 2015 The Rugby Football League Head Office interior meeting rooms included six bespoke framed works celebrating incidental and quirky stories including Billy Boston's début, how Salford acquired the name 'Red Devils' and how Bradord Northern's Frank Whitcombe took over coach driving duties on the way to the 1946–47 Challenge Cup Final.

References

External links

*Clayton, Ian & Steele, Michael "When push comes to Shove" *McLaren, John "The History of Army Rugby" (Aldershot, The Army RFU, 1986) *Jones, Stephen "Dragon in Exile" The Centenary history of London Welsh RFC *Foster, Simon & Gate, Robert & Lush, Peter. Trevor Foster "The Life of a Rugby League Legend" March 2005 *Thompson, Colin "The Indomitables" The 1946 Rugby League Lions tour to Australia & New Zealand *Waring, Tony "Eddie Waring – the Great Ones and Other Writings" *Morris, Graham "Rugby League in Manchester" *Morris, Graham "Hero: Rugby League's Greatest Award Winners" *Gate, Robert "Rugby League Lions: 100 Years of Test Matches" *Morris, Graham "Destination Wembley: The History of the Rugby League Challenge Cup Final" *Morris, Graham "Grand Final 100 Years of Rugby League Championship Finals" *Gate, Robert "Bradford Rugby League:Bradford, Northern & Bull's" *Williams, Graham & Lush, Peter & Farrar, David "The British Rugby League Records Book ages 108–114. London League Publications Ltd. *Ludlam, H Cedric The Complete History of Bradford Northern RLFC 1963–1969 *Gate, Robert "The Struggle for the Ashes" The History of Anglo – Australian Rugby League Test Matches *Writer, Larry 'Bumper': The Life and Times of Frank 'Bumper' Farrell the toughest, roughest street cop that Australia has ever seen *Whitcombe, Martin & Bridge, Bill. "The Indomitable Frank Whitcombe." St David's Press *The Whitcombe Family Archive *http://www.bullsfoundation.org/2014/03/flashback-the-grand-final/ Bradford Northern Heritage *https://web.archive.org/web/20140325095900/http://rleague.com/news/Lance-Todd-Trophy-Winners_95342/ Lance Todd trophy winners *http://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/players/frank-whitcombe/summary.html International Career Stats *http://www.britishpathe.com/video/commando-rugby-in-test-draw/query/commando+test Frank Whitcombe scores v Australia *http://www.britishpathe.com/video/rugby-league-international-at-llanelly/query/llanelly+rugby+league Frank Whitcombe début V England *http://www.britishpathe.com/video/rugby-in-france-aka-france-v-wales-rugby/query/rugby Frank Whitcombe second cap V France in Bordeaux *http://www.britishpathe.com/video/bradford-win-all-yorkshire-duel/query/Whitcombe Frank Whitcombe at Wembley 1949 *http://www.walesonline.co.uk/rugbynation/rugby-news/2012/03/20/whitcombe-a-grangetown-production-line-great-91466-30573813/ Frank & George Whitcombe *http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/9681531/Joe-Egan.html Joe Egan tribute *http://www.nma.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0018/221625/E_no_more_bloody_bundles.pdf Great Britain tour to Australia 1946 *http://wigan.rlfans.com/fusion_pages/index.php?page_id=428 Bradford Northern v Wigan Wembley 1947 *http://content.yudu.com/Library/A19g2a/SPORTINGWALESISSUESE/resources/48.htm Indomitables Tour *http://www.cardiffrfc.com/Teams/Player?personid=152026 Cardiff RFC *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article17978631 Sydney Morning Herald 13 May 1946 Great Britain team profiles *http://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/98381544?searchTerm=17%201%2F2%20stone%20hustler&searchLimits= 171/2 Stone Hustler *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article98381668?searchTerm=frank%20whitcombe%20rugby&searchLimits=l-textSearchScope=*ignore*%7C*ignore*, , , l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore* Great Britain v New South Wales *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article140613606?searchTerm=frank%20whitcombe%20rugby&searchLimits=l-textSearchScope=*ignore*%7C*ignore*, , , l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore* Great Britain v Queensland *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article114566396?searchTerm=frank%20whitcombe%20rugby&searchLimits=l-textSearchScope=*ignore*%7C*ignore*, , , l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore* Training the Sydney Cricket ground *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article50254432?searchTerm=frank%20whitcombe%20rugby&searchLimits=l-textSearchScope=*ignore*%7C*ignore*, , , l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore* Travelling in Australia - "Beer, Pigs and Footballers" *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article62877733?searchTerm=frank%20whitcombe%20rugby&searchLimits=l-textSearchScope=*ignore*%7C*ignore*, , , l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore* Whitcombe to play for St George? *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article50248453?searchTerm=frank%20whitcombe%20rugby&searchLimits=l-textSearchScope=*ignore*%7C*ignore*, , , l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore* War Service *http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article17987863?searchTerm=frank%20whitcombe%20try&searchLimits=l-textSearchScope=*ignore*%7C*ignore*, , , l-word=*ignore*%7C*ignore* Australia 8 8 Great Britain *http://www.therugbypaper.co.uk/features/columnists/peter-jackson/15972/peter-jackson-big-mans-dynasty-is-thriving-at-tigers/ Frank Whitcombe's Dynasty *http://www.keighleynews.co.uk/sport/10639730.Whitcombes_are_back_at_Wembley/ Frank Whitcombe's great grandchildren return to Wembley *http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/time-great-sportand-now-book-11696307 Wales Online reviews 'The Indomitable Frank Whitcombe' *http://www.cardiffrfc.com/Teams/Player?personid=152026 Frank Whitcombe Cardiff RFC *
Physical power of Whitcombe swats Halifax aside in 1949 finalWest Town Boys and Frank Whitcombe at rugbyleagueoralhistory.co.ukFrank-Whitcombe, Jr. Obituary at yorkshirepost.co.uk
*(archived by web.archive.org
Bradford win Yorkshire CupPhotograph 'A trio of British Players' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Whitcombe at work' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'The 1947 Team' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph '1947 Welsh team' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Mine host Frank Whitcombe admires the cups' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Frank Whitcombe, Lance Todd Trophy winner 1948' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Benefits presented' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Bradford Northern v Halifax 1942' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Mighty Frank' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Benefits presented' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph '1948 Challenge Cup Final' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Farewell to a great player' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Here come the victors' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Touring quartet' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Championship winning team 1945' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Frank Whitcombe' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Eric Batten Kicks' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Challenge cup winning side.' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Frank Whitcombe' at rlhp.co.ukPhotograph 'Northern at Fartown' at rlhp.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitcombe, Frank 1913 births 1958 deaths Aldershot Services rugby union players Army rugby union players Bradford Bulls players British Home Guard soldiers British publicans British rugby league administrators Broughton Rangers players Cardiff RFC players Footballers who switched code Great Britain national rugby league team players Lance Todd Trophy winners London Welsh RFC players People from Grangetown, Cardiff Royal Engineers soldiers Rugby league players from Cardiff Rugby league props Rugby League XIII players Rugby union players from Cardiff Rugby union props Wales national rugby league team players Welsh rugby league players Welsh rugby union players Yorkshire rugby league team players