Frederic Hodgson Rudd Alderson (27 June 1867 – 18 February 1925) was an English international

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

threequarter who played club rugby for

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

and Hartlepool Rovers. Alderson played international rugby for

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and was an original member of invitational team, the

Barbarians A barbarian is a person or tribe of people that is perceived to be primitive, savage and warlike. Many cultures have referred to other cultures as barbarians, sometimes out of misunderstanding and sometimes out of prejudice. A "barbarian" may ...

Personal life

Alderson was born in Hartford in 1867 and educated in Durham, proceeding to

Clare College, Cambridge Clare College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second-oldest surviving college of the Unive ...

in 1886. He received his BA in 1889 and that year took up the post of Assistant Master of Henry Smith School in

Hartlepool Hartlepool ( ) is a seaside resort, seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is governed by a unitary authority borough Borough of Hartlepool, named after the town. The borough is part of the devolved Tees Valley area with an estimat ...

. He became headmaster of the school in 1892, a position he would hold until his death in 1925.

Rugby career

Alderson first came to note as a rugby player when he represented the Cambridge University team, winning a sporting Blue when he represented the team in the Varsity matches of 1887 and 1888. His Cambridge links served him well when

William Percy Carpmael William Percy Carpmael (20 May 1864 – 27 December 1936) was the founder and first president of the rugby union Barbarian Football Club. Carpmael was born the eldest of eight in Briscobel, Streatham in England.Starmer-Smith (1977), pg 13. ...

, a fellow Cambridge Blue, invited Alderson to join his newly formed invitational touring team, the Barbarians.Starmer-Smith, Nigel ''The Barbarians'' Macdonald & Jane's Publishers (1977) pg. 217 In 1890 he became one of the original members of the Barbarians, and was part of the team that in 1891/92 toured the South West of England and Wales. When Alderson moved to Hartlepool he joined local team Hartlepool Rovers, and it was while representing Rovers, that he was selected for his first international game for England; an encounter with

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

in the opening match of the

1891 Home Nations Championship The 1891 Home Nations Championship was the ninth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 3 January and 7 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The 1891 Championship was won ...

. Alderson was given the captaincy on his debut game, an honour he would hold for all but the last of the six matches of his international career. He served his team well, leading them to a solid 7–3 victory over the Welsh away at

Rodney Parade Rodney Parade is a stadium in the city of Newport, South Wales. It is located on the east bank of the River Usk in Newport city centre. The ground is on Rodney Road, a short walk from the city's central bus and railway stations via Newport Bri ...

, and picked up his first international points when he converted two of the three tries scored by England. For the remainder of the Championship Alderson led England to a victory over

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, but a home loss to

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, the eventual Triple Crown winners of 1891. The 1892 Championship saw England win all three matches making Alderson a Triple Crown captain, as he led the team for the opening game against Wales and the Championship decider away to Scotland. Alderson missed the Irish leg, the captaincy switching to

Sammy Woods Samuel Moses James Woods (13 April 1867 – 30 April 1931) was an Australian sportsman who represented both Australia and England at Test cricket, and appeared thirteen times for England at rugby union, including five times as captain. He also p ...

, but scored a try and a conversion against Wales and a conversion in the Scotland game. This was the third Triple Crown for England, and the first time a team had finished the season without conceding a single point. Alderson played one more international game, the opener of the

1893 Home Nations Championship The 1893 Home Nations Championship was the eleventh series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 17 January and 11 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. In winning all three matc ...

, a narrow loss at the

Cardiff Arms Park Cardiff Arms Park (), also known as The Arms Park, is primarily a rugby union stadium, and also has a bowling green. It is situated in Cardiff, Wales, next to the Millennium Stadium. The Arms Park was host to the 1958 British Empire and Common ...

to Wales. After retiring from playing rugby, Alderson continued his involvement with the sport when he became a referee. In 1903 he officiated his only international match, the 1893 Home Nations clash between Scotland and Ireland.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alderson, Frederic 1867 births 1925 deaths Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge Barbarian F.C. players Cambridge University R.U.F.C. players England international rugby union players English rugby union players English rugby union referees People from Hartford, Cheshire Rugby union players from Cheshire Schoolteachers from County Durham Rugby union three-quarters