Oliver James Morris (fourth ¼ 1916 – 20 September 1944) was a Welsh

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 ...

and professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s. He played club level rugby union (RU) for

Llanelli RFC Llanelli Rugby Football Club () is a Welsh rugby union club founded on 30 March 1872. The club's historic home ground was Stradey Park in Llanelli, but they moved in 2008 to the new Parc y Scarlets in adjacent Pemberton. The club song is " ...

and

Pontypridd RFC Pontypridd Rugby Football Club () is a rugby union team from Pontypridd, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. It competes in the Admiral Premiership and the WRU Premiership Cup, a trophy which they won for the 7th time in 2025. Their last league title ...

, and representative level rugby league (RL) for

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 ...

, and at club level for

Hunslet Hunslet () is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is southeast of the Leeds city centre, city centre and has an industrial past. It is situated in the Hunslet and Riverside (ward), Hunslet and Riverside ward of Lee ...

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield district, 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 t ...

(as a wartime guest) and

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

, as a .

Background

Oliver James Morris' birth was registered in

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

district, Wales. He was a

sergeant major Sergeant major is a senior Non-commissioned officer, non-commissioned Military rank, rank or appointment in many militaries around the world. History In 16th century Spain, the ("sergeant major") was a general officer. He commanded an army's ...

, later a lieutenant, in the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

(1st battalion of the

Welch Regiment The Welch Regiment (or "The Welch", an archaic spelling of "Welsh") was an infantry regiment line infantry, of the line of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1969. The regiment was created in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the am ...

(note archaic spelling)) during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and he was killed aged 27 in Northern Italy, whilst fighting on the

Gothic Line The Gothic Line (; ) was a German and Italian defensive line of the Italian Campaign of World War II. It formed Field Marshal Albert Kesselring's last major line of defence along the summits of the northern part of the Apennine Mountains du ...

, during the Italian Campaign.

Rugby Union

Morris started his Rugby union career with

but became a key part of the

team in the mid-to-late 1930s as their Fly-half. Morris became the first player from the Pontypridd club to ‘go north’ in November 1937. Weighing just nine and a half stones, there was great doubts about his ability to make it in professional rugby league.

Rugby League

International honours

Oliver Morris won 5 caps for

(RL) in 1938–1941 while at Hunslet, and Leeds.

Championship final appearances

Oliver Morris played in

's 8–2 victory over

in the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this sys ...

Final during the 1937–38 season at

Elland Road Elland Road, or Elland Road Stadium, is a football stadium in Beeston, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, which has been the Home (sports), home of Leeds United F.C., Leeds United since the club's formation in 1919. The stadium is the List of foot ...

on Saturday 30 April 1938.

Challenge Cup Final appearances

Oliver Morris played in

' 19–2 victory over Halifax in the 1940–41 Challenge Cup Final during the 1940–41 season at

Odsal Stadium Odsal Stadium (known as Bartercard Odsal Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is a multi-purpose stadium, multipurpose stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The stadium is currently the home of Bradford Bulls rugby league football club and ...

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

, in front of a crowd of 28,500, and played in the 15–10 victory over Halifax in the

1941–42 Challenge Cup The 1941–42 Challenge Cup was the 41st staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. First round Second round Quarterfinals Semifinals Final References {{DEFAULTSORT:1941-42 Challenge Cup Challenge ...

Final during the 1941–42 season at Odsal Stadium, Bradford, in front of a crowd of 15,250.

Other notable matches

Oliver Morris played for

Northern Command XIII Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ra ...

against a

Rugby League XIII The Rugby Football League (RFL) is the governing body for rugby league in England. Founded in 1895 as the Northern Rugby Football Union following 22 clubs resigning from the Rugby Football Union, it changed its name in 1922 to the Rugby Footb ...

Thrum Hall Thrum Hall was a rugby league stadium on Hanson Lane in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. It was the home of Halifax R.L.F.C., Halifax for 112 years. The site on which the ground stood is now occupied by a supermarket. History In 1878, Halifa ...

, Halifax on Saturday 21 March 1942.

Club career

Oliver Morris made his début for

against

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 ...

The Cliff A cliff is a vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliff, The Cliff or The Cliffs may also refer to: Buildings *Cliff Brewery, a former brewery near Ipswich, England *Cliff Palace, largest cliff dwelling in North America *The Cliffs, a histo ...

Broughton, Salford Broughton is a suburb and district of Salford, Greater Manchester, England. Located on the east bank of the River Irwell, it is northwest of Manchester and south of Prestwich. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, the form ...

on Saturday 26 August 1939.

Death

During the war, Morris became a Lieutenant in the

, and was killed in Italy on 21 September 1944 aged twenty-seven.CWGC entry
/ref>

References

External links

*(archived by web.archive.org
Profile at ponty.net
*(archived by web.archive.org
True Heroes Remembered
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morris, Oliver 1916 births 1944 deaths 20th-century Welsh sportsmen British Army personnel killed in World War II Castleford Tigers players Hunslet F.C. (1883) players Llanelli RFC players Leeds Rhinos players Military personnel from Carmarthenshire Northern Command XIII rugby league team players Pontypridd RFC players Rugby league players from Llanelli Rugby league five-eighths Rugby union players from Llanelli Wales national rugby league team players Welch Regiment officers Welsh rugby league players Welsh rugby union players