Percival Wilkinson (1848 – c. 1891) was a rugby union international who represented England in 1872 against Scotland in his only appearance for the national side.P. Wilkinson Profile on scrum.com
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Early life

Percival Wilkinson was born in

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

, London, the son of William Martin Wilkinson, a solicitor of 44, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London and his wife, Elizabeth, who hailed from Derbyshire. Percival's uncle, his father's brother, was the

Swedenborgian The New Church (or Swedenborgianism) is any of several historically related Christian denominations that developed as a new religious group, influenced by the writings of scientist and mystic Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772). Swedenborgian or ...

writer J. Garth Wilkinson. The legal profession was deeply rooted in the Wilkinson family, with Percival's grandfather James John Wilkinson (died 1845), having been a writer on mercantile law and a judge of the County Palatine of Durham. Of Percival's two older brothers, Edward and William, the latter went into their father's firm and of Percival's two younger brothers, Charles and Hugh, the latter trained as a barrister at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

. Percival himself was at school locally, and then by 1871 was an articled clerk to an attorney. He married Constance Vallance Stratford Bell in 1878, and his son Cuthbert was born in 1880. In 1881 Percival Wilkinson he was still a solicitor in London, but died sometime before 1891.

Rugby union career

As a rugby player he was listed as belonging to the Law Club. This was a closed club for members of the legal profession, hence his position in an attorney's firm qualified him. He also played rugby at halfback for Harlequins, his local club that when he first played for them was known as The Hampstead Football Club, but changed its name in 1870. However, when selected for England, his team was given as

Law FC Law, or The Law Club as it was also known, was a 19th-century football club that fielded teams playing by rugby football codes. It is notable for being one of the twenty-one founding members of the Rugby Football Union and for producing in a very ...

because, according to one source, Harlequins were not well known enough at the time.Barry Morrison Bowker, ''England rugby: a history of the national side, 1871-1978'', p4-5, Cassell, 1978 His international debut, and only appearance, was on 5 February 1872 in front of 4,000 spectators at The Oval in the England vs Scotland match. This was the second time the teams had met and in fact the second international match, as well as being the first time England had hosted an international rugby match. England won the match, a reversal of the previous year's result in Scotland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Percival 1848 births 19th-century deaths Year of death uncertain Date of death unknown English rugby union players England international rugby union players Rugby union halfbacks Rugby union players from Hampstead