William Trevor Thomas (8 March 1907 – 3 February 1969), also known by the

nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...

of "Ocker", was a Welsh dual-code 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 ...

, 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 representative level rugby union (RU) 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

Abertillery RFC Abertillery Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union club based in Abertillery. According to their website, they were founded in 1883 by a coal miner named Doug Wallace who was a local resident who moved from Scotland in 1882, Wallace was know ...

, as a

flanker Flanker may refer to: * Flanker (perfume), a newly created perfume sharing attributes of an existing one * Flanker (rugby union), a position in rugby union (not found in rugby league) * ''Su-27 Flanker'' (video game), a 1996 computer game modelin ...

, and representative level rugby league (RL) for

, and at club level for

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

(two spells) (

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

), and

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...

, as a .

Background

William "Ocker" Thomas was born in

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil () is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydfil, daughter of K ...

, Wales, and he died aged 61 in Sofrydd, Crumlin , Wales (death registered in

Pontypool Pontypool ( ) is a town and the administrative centre of the county borough of Torfaen, within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire in South Wales. , it has a population of 29,062. Locat ...

, Wales).

Playing career

International honours

Thomas won a

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. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...

for

(RU) while at Abertillery RFC in 1930 against England, and won 3 caps for

(RL) in 1932–1940 while at Oldham, and Wigan.

County Cup Final appearances

During Thomas' time at Oldham, they had a 12-0 victory over

St Helens Recs St Helens Recreation Rugby League Football Club, often known as St Helens Recs or just the Recs, is a former professional rugby league club from St. Helens, Lancashire, that played in the Rugby Football League during the inter-war years. The club ...

in the 1933 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1933–34 season at

Station Road, Swinton Station Road was a stadium in Pendlebury, near Manchester, England. It was the home of Swinton Rugby League Club between 1929 and 1992 and was widely recognised as one of the finest grounds in the Rugby League. Swinton moved to Station Road w ...

on Saturday 18 November 1933. Thomas played at in Wigan's 10-7 victory over

Salford Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...

in the

1938 Lancashire Cup Events January * January 1 – state-owned enterprise, State-owned railway networks are created by merger, in France (SNCF) and the Netherlands (Nederlandse Spoorwegen – NS). * January 20 – King Farouk of Egypt marries Saf ...

Final during the 1938–39 season at

on Saturday 22 October 1938.

References

External links

* (archived by web.archive.org
Statistics at orl-heritagetrust.org.ukStatistics at wigan.rlfans.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Trevor 1907 births 1969 deaths 20th-century Welsh sportsmen Abertillery RFC players Dual-code rugby internationals Oldham R.L.F.C. captains Oldham R.L.F.C. players Rugby league players from Merthyr Tydfil Rugby league second-rows Rugby union flankers Rugby union players from Merthyr Tydfil Wales international rugby union players Wales national rugby league team players Welsh rugby league players Welsh rugby union players Wigan Warriors players