Arthur Norman McClinton (16 August 1886 – 29 November 1929) was an Irish

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 its m ...

international who was part of the first official

British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ...

team that toured South Africa in 1910. He also played on 2 occasions for Ireland.

Early life

Arthur Norman McClinton was born in

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

on 16 August 1886 the son of John McClinton and his wife Rosa Hurst McClinton. His father was a seed merchant, also born in Belfast, whilst his mother hailed from

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and ha ...

.1901 Ireland census at www.myheritage.com
/ref> He had at least four siblings: Dorothy Louise McClinton; Marie Rose McClinton; John Stuart McClinton and Fred Hurst McClinton.

Rugby career

McClinton played rugby union as a fly-half for the third oldest club in Ireland,

North of Ireland FC North of Ireland Football Club is a former Irish rugby union club that was based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It was the first rugby club formed in what is now Northern Ireland and only two other clubs - Dublin University and Wanderers - wer ...

, with whom he won the 1908 Ulster Senior Cup. He was selected to play for Ireland in 1910, debuting at

Lansdowne Road Lansdowne Road Stadium ( ga, Bóthar Lansdún, ) was a stadium in Dublin owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) that was primarily used for rugby union and association football matches. The stadium was demolished in 2007 to make way for ...

against Wales on 12 March 1910 in that first ever

Five Nations championship The Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The current champions ar ...

. He played again on 28 March against France in Paris, and this was in fact his final appearance for his country. Later that year he was selected for the first official

team that toured South Africa in 1910. In that tour he played second fiddle to George Isherwood, not managing to appear in any of the Tests. However, he shone in the midweek side, making eight appearances and knocking over two drop goals against Orange River County and Southern Rhodesia.

Military service

Along with his two brothers, John Stuart and Frederick Hurst, Arthur served in the Great War. John was with 7th Battalion,

King's Shropshire Light Infantry The King's Shropshire Light Infantry (KSLI) was a light infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in the Childers Reforms of 1881, but with antecedents dating back to 1755. It served in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. In 196 ...

and did not survive the war. Arthur served with 10th (South Belfast) Battalion, Royal Irish Rifles. He was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

, his citation reading: ''"For conspicuous gallantry in action. He kept his company in hand with great determination under heavy fire, and finally led it over "No Man's Land" into the enemy's lines. Later, he did fine work in organizing the defences of the captured trenches."''The London Gazette, Publication date:14 November 1916 Supplement:29824Page:11060
/ref> By the end of the war he was a Temporary Captain.

Personal life and family

Arthur's brother Frederick Hurst did survive the war and had a son, John Fredric McClinton, born 29 June 1923, who, like his uncle Arthur, was a good rugby player, became a Captain in the Second World War and was awarded an MC (and bar).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McClinton, Arthur Norman 1886 births Irish rugby union players Rugby union fly-halves British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Ireland 1929 deaths Ireland international rugby union players Recipients of the Military Cross North of Ireland F.C. players Rugby union players from Belfast