Charles Savory (23 March 1889 – 8 May 1915) was a New Zealand international

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footballer and champion boxer who died in the

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. An Australasian and New Zealand international representative

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, Savory was one of four Kiwis players selected to go on the

1911–12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain The 1911–12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain was the second ever Kangaroo tour and was actually a tour by an " Australasian" squad that included four New Zealand players in addition to 24 Australian representatives. It took place over the British ...

. Due to playing the same sports, he has been described as "the

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of his time."

Rugby union career

In an

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club match, while Savory was playing for Ponsonby, he was suspended for two years for kicking a player.Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909–2009'', 2009. , p.p.44-46

Rugby league career

Savory then joined the new

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is responsible for rugby league in the region, including both club and school rugby league. It began in 1910 when the fi ...

competition, playing for Ponsonby United. An

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representative, Savory was first selected for

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in 1911 when they toured Australia, playing against

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and

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. He was then one of four New Zealanders selected to go on the

. In 1912 he was sent off during a match for Ponsonby United and was suspended for the rest of the season, missing the 1912 New Zealand tour. In 1913 Savory was found guilty of kicking by the ARL judiciary and was suspended for life. Savory claimed it was a case of mistaken identity. This sparked a feud between the ARL and the

New Zealand Rugby League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year.Coffey and Wood ''T ...

as the NZRL heard the case and asked the ARL to reconsider, which they refused to do in June. The NZRL then quashed the conviction and Savory played for New Zealand while he was still suspended by the ARL. The incident resulted in the NZRL suspending the entire ARL board and on 15 January 1914 the NZRL approved an entirely "new" ARL board. Savory again toured Australia in 1913 and in 1914 played in a Test match against the touring

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Boxing career

In 1914 Savory won the National Amateur Heavyweight Boxing championship.

World War I

Savory enlisted with the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He died of wounds at

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on 8 May 1915 after landing at Ari Burnu with the Auckland Battalion. The

2015 Anzac Test The 2015 Anzac Test was a rugby league test match played between Australia and New Zealand at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. It was the 16th Anzac Test played between the two nations since the first was played under the Super League banner in 19 ...

man of the match,

Manu Vatuvei Manu Mapuhola Mafi-Vatuvei (born 4 March 1986), also known by the nickname "The Beast", is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer and convicted methamphetamine importer who was both a Tonga and New Zealand international repres ...

, was awarded the Charles Savory medal.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Savory, Charles 1889 births 1915 deaths New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand military personnel killed in World War I Auckland rugby league team players Rugby league props New Zealand Army personnel Ponsonby Ponies players New Zealand rugby union players Australasia rugby league team players New Zealand male boxers