Frank Thomas Purdon (8 November 1857 – ?) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
-born
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 it ...
forward who played club rugby for
Newport and
Swansea. Purdon was capped four times for
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
including the
first Wales international, against England in 1881.
Rugby career
Purdon was selected, while a Newport player, for
Richard Mullock
Richard Mullock (3 May 1851 – 1920) was a Welsh sporting administrator and official, who is most notable for organising the first Welsh rugby union international game and was instrumental in the creation of the Welsh Football Union, which bec ...
's Wales to face England in the first Welsh international at Blackheath on 19 February 1881. Wales were humiliated, and the national press blamed the team selection, with the players apparently chosen to appease the principal rugby clubs rather than selected on the basis of ability. Many of the Welsh players from that game never played for Wales again, but Purdon was back for Wales second international game, played in
1882
Events
January–March
* January 2
** The Standard Oil Trust is secretly created in the United States to control multiple corporations set up by John D. Rockefeller and his associates.
** Irish-born author Oscar Wilde arrives in t ...
against Ireland in Dublin.
Purdon played his last two matches for Wales after transferring to Swansea, and was a member of the Welsh squad that took part in the first
Home Nations Championship under the captaincy of
Charles Lewis. Wales lost both games and Purdon was not re-selected for the 1884 tournament.
International matches played
Wales
[Smith (1980), pg 470.]
* 1881, 1882
* 1882
* 1883
Bibliography
*
*
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Purdon, Frank
1857 births
Newport RFC players
Rugby union forwards
Rugby union players from County Westmeath
Swansea RFC players
Wales international rugby union players
Welsh rugby union players
Year of death missing