Francis "Frank" Stirrup (1925 – 2 February 2013), also known by the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

of "Mr Football", was an English professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s. He played at representative level for

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, and at club level for Culcheth ARLFC (near

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Staf ...

( Heritage № 538), Salford and

Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, wh ...

(

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

) ( Heritage № 562), as a , or , i.e. number 1, 2 or 5, 6, or 7.

Personal life

Frank Stirrup's birth was registered in

, England. He was the son of Oliver Stirrup, who also played rugby. In 1950, he signed up for

from Salford. His career debuted on January 21, 1951.

Death

On 2 February 2013, Frank died. His funeral service was held at the St Josephs R.C. Church.

Playing career

Championship final appearances

Frank Stirrup played in

's 3–7 defeat by

in the Championship Final during the 1954–55 season, and played, and was

, in the 15–14 victory over

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and were ...

in the Championship Final during the 1956–57 season. After the victory, he became the first person to Oldham skipper to lift a trophy since a victory that happened 20 years before.

County Cup Final appearances

About Frank Stirrup's time, there was

's 2–12 defeat by

Barrow Barrow may refer to: Places England * Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria ** Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, local authority encompassing the wider area ** Barrow and Furness (UK Parliament constituency) * Barrow, Cheshire * Barrow, Gloucestershire * Barro ...

in the

1954 Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...

County Cup The county football associations are the local governing bodies of association football in England and the Crown dependencies. County FAs exist to govern all aspects of football in England. They are responsible for administering club and player ...

Final during the 1954–55 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 23 October 1954, he played , and was

's 10–3 victory over St. Helens in the

1956 Events January * January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Sudan, Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan. * January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian Missionary, missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim ...

Final during the 1956–57 season at

on Saturday 20 October 1956, through injury he missed the 13–8 victory over

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

in the

1957 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1957th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 957th year of the 2nd millennium, the 57th year of the 20th century, and the 8th y ...

Final during the 1957–58 season at

on Saturday 19 October 1957, and played , and was

in the 12–2 victory over St. Helens in the

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...

Final during the 1958–59 season at

on Saturday 25 October 1958.

Club career

Frank Stirrup was transferred from Salford to

during November 1950, and he made his début for Oldham against Belle Vue Rangers on Saturday 20 January 1951.

Honoured at Oldham

Frank Stirrup is an Oldham Hall Of Fame Inductee.

References

External links

Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org
->
Search for "Stirrup" at rugbyleagueproject.org

Former Oldham RL star dies

Frank Stirrup RIP

Former Oldham RL Star dies

Oldham mourn legend Frank
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stirrup, Frank 1931 births 2013 deaths English rugby league players Lancashire rugby league team players Leigh Leopards players Oldham R.L.F.C. captains Oldham R.L.F.C. players Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league fullbacks Rugby league halfbacks Rugby league players from Leigh, Greater Manchester Rugby league wingers Salford Red Devils players