Alfred James Croston (born – death unknown) was an English rugby union, and 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 1930s and 1940s, and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

ed rugby league in the 1940s and 1950s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English citi ...

, at military level for

Army Rugby Union The Army Rugby Union (ARU) is the governing body for rugby union in the British Army and a constituent body of the Rugby Football Union (RFU). The ARU was formed on 31 December 1906 and marked the fulfilment of Lieutenant J. E. C. "Birdie" Partr ...

(with Frank Whitcombe), and the 38th Field Company

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

, and at club level for United Services Portsmouth, and representative level rugby league (RL) for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

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

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins the ...

and

Wakefield Trinity Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, that plays in the Super League. One of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, between 1999 and 2016 the c ...

(

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 ...

), as a , and coached at club level for

Playing career

Castleford

Croston came from Wigan and had begun playing rugby at Castleford around 1932 after leaving the army, where he had played for United Services and won a cap for Hampshire. Croston played right- in

's 11-8 victory over

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

in the

1935 Challenge Cup Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart bec ...

Final during the 1934–35 season at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on Saturday 4 May 1935, in front of a crowd of 39,000. In November 1938, he put in a transfer request to the Castleford board and, although selected, did not turn up for the club's match with Hull. He was not named for the team that played Barrow on 26 November and said that he would retire from the sport unless his request was granted. Despite this, he was available to play for the club at the start of the 1938-39 season. Croston played in

's victory in the

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

County League during the 1938–39 season.

Wakefield Trinity

Croston made his début for

during September 1943, and he played his last match for Wakefield Trinity during the 1946–47 season. He was

's 13-12 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

1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involves am ...

Final during the 1945–46 season at

on Saturday 4 May 1946, in front of a crowd of 54,730.Hoole, Les (2004). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC - FIFTY GREAT GAMES''. Breedon Books. Croston was the

's 2-5 defeat by

Bradford Northern The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is predomi ...

in the 1945 Yorkshire Cup Final during the 1945–46 season at Thrum Hall, Halifax on Saturday 3 November 1945, played at , and was the

in the 10-0 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 1946 Yorkshire Cup Final during the 1946–47 season at Headingley,

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

on Saturday 31 November 1946, and was the

(standing in for Harry Beverley) in the 17-3 victory over

Keighley Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parish in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford. Keighley is north-west of Bradford city centre, north-west of Bi ...

in the

1951 Yorkshire Cup Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

Final during the 1951–52 Northern season at Fartown Ground,

on Saturday 27 October 1951.

Representative honours

Jim Croston won caps for

while at Castleford in 1936 against Wales, in 1938 against Wales (2 matches), and France, in 1939 against France, and Wales, and won a cap for

while at Castleford in 1937 against Australia. Jim Croston won caps for

while at

; he played right-, i.e. number 3, in

's 5-5 draw with Yorkshire at

' stadium on 9 January 1935, played in the 7-4 victory over Cumberland at

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It is th ...

's stadium on 21 September 1935, scored a

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

in the 28-6 victory over Yorkshire at

's stadium on 21 October 1936, scored 2- tries in the 18-10 victory over Cumberland at St. Helens' stadium on 31 October 1936, played in the 23-17 victory over Cumberland at

Workington Town Workington Town R.L.F.C. is a semi-professional rugby league club playing in Workington in west Cumbria. Their stadium is Derwent Park, which they share with Workington Comets, a speedway team. They became Rugby League Champions in 1951 and ...

's stadium on 18 September 1937, played left-, i.e. number 4, and scored a

in the 7-5 victory over

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in the 1937–38 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France match at Wilderspool Stadium,

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 ...

on Wednesday 29 September 1937, in front of a crowd of 16,250. played in the 8-7 victory over Cumberland at

's stadium on 14 September 38, and played in the 10-10 draw with Yorkshire at

' stadium on 26 October 1938.

References

External links

*(archived by web.archive.org
Profile at thecastlefordtigers.co.ukJohn Ledger: Legend Croston's starring role in real golden era of the CupCas The Golden Point PioneersSearch for "Jim Croston" at britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Croston, James 1911 births 1992 deaths Army rugby union players British Army personnel of World War II Castleford Tigers players England national rugby league team players English rugby league coaches English rugby league players English rugby union players Great Britain national rugby league team players Lancashire rugby league team players Royal Engineers soldiers Rugby league centres Rugby league players from Wigan Rugby union players from Wigan United Services players Wakefield Trinity captains Wakefield Trinity coaches Wakefield Trinity players