John Hammond (28 July 1860 – 21 November 1907) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

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, although not capped for

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, was part of three British Lions tours, all to

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. He gained three

cap A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. Caps typically have a visor, or no brim at all. They are popular in casual and informal se ...

s during the 1891 tour to South Africa and captained the 1896 tour, winning another two test caps. Although not part of the 1899 tour to Australia, he was made the manager of the 1903 tour. Despite captaining the British Isles, Hammond never represented

Early life

Hammond was born in

Skipton Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Ai ...

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

in 1860 to James Hammond of Arncliffe. He was educated at

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils 13-18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oakham School. The headma ...

and later

Tonbridge School (God Giveth the Increase) , established = , closed = , type = Public schoolIndependent day and boarding , religion = , president = , head_label ...

before being accepted into

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge or Oxford. ...

in 1879, gaining a BA in 1883. He was called to The Bar in 1885, after taking an administrative legal role at Lincoln's Inn from 1880, whilst still an undergraduate.

Rugby career

Hammond first came to note as a rugby player while at Cambridge where he played for

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

and in 1881 won a Cambridge Blue in a Varsity match.Jenkins (1981), pg 150. In 1891, Hammond was selected for the first official British Isles tour. The tour to South Africa was very successful for the tourists, with the British team winning all three tests; Hammond played in all of them. five years later, and now a 36-year-old veteran, Hammond was selected for the second tour of South Africa. Hammond, now playing for Blackheath, was only one of two players to have played in a previous tour, the other being

Froude Hancock Philip Froude Hancock universally known as Froude Hancock (29 August 1865 – 16 October 1933) was an English rugby union forward who played international rugby for the British Isles XV on two tours, the 1891 and 1896 tour of South Africa ...

.Griffiths (1987), pg 9:3. Hammond was given the captaincy of the British team for the 1896 tour, but only lead the team out for the second test, in Johannesburg, and the final test played in Cape Town. The deputy captain was

Thomas Crean Major Dr. Thomas Joseph Crean, (19 April 1873 – 25 March 1923) was an Irish rugby union player, British Army soldier and doctor. During the Second Boer War, while serving with the Imperial Light Horse, he was awarded the Victoria Cross. In ...

, who is often seen as the de facto leader of the British Isles tourists.IRB Hall of Fame
IRB.com Although losing the last test, the British team won the series 3–1; the last victory by the Lions in South Africa until 1974. In 1903, a British team again toured South Africa. Led by

Scotland's Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Mark Morrison Mark Morrison (born 3 May 1972) is a British R&B singer. His single, " Return of the Mack", became a No. 1 or top 10 hit in several European countries in 1996. The song peaked at No. 2 in the United States the following year. Career Mark M ...

, Hammond was selected as team manager. Although the tourists lost this series, Hammond's enthusiasm for South African rugby led to the IRB accepting the first touring South African team in their 1906 tour of Great Britain.

Bibliography

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hammond, Johnny 1860 births 1907 deaths Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Blackheath F.C. players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from England Cambridge University R.U.F.C. players People educated at Tonbridge School People educated at Uppingham School Rugby union forwards People from Skipton Rugby union players from Yorkshire