Percival Wilkinson (1848 – c. 1891) was a rugby union international who represented

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 ...

in 1872 against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

in his only appearance for the national side.P. Wilkinson Profile on scrum.com
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Early life

Percival Wilkinson was born in Hampstead, London, the son of William Martin Wilkinson, a solicitor of 44, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London and his wife, Elizabeth, who hailed from Derbyshire. Percival's uncle, his father's brother, was the Swedenborgian writer J. Garth Wilkinson. The legal profession was deeply rooted in the Wilkinson family, with Percival's grandfather James John Wilkinson (died 1845), having been a writer on mercantile

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

and a judge of the County Palatine of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county * Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...

. Of Percival's two older brothers, Edward and William, the latter went into their father's firm and of Percival's two younger brothers, Charles and Hugh, the latter trained as a barrister at Lincoln's Inn. Percival himself was at school locally, and then by 1871 was an articled clerk to an attorney. He married Constance Vallance Stratford Bell in 1878, and his son Cuthbert was born in 1880. In 1881 Percival Wilkinson he was still a solicitor in London, but died sometime before 1891.

Rugby union career

As a rugby player he was listed as belonging to the Law Club. This was a closed club for members of the legal profession, hence his position in an attorney's firm qualified him. He also played rugby at halfback for Harlequins, his local club that when he first played for them was known as The Hampstead Football Club, but changed its name in 1870. However, when selected for England, his team was given as

Law FC Law, or The Law Club as it was also known, was a 19th-century football club that fielded teams playing by rugby football codes. It is notable for being one of the twenty-one founding members of the Rugby Football Union and for producing in a very ...

because, according to one source, Harlequins were not well known enough at the time.Barry Morrison Bowker, ''England rugby: a history of the national side, 1871-1978'', p4-5, Cassell, 1978 His international debut, and only appearance, was on 5 February 1872 in front of 4,000 spectators at

The Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

in the

match. This was the second time the teams had met and in fact the second international match, as well as being the first time England had hosted an international rugby match. England won the match, a reversal of the previous year's result in Scotland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Percival 1848 births 19th-century deaths Year of death uncertain Date of death unknown English rugby union players England international rugby union players Rugby union halfbacks Rugby union players from Hampstead