Sidney Devereux Little OBE ( – 27 July 2017) was an English

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 its m ...

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 1950s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

, and at club level for

Harlequin F.C. Harlequins (officially Harlequin Football Club) is a professional rugby union club that plays in Premiership Rugby, the top level of English rugby union. Their home ground is the Twickenham Stoop, located in Twickenham, south-west London. Foun ...

, as a

prop A prop, formally known as (theatrical) property, is an object used on stage or screen by actors during a performance or screen production. In practical terms, a prop is considered to be anything movable or portable on a stage or a set, distinc ...

, i.e. number 1 or 3, 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 ...

and

, and at club level for

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 ...

, as a or . Little is an Oldham Hall Of Fame Inductee.

Background

Little was born in Kirkbride,

, and grew up in the nearby village

Burgh by Sands Burgh by Sands () is a village and civil parish in the City of Carlisle district of Cumbria, England, situated near the Solway Firth. The parish includes the village of Burgh by Sands along with Longburgh, Dykesfield, Boustead Hill, Moorhouse ...

Playing career

Oldham

About Little's time, there was

's 2–12 defeat by Barrow in the 1954 Lancashire Cup 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, the 10–3 victory over St. Helens in the 1956 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1956–57 season at

on Saturday 20 October 1956, and the 12–2 victory over St. Helens in the 1958 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1958–59 season at

on Saturday 25 October 1958, he played right- in

's 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 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1957–58 season at

on Saturday 19 October 1957. Little retired towards the end of the 1958–59 season. In 2005, Little was among the nine players inducted into Oldham's Hall of Fame.

Representative career

In rugby union, Little won

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 for

(RU) while at

In rugby league, Little won 10 caps for

while at Oldham between 1956 and 1958. He made his début against

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 ...

on 15 December 1956, scoring one try in a 19–0 victory over the Kangaroos. He played in all three matches for Great Britain at the

1957 Rugby League World Cup The second Rugby League World Cup was held in Australia in 1957. As before a group stage was held first, with matches being held at locations in Sydney and Brisbane. The 1957 World Cup marked the 50th anniversary of rugby league in Australia bu ...

. He also won

s at county level for

Military career

Little joined the RAF in 1970, and was appointed an OBE for services to the

Air Training Corps The Air Training Corps (ATC) is a British volunteer-military youth organisation. They are sponsored by the Ministry of Defence and the Royal Air Force. The majority of staff are volunteers, and some are paid for full-time work – including C ...

in the 1982 New Year Honours list.

References

External links

*(archived by web.archive.org
Statistics at orl-heritagetrust.org.ukPhotograph "Another Championship Final at Odsal - Denis Ayres of Oldham goes over in this Championship Final of 1957. Oldham won the game, beating Hull 15-14. - Date: 01/01/1957" at rlhp.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Little, Sidney 1930 births 2017 deaths Cumberland rugby league team players English rugby league players English rugby union players Great Britain national rugby league team players Harlequin F.C. players Officers of the Order of the British Empire Oldham R.L.F.C. players People from Burgh by Sands Rugby league players from Cumbria Rugby union players from Cumbria Rugby league players from Wigton Rugby league props Rugby league second-rows Rugby union players from Wigton Rugby union props