Steve Darmody (1890–1969) was a pioneer Australian who saw active service in the British army in

WWI World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He had been an Australian national representative

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 ...

player and toured with the Australian national team on their

1911–12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain The 1911–12 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain was the second ever Kangaroo tour and was actually a tour by an " Australasian" squad that included four New Zealand players in addition to 24 Australian representatives. It took place over the British ...

Career

A promising hurdler in his youth, Darmody joined the South Sydney Club in 1910 initially as a goal-kicking winger. He was chosen for the

as versatile forward. He played in six minor matches on the tour, kicking nine goals. Following the tour he stayed in England and along with

Herb Gilbert Herbert R. Gilbert (18 September 1888 – 5 January 1972) was an Australian rugby league and rugby union player – a dual-code international. He represented the Wallabies in three Tests in 1910 and the Kangaroos in seven Tests from 1911 to 19 ...

and

Jim Devereux James Devereux (1887–1934), also known by the nickname of "Muscles", was a pioneering Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s, 1910s and 1920s. A New South Wales state and Australia national representative three-quarter ...

he joined

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 ...

for whom he made 89 appearances between 1912 and 1914. Alongside Gilbert and Devereux, Darmody played as a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

, i.e. number 13, in

Hull FC 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 wer ...

's 6–0 victory over

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 ...

in the

1914 This year saw the beginning of what became known as World War I, after Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, heir to the Austrian throne was Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, assassinated by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. It als ...

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 1913–14 season at

Thrum Hall Thrum Hall was a rugby league stadium on Hanson Lane in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. It was the home of Halifax for 112 years. The site on which the ground stood is now occupied by a supermarket. History In 1878, Halifax, who had just w ...

, Halifax, in front of a crowd of 19,000.

War service

At the outbreak of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Darmody enlisted in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

. He saw service in Flanders as a despatch rider for the Service Corps. His foot was mangled in a machinery accident early in the war resulting in the loss of his foot. He had an artificial limb fitted and then re-enlisted. The Hull club later played a testimonial match for Darmody. In 1921, when the airship

R38 The ''R.38'' class (also known as the ''A'' class) of rigid airships was designed for Britain's Royal Navy during the final months of the First World War, intended for long-range patrol duties over the North Sea. Four similar airships were ...

split in two over the River Humber and fell into the shallow estuary, Darmody searched through the rubble for survivors and was called to give evidence at the coronial inquest.http://www.smh.com.au/rugby-league/league-news/kangaroos-who-enlisted-in-world-war-i-were-in-a-league-of-their-own-20140424-zqyh5.html SMH article on Darmody After the war he ran a motorcycle business in Hull and lived out his later life in Scotland.

Sources

* Whiticker, Alan & Hudson, Glen (2006) ''The Encyclopedia of Rugby League Players'', Gavin Allen Publishing, Sydney

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darmody, Steve 1890 births 1969 deaths Australasia rugby league team players Australia national rugby league team players Australian rugby league players British Army personnel of World War I Hull F.C. players Royal Army Service Corps soldiers Rugby league forwards Rugby league wingers South Sydney Rabbitohs players Rugby league players from Queanbeyan