William Lindsay Beattie ( – 27 January 1917) was a Scottish professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1910s. He played at club level for Wakefield Trinity ( Heritage No. 192) (

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

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 ...

(prior to the specialist positions of; ), during the era of contested scrums, and was invited to join the

1914 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand The 1914 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand was the second ever British national rugby league team or 'Lions' tour of Australasia, where it was winter and matches were played against the Australian and New Zealand national sides, ...

, but declined due to business reasons. Beattie served as a commissioned officer with the Border Regiment (initially in the 10th (service) battalion), and latterly in the 1st battalion (ex 34th Foot), and was killed on the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

in 1917 during World War I.Mike Rylance (22 August 2013). "Trinity: A History of the Wakefield Rugby League Football Club 1872-2013". League Publications Ltd.

Playing career

Challenge Cup Final appearances

Billy Beattie played as a

, i.e. number 10, in Wakefield Trinity's 0–6 defeat by

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

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

Club career

Billy Beattie made his début for Wakefield Trinity during December 1911, and he played his last match for Wakefield Trinity during October 1914, he appears to have scored no drop-goals (or field-goals as they are currently known in Australasia), but prior to the 1974–75 season all goals, whether;

conversion Conversion or convert may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * "Conversion" (''Doctor Who'' audio), an episode of the audio drama ''Cyberman'' * "Conversion" (''Stargate Atlantis''), an episode of the television series * "The Conversion" ...

penalties Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalty ...

, or

drop-goal A drop goal, field goal, or dropped goal is a method of scoring points in rugby union and rugby league and also, rarely, in American football and Canadian football. A drop goal is scored by drop kicking the ball (dropping the ball and then ki ...

s, scored 2-points, consequently prior to this date drop-goals were often not explicitly documented, therefore '0' drop-goals may indicate drop-goals not recorded, rather than no drop-goals scored. In addition, prior to the 1949–50 season, the archaic field-goal was also still a valid means of scoring points.

References

External links

Search for "Beattie" at rugbyleagueproject.org
1880s births 1917 deaths Border Regiment officers British Army personnel of World War I British military personnel killed in World War I Rugby league forwards Rugby league players from Aberdeenshire Scottish rugby league players Wakefield Trinity captains Wakefield Trinity players People from Ballater {{Scotland-rugbyleague-bio-stub