Robert Dibble (15 November 1882 – 1963) was an English 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 ...

from 1906 to 1912. He also captained the side in 1909 and 1912.

Early life

Robert Dibble was born in 1882 in

Bridgwater Bridgwater is a large historic market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. Its population currently stands at around 41,276 as of 2022. Bridgwater is at the edge of the Somerset Levels, in level and well-wooded country. The town lies alon ...

. His father was Robert Dibble (1848–1938) his mother Fanny Boon (1848–1930). Despite being illiterate, his father rose to be the respected manager of the local brickworks.

Rugby union career

Dibble played as a forward for the Bridgwater RFC rugby club and made his international debut for

against

Scotland 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 ...

on 17 March 1906 at

Inverleith Inverleith (Scottish Gaelic: ''Inbhir Lìte'') is an inner suburb in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, on the fringes of the central region of the city. Its neighbours include Trinity to the north and the New Town to the south, with Canonmills a ...

. He took part in the 1908 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia, playing three games. Of the 22 matches he played for England or the British Lions he was on the winning side on 11 occasions. He played his final match for England on 16 March 1912 at Inverleith in the

Calcutta Cup The Calcutta Cup is the trophy awarded to the winner of the rugby match between England and Scotland played annually in the Six Nations Championship. Like the match itself (England–Scotland), the Calcutta Cup is the oldest trophy contested be ...

(Scotland vs England) match.

References

1882 births 1963 deaths Bridgwater & Albion RFC players England international rugby union players English rugby union players Newport RFC players Rugby union players from Bridgwater Rugby union forwards British & Irish Lions rugby union players from England {{England-rugbyunion-bio-stub