Lancelot Beaumont "Lance" Todd (26 May 1883 – 14 November 1942) was a New Zealand-born

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 and manager of the early 20th century. As a player, he represented

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

in 1907 and 1908 and played in England for the Wigan and Dewsbury clubs. He later became the manager at Salford and led the club to three League Championships and one

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 ...

victory.

Early life

Todd attended Kings College which at that time was based in

Remuera Remuera is an affluent inner city suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located four kilometres southeast of the city centre. Remuera is characterised by many large houses, often Edwardian or mid 20th century. A prime example of a "leafy" sub ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, before later relocating to Otahuhu. After leaving school Todd became a

tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...

by trade. His father was John Todd who was a well known sporting identity in the Otahuhu area, particularly in horse racing. At the time of his death in October, 1920 he was the vice president of the Otahuhu Trotting Club.

Rugby in New Zealand

Originally he played

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 ...

in the Otahuhu area, with his senior debut being for the Suburbs club. They were a side made up of players who lived outside a 10 mile radius of the city centre and struggled to practice for obvious reasons. They did often train in Otahuhu however. Todd joined the City club in 1905 and then moved to the Parnell club in 1906. He first made the

side in 1905, making his debut against Hawke's Bay on August 12 where he scored a try and kicked 2 conversions in their win. In 1906 despite joining the Parnell club he went on the 4 match City tour of Sydney where he played in 3 matches against Sydney University, Glebe, and South Sydney. Later in the year he played in a match for City Oddfellows (Manchester Unity town Oddfellows) against Goldfield Oddfellows. Todd was a member of the Franklin Lodge along with his brothers. He did not make the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

but this was due to the tremendous talent in front of him and he was still regarded as being a special player in the Auckland scene.John Haynes ''From All Blacks to All Golds: Rugby League's Pioneers'', Christchurch, Ryan and Haynes, 1996. He made his debut for Auckland in 1905, playing in 4 matches. Despite playing in several trial matches he did not play for Auckland again in 1906 or 1907, but did play in an inter-union match in 1906 and 3 Auckland B games over the 1906-07 period. New Zealand Rugby League Team of 1907-08 to Tour England

New Zealand Rugby League Team of 1907-08 to Tour England

He was picked for the professional All Blacks 1907–1908 rugby tour of Great Britain and Australia and subsequently, like all members of the tour, received a life ban from the

New Zealand Rugby Union New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is the governing body of rugby union in New Zealand. It was founded in 1892 as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU), 12 years after the first provincial unions in New Zealand. In 1949 it became an affiliate to t ...

. Todd had been involved in organising the tour and served on the Management Committee. During the tour he excelled at the game of

, playing in four Test matches, and scoring eight tries in all games. He was one of five players who opted to stay in Great Britain at the tour's end.

Rugby League in England

He was signed by

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 ...

after the tour for £400 and the captaincy, and he became an outstanding centre, making 186 appearances for the club. He was later joined by fellow tourist

Massa Johnston William "Massa" Johnston (13 September 1881 – 9 January 1951) was a New Zealand rugby union and rugby league international. He was part of the 1905 Original All Blacks tour and the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britai ...

and All Black

Charlie Seeling Charles Edward "Bronco" Seeling (14 May 1883 – 29 May 1956) was a New Zealand international rugby football player of the early 20th century. He played in the forwards for the original All Blacks, appearing in 11 tests including the famous "'' ...

. Lance Todd played left-, i.e. number 4, in

's 10-9 victory over

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 ...

in the 1908

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

County Cup The county football associations are the local governing bodies of association football in England and the Crown dependencies. County FAs exist to govern all aspects of football in England. They are responsible for administering club and player ...

Final during the 1908–09 season at

Wheater's Field Wheater's Field was a rugby ground in Broughton, Salford, England. It was home to the Broughton Rangers rugby league club of the Northern Union. On 19 October 1907, the stadium hosted a match between Rangers and the New Zealand All Golds. It ...

, Broughton, on Saturday 19 December 1908, and played left-, i.e. number 4, and scored a

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

in the 21-5 victory over

Rochdale Hornets The Rochdale Hornets are a professional rugby league club from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, competing in the Championship, the second tier of European rugby league. The Rochdale Hornets are one of the original twenty-two rugby clubs ...

in the

1912 Events January * January 1 – The Republic of China (1912–49), Republic of China is established. * January 5 – The Prague Conference (6th All-Russian Conference of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party) opens. * January 6 ...

Final during the 1912–13 season at

Weaste Weaste () is a suburb in the City of Salford, Greater Manchester, England. In 2014, Weaste and Seedley ward had a population of 12,616. History Historically in Lancashire, it is an industrial area, with many industrial estates. The A57 (Ec ...

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

, on Wednesday 11 December 1912. At the end of the

1908–09 Northern Rugby Football Union season The 1908–09 Northern Rugby Football Union season was the 14th season of rugby league football in the United Kingdom. The governing body, the Northern Union (NU) decided to admit four extra clubs, all from Wales; Aberdare, Barry, Mid-Rhondda ...

Todd played at centre in Wigan's victory over

in the

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

Final. He was also a member of the first Wigan Rugby League

Final line-up, which they lost to

Broughton Rangers Broughton Rangers were one of the twenty-one rugby clubs which met at the George Hotel, Huddersfield, in 1895 to form the Northern Rugby Football Union. They were originally based in Broughton, Salford, but in 1933 moved to Gorton, Manchester t ...

in 1911. The

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is responsible for rugby league in the region, including both club and school rugby league. It began in 1910 when the fi ...

was recognised by England's

Northern Rugby Football Union Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...

as New Zealand's governing body for the game of rugby league, with Lance Todd to act as their delegate in England. In 1909 he refereed Auckland's first ever official match with

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

on August 9 at

Victoria Park Victoria Park may refer to: Places Australia * Victoria Park Nature Reserve, a protected area in Northern Rivers region, New South Wales * Victoria Park, Adelaide, a park and racecourse * Victoria Park, Brisbane, a public park and former golf ...

. Five weeks later he refereed the return match at the Recreation Ground in

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

. During November 1910, he played twice for

, when his aggregate of two tries and two goals helped seal the county title. In 1914, he transferred, unexpectedly, to

Dewsbury Dewsbury is a minster and market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Calder and on an arm of the Calder and Hebble Navigation waterway. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Hudder ...

for a fee of £450 – a huge fee at the time, (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £139,900 in 2013). He left Dewsbury during the

First World War 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 ...

to serve with the

ANZACs ''Anzacs'' (named for members of the all volunteer army formations) is a 1985 Australian five-part television miniseries set in World War I. The series follows the lives of a group of young Australian men who enlist in the 8th Battalion (Austr ...

Later life

In 1928 he became the team manager at

, achieving legendary status. Salford were close to folding when he joined but his management turned them into a formidable and successful team. During the 1930s Salford won three League Championships, five Lancashire League Championships, four Lancashire Cups, and was the

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

's 7-4 victory over Barrow in the

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

Final during the 1937–38 season at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, in front of a crowd of 51,243.. He stayed at Salford until August 1940 when club directors decided not to renew his contract whilst the country was at war with Germany. In 1933, as well his work at Salford, he became the Rugby League commentator for

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927). The service provides national radio stations covering th ...

. "Mr Lance B. Todd presents running commentary on....." the rugby league game of the day was very common in the Radio listings during the 1930s.

Personal life and death

Lance Todd married Amy B. Samuels on 7 May 1911 at the Wigan Parish Church. Her father was Charles Samuels who was deceased prior to the wedding. Charles and had been licensee of the Crofters Arms Hotel, and had been a well known rugby player and a famous sprinter when younger. They had a daughter, Patricia Elaine Todd in 1922 who passed away in 2004. Later in his life he managed the Silver Grid in King Street and the Ship Hotel in Millgate prior to his appointment as manager of Salford. Inscription, Lance Todd's grave - geograph

Inscription, Lance Todd's grave - geograph

Todd died in a motor accident on 14 November 1942. An inquest into his death determined a verdict of "accidental death". During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Todd was serving as a commandant to the Salford section of the

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting wi ...

but it would be on a return home from duty in

that the accident happened. A car he was driving swerved to avoid a collision with a tram, but crashed into a lamppost. Todd died along with his colleague Colonel Frank Sewell in the front passenger seat. Two passengers in the rear seats of the car survived. Todd is buried in Wigan (Ince) cemetery.

Legacy

For his work as a manager and as a radio commentator resulted in the

Lance Todd Trophy The Lance Todd Trophy is a trophy in rugby league, awarded to the annual Challenge Cup Final's man of the match. Introduced in 1945–46, the trophy was named in memory of Lance Todd, the New Zealand-born player and administrator, who was killed in ...

being named after him. This trophy is awarded to the man of the match in the

Final. In 2007 Todd was inducted as one of the

New Zealand Rugby League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league football in New Zealand. SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a tour of Great Britain that same year.Coffey and Wood ''T ...

's inaugural "Legends of League".

References

External links

Lance Todd
on the Wigan RL Fansite.
Lance Todd
at ''wiganwarriors.com''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Todd, Lance 1874 births 1942 deaths Auckland rugby union players British Army personnel of World War II British Home Guard officers Dewsbury Rams players Lancashire rugby league team players New Zealand emigrants to the United Kingdom New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league administrators New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league commentators New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand rugby union players Road incident deaths in England Rugby league centres Salford Red Devils coaches Wigan Warriors players Rugby league players from Auckland