Harrow County School for Boys

Rugby Team, 1st XV, 1934-35

(This photograph was scanned by Alex Bateman from the Gaytonian Archives.  The team members were identified by Fred Samsom.)

Back row (L-R): D. A. (Des) Bye, S. J. (Sid) Pullen, H. J. (Josh) Reynolds, D. J. (Duggie) Anderton, G. D. (Geoff) Stredder, D. P. H. (Derek) Dyson,  J. Rothwell. 
Middle Row: T. P. (Trevor) Poltock, D. D. (David) Maitland, C. (Charles) Gosling, R. B. (Roy) Newman, J. W. (John) Carroll, Perkins, H. C. (Harold?) Allaway. Front Row: F. A. (Fred) Sansom, N. (Nubar) Keljik.

From The Gaytonian, Marhc 1935:

Personalities of the XV

Thorne (full back) - Good kicker; excellent defence, equally good in attack.

Pullen (full back) - Cool and calm in defence, a good kick, but lacks self-confidence, which will come with experience.

Poltock (wing three-quarter) - Fleet of foot, with a delicate sense of swerve which has got past many full backs.

Carroll (centre) - Excellent defence, and good attack on his day, but is rather too gentle and halting sometimes.

Bye (centre or fly) - Generally good in attack, with a good run, but must pay more attention to the taking of passes, and think more football in his movements.

Rothwell (wing) - Very good runner, a useful kick and a sure teckler.

Dyson (fly or centre) - An excellent schemer with good football sense, and reliable in defense.

Keljik (scrum) - A first-rate spoiler; passes are too often half-lobs, and spoil his otherwise forceful and pugnacious game; his solo efforts are good and show promise.

Newman (captain of the XV and front row forward) - A good worker in the "tight,"  and his efforts in the loose take a bit of stopping.

Gosling (vice-captain and wing forward) - His technique is sound; always everywhere, and a sure tackler.

Maitland (lock) - Good forward in the line-out, an individualist in the loose. with a good speed when he gets away.

Allaway (front row) - Works hard in the "tight," and is improving in the loose, but must learn to kick accurately.

Perkins (wedge) - Has weight, ability and forcefulness; rather prone to wander, which must be stopped.

Stredder (hooker) - has learned a lot about the art in a short time, but is too spasmodic in his support in the loose.

Reynolds (wing) - Good "spoiling" forward, and good in the loose, but lacks some of his early "fire."

Sansom (wedge) - The youngest member, but a good worker in the "tight" occasionally finds the pace too hot for him.  His solo efforts show promise and he is learning the game very quickly.

C. N. R.

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