Sydney Middleton
Encyclopedia
Sydney Albert 'Syd' Middleton DSO
, OBE
(24 February 1884 – 2 September 1945) was an Australia
n Army officer and national representative rugby union
player and rower. He won a gold medal in rugby at the 1908 Summer Olympics
and competed in rowing at the 1912 Summer Olympics
. He had a distinguished career in World War I
being awarded the DSO and later an OBE. He captained the Wallabies
in a Test series in 1910.
Rugby Club—the Sydney suburb of his birth. His first representative appearance was for New South Wales
in the interstate series against Queensland in 1908 which performance saw him selected for New South Wales against the touring Anglo-Welsh side of 1908. He was in the right place at the right time and was selected in Australia's inaugural national rugby team to tour the northern hemisphere - Dr Paddy Moran
's First Wallabies
. The tour was a long one—36 matches and Middleton would prove to be a reliable member of the party appearing in 31 of the Wallabies matches. He was the second tallest player in the squad which meant he featured in the Australian line-out. But he was also a robust defender at his physical peak and he was selected in every one of the tour's first eighteen games.
At the time the rugby tournament for the London Olympics
game may not have appeared to be of great significance. Australia had already beaten Cornwall, the British county champions early in the tour and Scotland
, Ireland
and France had all turned down the Rugby Football Union
's invitation to participate in the Olympic bouts. Neither the tour captain Moran, nor the vice-captain Fred Wood
played, so Middleton's club captain Chris McKivat
led the Wallabies to an easy 32-3 victory and to Olympic glory, with each Wallaby in that match thereafter an Olympic gold medallist.
Syd Middleton made his Test debut on that tour at Rectory Field, Blackheath in the Test against England
in January 1909. At the tour's end McKivat would lead fourteen of the Wallabies into the professional ranks with the fledgling rugby league
code in Sydney, but Middleton was not interested. He stayed loyal to the amateur game and was rewarded in 1910 when he captained New South Wales in matches against the All Blacks
and the New Zealand Māori
. That year he captained the Australian national side in three Tests against the All Blacks
, one of which was won. All told he made 33 national appearances for Australia including four Tests, three as captain.
Middleton a crew member of the Australian eight. The crew won its heat but lost in a quarter-final to the Leander Club from England which went on to win the gold medal in the eights competition
.
in 1915 as a 2nd-Lieutenant with B Company, 19th Battalion and embarked from Sydney on board HMAT Ceramic on 25 June 1915. He served at Gallipoli
and in France
. He was promoted to Major, 17th Battalion in May 1917. He was mentioned in despatches in 1918, was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
in 1919 for bravery in action and in 1920 he was awarded the Order of the British Empire
.
His recommendation for the DSO recorded: "The battalion owes much of its success to the splendid example set by this very fine type of officer. He was in command of the 17th Bttn. on the 14th May 1918 east of Heilly, near Amiens when the enemy made a very determined attack on the front held by the 17th Bttn and the manner in which he handled the situation and quickly restored the line showed great initiative and leadership."
After the armistice Middleton was integrally involved in arranging sporting events for the allied troops prior to their demobilisation. Middleton was a member of the victorious AIF crew at Royal Peace Regatta who won the cup for eight-oared boats which was presented by King George V
. In time, the King's Cup, became the trophy presented to the winning men's eight at the annual Australian national rowing competition.
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Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(24 February 1884 – 2 September 1945) was an Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Army officer and national representative rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player and rower. He won a gold medal in rugby at the 1908 Summer Olympics
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
and competed in rowing at the 1912 Summer Olympics
1912 Summer Olympics
The 1912 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 5 May and 27 July 1912. Twenty-eight nations and 2,407 competitors, including 48 women, competed in 102 events in 14 sports...
. He had a distinguished career in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
being awarded the DSO and later an OBE. He captained the Wallabies
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
in a Test series in 1910.
Rugby
Middleton commenced his rugby career with the GlebeGlebe, New South Wales
Glebe is an inner-city suburb of Sydney. Glebe is located 3 km south-west of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney, in the Inner West region....
Rugby Club—the Sydney suburb of his birth. His first representative appearance was for New South Wales
New South Wales Waratahs
The New South Wales Waratahs are an Australian rugby union football team, representing the majority of New South Wales in the Super 15 Super Rugby competition...
in the interstate series against Queensland in 1908 which performance saw him selected for New South Wales against the touring Anglo-Welsh side of 1908. He was in the right place at the right time and was selected in Australia's inaugural national rugby team to tour the northern hemisphere - Dr Paddy Moran
Herbert Moran
Herbert Michael "Paddy" Moran was an Australian rugby union player, a state and national representative flanker who captained the Wallabies' on their first overseas tour in 1908-09.-Early years:...
's First Wallabies
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
. The tour was a long one—36 matches and Middleton would prove to be a reliable member of the party appearing in 31 of the Wallabies matches. He was the second tallest player in the squad which meant he featured in the Australian line-out. But he was also a robust defender at his physical peak and he was selected in every one of the tour's first eighteen games.
At the time the rugby tournament for the London Olympics
1908 Summer Olympics
The 1908 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the IV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in 1908 in London, England, United Kingdom. These games were originally scheduled to be held in Rome. At the time they were the fifth modern Olympic games...
game may not have appeared to be of great significance. Australia had already beaten Cornwall, the British county champions early in the tour and Scotland
Scottish Rugby Union
The Scottish Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Scotland. It is the second oldest Rugby Union, having been founded in 1873, as the Scottish Football Union.-History:...
, Ireland
Irish Rugby Football Union
The Irish Rugby Football Union is the body managing rugby union in Ireland. The IRFU has its head office at 10/12 Lansdowne Road and home ground at Aviva Stadium, where Irish rugby union international matches are played...
and France had all turned down the Rugby Football Union
Rugby Football Union
The Rugby Football Union was founded in 1871 as the governing body for the sport of rugby union, and performed as the international governing body prior to the formation of the International Rugby Board in 1886...
's invitation to participate in the Olympic bouts. Neither the tour captain Moran, nor the vice-captain Fred Wood
Fred Wood
Frederick Wood was an Australian rugby union player, a state and national representative half-back. He was vice-captain of the Wallabies on their first overseas tour in 1908-09 and later captained the side in Test matches in 1910 and 1914...
played, so Middleton's club captain Chris McKivat
Chris McKivat
Christopher Hobart McKivat was an Australian rugby union and rugby league player – a dual-code rugby international. He represented the Wallabies in over 20 Tests and tour matches from 1907 to 1909 and the Kangaroos in 5 Tests from 1910 to 1912...
led the Wallabies to an easy 32-3 victory and to Olympic glory, with each Wallaby in that match thereafter an Olympic gold medallist.
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
in January 1909. At the tour's end McKivat would lead fourteen of the Wallabies into the professional ranks with the fledgling rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
code in Sydney, but Middleton was not interested. He stayed loyal to the amateur game and was rewarded in 1910 when he captained New South Wales in matches against the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
and the New Zealand Māori
New Zealand Maori rugby union team
New Zealand Māori is a rugby union team that traditionally plays teams touring New Zealand. A prerequisite for playing in this team is that the player is to have Māori whakapapa or genealogy. In the past this rule was not strictly applied. In the past non-Māori players who looked Māori were often...
. That year he captained the Australian national side in three Tests against the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
, one of which was won. All told he made 33 national appearances for Australia including four Tests, three as captain.
Rowing
Middleton retired from rugby in 1911 and concentrated on rowing. He contested the 1912 Summer Olympics1912 Summer Olympics
The 1912 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 5 May and 27 July 1912. Twenty-eight nations and 2,407 competitors, including 48 women, competed in 102 events in 14 sports...
Middleton a crew member of the Australian eight. The crew won its heat but lost in a quarter-final to the Leander Club from England which went on to win the gold medal in the eights competition
Rowing at the 1912 Summer Olympics - Men's eights
The men's eights was a rowing event held as part of the Rowing at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fourth appearance of the event...
.
War service
He enlisted in the AIFAustralian Imperial Force
The Australian Imperial Force was the name given to all-volunteer Australian Army forces dispatched to fight overseas during World War I and World War II.* First Australian Imperial Force * Second Australian Imperial Force...
in 1915 as a 2nd-Lieutenant with B Company, 19th Battalion and embarked from Sydney on board HMAT Ceramic on 25 June 1915. He served at Gallipoli
Battle of Gallipoli
The Gallipoli Campaign, also known as the Dardanelles Campaign or the Battle of Gallipoli, took place at the peninsula of Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire between 25 April 1915 and 9 January 1916, during the First World War...
and in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. He was promoted to Major, 17th Battalion in May 1917. He was mentioned in despatches in 1918, was awarded the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
in 1919 for bravery in action and in 1920 he was awarded the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
.
His recommendation for the DSO recorded: "The battalion owes much of its success to the splendid example set by this very fine type of officer. He was in command of the 17th Bttn. on the 14th May 1918 east of Heilly, near Amiens when the enemy made a very determined attack on the front held by the 17th Bttn and the manner in which he handled the situation and quickly restored the line showed great initiative and leadership."
After the armistice Middleton was integrally involved in arranging sporting events for the allied troops prior to their demobilisation. Middleton was a member of the victorious AIF crew at Royal Peace Regatta who won the cup for eight-oared boats which was presented by King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
. In time, the King's Cup, became the trophy presented to the winning men's eight at the annual Australian national rowing competition.
Honours and awards
- Distinguished Service OrderDistinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
- Order of the British EmpireOrder of the British EmpireThe Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
- 1914-15 Star1914-15 StarThe 1914-15 Star was a campaign medal of the British Empire, for service in World War I.The 1914-15 Star was approved in 1918, for issue to officers and men of British and Imperial forces who served in any theatre of the War between 5 August 1914 and 31 December 1915 .Recipients of this medal also...
- British War MedalBritish War MedalThe British War Medal was a campaign medal of the British Empire, for service in World War I.The medal was approved in 1919, for issue to officers and men of British and Imperial forces who had rendered service between 5 August 1914 and 11 November 1918...
- Victory Medal
Blbliography
- Collection (1995) Gordon Bray presents The Spirit of Rugby, Harper Collins Publishers Sydney
- Howell, Max (2005) Born to Lead - Wallaby Test Captains, Celebrity Books, Auckland NZ
External links
- Middleton's OlympicDatabsse Profile
- Middleton's Rugby Career from StatsGuru
- Syd Middleton at the AIF Project