Vay Wilson
Encyclopedia
Vayro Wilson DSC
(18 January 1912 - @1962) was an Australia
n World War II naval combatant and a state and national representative
rugby union
player who captained the Wallabies
in three Test matches immediately prior to World War II
.
. He came to the attention of selectors when he made the Australian Universities team in 1934 and he was in the 1938 University side which won the 1938 Brisbane grade premiership. From 1935 to 1939 he was an automatic choice in the front-row for the Queensland state team
. In his debut year for Queensland he played against the New Zealand Māori
but it wouldn't be until 1937 that he would play for his country.
He debuted internationally against the Springboks in the 1st test of 1937 at the Sydney Cricket Ground
. Australia lost 5-9 in a hard-fought tussle. He was the only Queenslander to retain his spot for the 2nd Test with the Wallabies again losing, this time 17-26. Wilson was knocked out in a brutal start to the match but he regained his consciousness and composure and returned to the match. Howell quotes Ian Diehm in Red ! Red ! Red ! asserting that Wilson 's "dignified bearing in this match led the selectors to name him captain of the Australian team the following season against the All Blacks".
in July 1938 in the 1st Test of their tour of Australia. He led Queensland against them the following week and retained his national captaincy for the 2nd and 3rd tests. Australia lost all three games, although the margins were tight in games two and three at 6 and 8 points respectively.
When the trials for the 1939 British Isles touring squad were held Cyril Towers
made a comeback but the selectors opted for Wilson to retain the captaincy and his front-row position. The team left Australia on the ship Mooltan and Wilson did an excellent job keeping the squad fit on the journey. The team docked at Southampton on the day when England declared war and after a couple of weeks spent filling sandbags to start the war effort, the squad set sail for Australia having not played a game. Of the unlucky tourists only Bill McLean
, Keith Windon and Len Smith
would return to footballing success after the war.
The Whiticker reference records that "the squad played an exhibition match in Bombay on the journey home so that the players could be afforded international status". However rugby league historian Sean Fagan
casts doubt on this, citing his 1998 interview with squad member Len Smith
wherein Smith advised that the game was played between one-half of the touring squad against the other with extra numbers made up by some military personnel on hand in Bombay. This is supported by the Pollard reference which records that the Wallabies played against a "Gymkhana XV made up of military men and others".
at the University of Queensland
and had received a Carnegie Fellowship to study in England.
He joined the British Navy during the war and was awarded the DSC
for his action in the English Channel in a PT boat
.
Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Service Cross is the third level military decoration awarded to officers, and other ranks, of the British Armed Forces, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and British Merchant Navy and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.The DSC, which may be awarded posthumously, is...
(18 January 1912 - @1962) 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 World War II naval combatant and a state and national representative
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...
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 who 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 three Test matches immediately prior to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Rugby career
Wilson was a Queenslander whose club rugby was played at the University of Queensland Rugby ClubUniversity of Queensland Rugby Club
The University of Queensland Rugby Club is an Australian rugby union club, based at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Queensland. They currently compete in the Queensland Premier Rugby competition...
. He came to the attention of selectors when he made the Australian Universities team in 1934 and he was in the 1938 University side which won the 1938 Brisbane grade premiership. From 1935 to 1939 he was an automatic choice in the front-row for the Queensland state team
Queensland Reds
The Queensland Reds represent Queensland in the sport of rugby union in the Southern Hemisphere Super Rugby competition. Prior to 1996 they were a representative team selected on merit from the rugby union club competitions in Queensland...
. In his debut year for Queensland he played against 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...
but it wouldn't be until 1937 that he would play for his country.
He debuted internationally against the Springboks in the 1st test of 1937 at the Sydney Cricket Ground
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
. Australia lost 5-9 in a hard-fought tussle. He was the only Queenslander to retain his spot for the 2nd Test with the Wallabies again losing, this time 17-26. Wilson was knocked out in a brutal start to the match but he regained his consciousness and composure and returned to the match. Howell quotes Ian Diehm in Red ! Red ! Red ! asserting that Wilson 's "dignified bearing in this match led the selectors to name him captain of the Australian team the following season against the All Blacks".
Captaincy & 1939
Only six Queenslanders had preceded Wilson to the Australian team captaincy when he assumed it against the All BlacksAll 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....
in July 1938 in the 1st Test of their tour of Australia. He led Queensland against them the following week and retained his national captaincy for the 2nd and 3rd tests. Australia lost all three games, although the margins were tight in games two and three at 6 and 8 points respectively.
When the trials for the 1939 British Isles touring squad were held Cyril Towers
Cyril Towers
Cyril Towers was an Australian rugby union player, a state and national representative centre who made 57 appearances for the Wallabies, played in 19 Test matches and captained the national side on three occasions in 1937...
made a comeback but the selectors opted for Wilson to retain the captaincy and his front-row position. The team left Australia on the ship Mooltan and Wilson did an excellent job keeping the squad fit on the journey. The team docked at Southampton on the day when England declared war and after a couple of weeks spent filling sandbags to start the war effort, the squad set sail for Australia having not played a game. Of the unlucky tourists only Bill McLean
Bill McLean
William Malcolm McLean was an Australian soldier and a state and national representative rugby union player who captained the Wallabies in five Test matches immediately after World War II.-Pre-war rugby:...
, Keith Windon and Len Smith
Len Smith
Len Smith was an Australian representative rugby union and rugby league footballer of the 1930s and 40s. He captained the Kangaroos in two Tests 1948 and was controversially omitted from the 1948-49 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain....
would return to footballing success after the war.
The Whiticker reference records that "the squad played an exhibition match in Bombay on the journey home so that the players could be afforded international status". However rugby league historian Sean Fagan
Sean Fagan
Sean Patrick Fagan is a Sydney, Australia based sports historian, author and journalist, specialising in early Australian history and particular the origins and local development of the popular football codes in Australia. He has written articles for Australian national daily newspapers, numerous...
casts doubt on this, citing his 1998 interview with squad member Len Smith
Len Smith
Len Smith was an Australian representative rugby union and rugby league footballer of the 1930s and 40s. He captained the Kangaroos in two Tests 1948 and was controversially omitted from the 1948-49 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain....
wherein Smith advised that the game was played between one-half of the touring squad against the other with extra numbers made up by some military personnel on hand in Bombay. This is supported by the Pollard reference which records that the Wallabies played against a "Gymkhana XV made up of military men and others".
War service
Wilson came back to Australia with the touring team but left shortly after to return to England. He had finished his MAMaster of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
at the University of Queensland
University of Queensland
The University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...
and had received a Carnegie Fellowship to study in England.
He joined the British Navy during the war and was awarded the DSC
Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)
The Distinguished Service Cross is the third level military decoration awarded to officers, and other ranks, of the British Armed Forces, Royal Fleet Auxiliary and British Merchant Navy and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.The DSC, which may be awarded posthumously, is...
for his action in the English Channel in a PT boat
PT boat
PT Boats were a variety of motor torpedo boat , a small, fast vessel used by the United States Navy in World War II to attack larger surface ships. The PT boat squadrons were nicknamed "the mosquito fleet". The Japanese called them "Devil Boats".The original pre–World War I torpedo boats were...
.
Sources
- Howell, Max (2005) Born to Lead - Wallaby Test Captains, Celebrity Books, Auckland NZ
- Whiticker, Alan (2004) Captaining the Kangaroos, New Holland, Sydney
- Pollard, Jack (1984) Australian Rugby Union: The Game and the Players Angus and Robertson Publishing
- Fagan, Sean (2000–2006) RL1908.com