William 'Nipper' Truscott
Encyclopedia
William John "Nipper" Truscott, Jr. (born 9 October 1886 in Lithgow, New South Wales
, Australia
; died 20 June 1966 in Bayswater
, London
, England
) was an Australian sportsman. He played over 300 games of Australian rules football
for Mines Rovers in the Goldfields Football League
(GFL) and in the West Australian Football League
, and represented Western Australia at football, cricket and lawn bowls. He was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985 and the Australian Football Hall of Fame
in 1996.
where he played rugby football
. He moved with his family to Kalgoorlie on the Western Australian Goldfields at the age of 14, and began playing for the Trafalgar Football Club's junior side.
born Truscott was a doyen of West Australian football, and an all round sportsman, once representing Western Australia
in a first-class cricket
match as a wicket-keeper and also playing bowls
. Partnered by Harry Snook, he won an Australian pairs bowls title in 1955.
Nicknamed 'Nipper' as a boy for his quickness in Rugby Union
, he grew up in Sydney
, only taking up Australian rules football when his family moved to the goldfields in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
in 1899. He was an exceptional player for Mines Rovers club at a time when the Goldfields League was considered to be almost the equal of any other league in the country. Truscott was chosen to represent Western Australia in the 1908 national carnival
side – the first of his record five carnival appearances over 18 years.
Having married in 1912 he then moved to Perth
where he became a postmaster. He commenced in the 1913 season with the East Fremantle Football Club
, and quickly established himself as the WAFL's leading centreman. His ability to pass the ball (always with a drop kick) accurately to team mates was a feature of his play. He played in three premiership teams and in seven that were runners-up. He later acted as coach, club and State selector, club secretary and delegate.
Truscott died at the age of 79, on 20 June 1966 in London, England. He was an inaugural member of the Western Australian Institute's Hall of Fame in August 1985, and in the same year he was listed in the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.
Truscott was made a member of the Fremantle Football Club
created Fremantle Football Hall of Legends
in 1996. In 2004 he was awarded Legend Status in the West Australian Football Hall of Fame
. The Nipper Truscott Pavilion at East Fremantle Oval
– site of the first AFL
game for the Fremantle club – is named in his honor.
In 1996 Truscott was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame
.
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, 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...
; died 20 June 1966 in Bayswater
Bayswater
Bayswater is an area of west London in the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea to the west . It is a built-up district located 3 miles west-north-west of Charing Cross, bordering the north of Hyde Park over Kensington Gardens and having a population density of...
, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
) was an Australian sportsman. He played over 300 games of Australian rules football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
for Mines Rovers in the Goldfields Football League
Goldfields Football League
The Goldfields Football League is a regional Australian football league based in the Kalgoorlie region, Western Australia. Originally founded in 1896 as Hannans District Football Association, the league enjoyed a seat and full voting rights on the Australian National Football Council until 1919...
(GFL) and in the West Australian Football League
West Australian Football League
The West Australian Football League is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The WAFL is the second-most popular in the state, behind the nation-wide Australian Football League...
, and represented Western Australia at football, cricket and lawn bowls. He was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985 and the Australian Football Hall of Fame
Australian Football Hall of Fame
The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coaches and administrators. It was initially established...
in 1996.
Early life
Born to Susannah (née Strickland) and William John Truscott in Lithgow, Truscott grew up in SydneySydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
where he played rugby football
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...
. He moved with his family to Kalgoorlie on the Western Australian Goldfields at the age of 14, and began playing for the Trafalgar Football Club's junior side.
Football career
Truscott was a durable rover (175 cm, 66 kg), who played to age 41. LithgowLithgow, New South Wales
Lithgow is a city in the Central Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia and is the centre of the local political division City of Lithgow. It is located in a mountain valley named Lithgow's Valley by John Oxley in honour of William Lithgow, the first Auditor-General of New South Wales.Lithgow is...
born Truscott was a doyen of West Australian football, and an all round sportsman, once representing Western Australia
Western Warriors
The Western Australia cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team representing the state of Western Australia...
in a first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
match as a wicket-keeper and also playing bowls
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
. Partnered by Harry Snook, he won an Australian pairs bowls title in 1955.
Nicknamed 'Nipper' as a boy for his quickness in 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...
, he grew up in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, only taking up Australian rules football when his family moved to the goldfields in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
Kalgoorlie, known as Kalgoorlie-Boulder, is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, and is located east-northeast of state capital Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway...
in 1899. He was an exceptional player for Mines Rovers club at a time when the Goldfields League was considered to be almost the equal of any other league in the country. Truscott was chosen to represent Western Australia in the 1908 national carnival
1908 Melbourne Carnival
The 1908 Melbourne Carnival was the inaugural Australian National Football Carnival, an Australian rules football interstate competition. It was known at the time as the Jubilee Australasian Football Carnival as it commemorated 50 years of Australian rules football.-Teams:The Victorian team was...
side – the first of his record five carnival appearances over 18 years.
Having married in 1912 he then moved to Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
where he became a postmaster. He commenced in the 1913 season with the East Fremantle Football Club
East Fremantle Football Club
The East Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed the Sharks, is an Australian rules football club playing in the West Australian Football League . The team's home ground is East Fremantle Oval...
, and quickly established himself as the WAFL's leading centreman. His ability to pass the ball (always with a drop kick) accurately to team mates was a feature of his play. He played in three premiership teams and in seven that were runners-up. He later acted as coach, club and State selector, club secretary and delegate.
Truscott died at the age of 79, on 20 June 1966 in London, England. He was an inaugural member of the Western Australian Institute's Hall of Fame in August 1985, and in the same year he was listed in the Sport Australia Hall of Fame.
Truscott was made a member of the Fremantle Football Club
Fremantle Football Club
The Fremantle Football Club, nicknamed The Dockers, is an Australian rules football team which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in the port city of Fremantle at the mouth of the Swan River in Western Australia...
created Fremantle Football Hall of Legends
Fremantle Football Hall of Legends
The Fremantle Football Hall of Legends was inaugurated by the Fremantle Football Club in 1995, in recognition of the new Australian Football League team’s links with its home city’s football heritage. The inductees are nominated by the two clubs from the Fremantle area in the West Australian...
in 1996. In 2004 he was awarded Legend Status in the West Australian Football Hall of Fame
West Australian Football Hall of Fame
The West Australian Football Hall of Fame was created in 2002 to recognise and enshrine those who have made a significant contribution to Australian rules football in Western Australia...
. The Nipper Truscott Pavilion at East Fremantle Oval
East Fremantle Oval
East Fremantle Oval is an Australian rules football ground located in East Fremantle, Western Australia. The ground was opened in 1906, and underwent a large redevelopment in 1953. It current serves as the home ground of the East Fremantle Football Club in the West Australian Football League...
– site of the first AFL
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
game for the Fremantle club – is named in his honor.
In 1996 Truscott was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame
Australian Football Hall of Fame
The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coaches and administrators. It was initially established...
.