Not to be confused with the rugby union footballer of the 1870s for England, and Hull, William Henry Heap Hutchinson

William Hutchinson (rugby)

William Henry Heap Hutchinson was a rugby union footballer of the 1870s who at representative level played for England, and at club level for Hull, playing in the Forwards, e.g. Front row, Lock, or Back row...

 (1849-1929)

Not to be confused with the rugby league player of the 1930s and 1940s for England, and Bradford Northern, William Hutchinson (rugby league)

William Hutchinson (rugby league)

William "Billy" Hutchinson is an English former professional rugby league footballer of the 1930s and '40s who at representative level has played for England, and at club level for Bradford Northern , playing at , or /, i.e...

William Hutchinson (1856–1880) was a rugby union international who represented England

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...

 from 1876 to 1877.

Rugby union career

Hutchinson attended and played his club rugby for the Royal Indian Engineering College

Royal Indian Engineering College

The Royal Indian Engineering College was a British college of Civil Engineering founded by Sir George Tomkyns Chesney in 1870. It was intended to train engineers for the Indian Public Works department. The work of the college was transferred to India in 1906....

 at Cooper's Hill

Cooper's Hill

There are several places called Cooper's Hill:* Cooper's Hill, Bedfordshire, a Site of Special Scientific Interest* at Brockworth, where the Cooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake takes place* near Englefield Green, Surrey...

. He was selected to play for England in 1876 and made his international debut on March 6, 1876 at The Oval

The Oval

The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...

 in the England

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...

 vs Scotland

Scotland national rugby union team

The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...

 match. His debut was described as "a very brilliant first appearance" and he was described as a a first-rate half-back, a quick starter, with a very fair amount of pace, an unselfish player, and good tackle. His second and final match was on February 5, 1877 at The Oval

The Oval

The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...

 in the England

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...

 vs Ireland

Ireland national rugby union team

The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...

match. This match was the first international to be played with fifteen a-side, making Hutchinson one of the few players to have played international matches in both 20 and 15 a-side eras. Eight minutes into the match Hutchinson ran in for a try and later scored again, making him England's record try scorer at that point.

Hutchinson's military career was to take him to India and it was this which curtailed his rugby playing career. Whilst in India, he died in 1880.