Joseph Oliver (c. 1905 – 11 June 1966) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s. He played at representative level for Great Britain, England and Cumberland, and at club level for Huddersfield, Batley, Hull F.C. (two spells), and Hull Kingston Rovers, as a fullback, or centre, and was captain of Hull during the 1930–31, 1933–34, 1934–35 and 1935–36 seasons.[4]
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| Full name | Joseph Oliver | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | c. 1905 Maryport, Cumbria, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | (aged 61)[1] Hull, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Position | Fullback, Centre | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Background
editOliver was born in Maryport, Cumberland, England.
Playing career
editOliver won caps for England while at Batley in 1928 against Wales, and won caps for Great Britain in 1928 against Australia (3 matches), and New Zealand.
Oliver won further caps for England while at Hull in 1933 against Australia, and in 1936 against Wales, and France. He also represented Cumberland.[citation needed]
Oliver played, was captain, and scored two tries, and five conversions in Hull FC's 21-2 victory over Widnes in the Championship Final during the 1935-36 season.[citation needed]
Oliver played, and was captain in Hull FC's victory in the Yorkshire League during the 1935-36 season.[citation needed]
The Hull F.C club song 'Old Faithful' also comes from Joe Oliver's time at the club. Joe was nicknamed 'The Points Machine' and 'Old Faithful' by the club's supporters, due to his consistent and prolific scoring rate. In 1933 when Gene Autry released his song about an 'old faithful' horse the fans adopted it for Joe. The song has adapted slightly since that time but can still be accredited to Joe's time at the club.[citation needed]
Oliver set Hull FC's "Most Career Goals" record with 687-goals, and Hull FC's "Most Career Points" record with 1842-points scored between 1928-37 & 1943-45.[citation needed]
References
edit- ^ "Joe Oliver, big Boulevard idol of thirties, dies at 61". Hull Daily Mail. 13 June 1966. p. 10 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- ^ "Player Summary: Joe Oliver". Rugby League Records. Rugby League Record Keepers Club. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
- ^ "Coaches and Captains". hullfc.com. 31 December 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
External links
edit- (archived by web.archive.org) Stats → PastPlayers → O at hullfc.com
- (archived by web.archive.org) Statistics at hullfc.com
- Search for "Joe Oliver" at britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk
- Search for "The Points Machine" at britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk
- Search for "Old Faithful" at britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk