Billy Little (rugby league, born 1911)
William Little (26 January 1911 – 17 December 2004) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s. He played at representative level for England and Cumberland, and at club level for Barrow, as a scrum-half.[2]
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Little | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 26 January 1911 Great Clifton, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 17 December 2004 (aged 93)[1] Barrow-in-Furness, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Scrum-half | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coaching information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Background
editLittle was born in the small mining village of Great Clifton, Cumberland, and in his early days he played for the village's club, and he died aged 93 in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England.
Playing career
editInternational honours
editLittle won caps for England while at Barrow in 1933 against Other Nationalities, and in 1934 against Australia, and France.[3]
County honours
editLittle represented Cumberland.
Challenge Cup Final appearances
editLittle played scrum-half, and scored a drop goal with his left-foot in Barrow's 4-7 defeat by Salford in the 1938 Challenge Cup Final during the 1937–38 season at Wembley, London on 7 May 1938, and was a reserve in Barrow's 0-10 defeat by Wigan in the 1950–51 Challenge Cup Final at Wembley Stadium, London on 5 May 1951.[citation needed]
County Cup Final appearances
editLittle played scrum-half in Barrow's 4-8 defeat by Warrington in the 1937 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1937–38 season at Central Park, Wigan on 23 October 1937.[5]
Testimonial match
editLittle's testimonial matches at Barrow were shared with Bob Ayres, Val Cumberbatch, John Higgin and Dan McKeating, and took place against Swinton on 27 April 1946, and against Oldham on 27 January 1947.[6]
Contemporaneous article extract
editOn 25 January 1947, Little was described in the programme of the Big Five Benefit as "the man who spelt the end to Halifax R.L. Cup hopes in 1938. Member of a famous Great Clifton football family. International and Cumberland County man."[6]
References
edit- ^ "Billy Little". Barrow Raiders RLFC. Retrieved 17 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ^ a b "England Statistics at englandrl.co.uk". englandrl.co.uk. 31 December 2011. Archived from the original on 30 November 1994. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
- ^ Gardner, Mike (2012). Willie: The Life and Times of Willie Horne, a Rugby League Legend (2nd ed.). Ex-L-Ence Publishing. ISBN 978-1909133044.
- ^ "Barrow Make Two Finals In One Year". nwemail.co.uk. 11 July 2009. Archived from the original on 17 May 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
- ^ a b "Barrow Testimonial Game for Big Five". cumberbatch.org. 31 December 2011. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
External links
edit- (archived by web.archive.org) Back on the Wembley trail
- (archived by web.archive.org) Barrow RLFC > Hall Of Fame > Billy Little