John Francomb
Encyclopedia
John Stanley Francomb was an English
international rugby union
forward who played club rugby for Manchester
and Sale
. Francomb played international rugby for the British Isles
on their 1899 tour of Australia
.
, described Francomb as 'an old Oxford man', though there is no record of him representing the Oxford University team
in any of the Varsity Match
es. Mullineux goes on to describe Francomb as '...very tall, and wants a lot of stopping when he gets "going"'; common traits for early forward players. At the time of the Australian tour, Francomb was playing club rugby for Manchester and county rugby for Lancashire.
Francomb played in nine matches of the Australia tour, which included one Test against the Australian national team. Francomb was not selected for the first game of the tour, but played in the second game against the New South Wales Waratahs
. He kept his placed for the next game played against a Metropolitan team before he played his one and only international game, in the First Test against Australia. The tourists lost 13-3, and Mullineux reacted by dropping himself, Francomb and Esmond Martelli
from future Test games. Despite being dropped from the Test games, Francomb played in six further matches against invitational and state teams.
During the 1898/99 season Francomb was also invited to join British touring team the Barbarians
. The next notable rugby event Francomb was involved in took place six years later, when he was playing for Sale; he was chosen to play for the Cheshire team to face the 1905 New Zealand team on their tour of Britain.
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...
international 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...
forward who played club rugby for Manchester
Manchester Rugby Club
Manchester Rugby Club, formerly known as Manchester Football Club, are one of the oldest rugby union clubs in existence, having been founded in 1860, 11 years before the RFU....
and Sale
Sale Sharks
Sale Sharks are a professional rugby union club who play in England in the Aviva Premiership.The club is an offshoot of Sale FC, which is based at Heywood Road in Sale, Greater Manchester, but Sharks currently play in Stockport at Edgeley Park, ground sharing with Stockport County F.C.Part of the...
. Francomb played international rugby for the British Isles
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
on their 1899 tour of Australia
1899 British Lions tour to Australia
The 1899 British Isles tour to Australia was the fourth rugby union tour by a British Isles team and the second to Australia; though the first tour in 1888 was a private venture, making the 1899 tour the first official undertaking of Australia...
.
Rugby career
Of the 1899 touring British Team, Francomb is one of the least reported members. Tour captain Matthew MullineuxMatthew Mullineux
Matthew Mullineux MC was an English rugby union scrum-half who, although not capped for England, was selected for two British Lions tours. He gained one cap during the 1896 tour to South Africa and captained the 1899 tour of Australia...
, described Francomb as 'an old Oxford man', though there is no record of him representing the Oxford University team
Oxford University RFC
The Oxford University Rugby Football Club is the rugby union club of the University of Oxford. The club contests The Varsity Match every year against Cambridge University at Twickenham.-History:...
in any of the Varsity Match
The Varsity Match
The Varsity Match is an annual rugby union fixture played between the universities of Oxford and Cambridge in England. By tradition, the match is held on the second Tuesday of December. In 2005, however, this changed, and the match was on Tuesday 6 December. In 2007, it was held on a Thursday for...
es. Mullineux goes on to describe Francomb as '...very tall, and wants a lot of stopping when he gets "going"'; common traits for early forward players. At the time of the Australian tour, Francomb was playing club rugby for Manchester and county rugby for Lancashire.
Francomb played in nine matches of the Australia tour, which included one Test against the Australian national team. Francomb was not selected for the first game of the tour, but played in the second game against the New South Wales Waratahs
New South Wales Waratahs
The New South Wales Waratahs are an Australian rugby union football team, representing the majority of New South Wales in the Super 15 Super Rugby competition...
. He kept his placed for the next game played against a Metropolitan team before he played his one and only international game, in the First Test against Australia. The tourists lost 13-3, and Mullineux reacted by dropping himself, Francomb and Esmond Martelli
Esmond Martelli
Arthur Esmonde Martelli was an Irish international rugby union fullback back who played club rugby for Dublin University. Martelli played international rugby for the British Isles team on its 1899 tour of Australia...
from future Test games. Despite being dropped from the Test games, Francomb played in six further matches against invitational and state teams.
During the 1898/99 season Francomb was also invited to join British touring team the Barbarians
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
. The next notable rugby event Francomb was involved in took place six years later, when he was playing for Sale; he was chosen to play for the Cheshire team to face the 1905 New Zealand team on their tour of Britain.