Alfred Francis

Alfred "Alf" John Francis (1846 – 1968) was a Welsh professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s and 1910s. He played at representative level for Great Britain (non-Test matches) and Wales, and at club level for Treherbert RLFC and Hull F.C. (Heritage No.), as a wing, i.e. number 2 or 5.[2][3]

For the soldier and racing driver, see Alf Francis.

Alf Francis
Godfrey Phillips cigarette card featuring Alfred Francis
Personal information
Full nameAlfred John Francis
Bornunknown
Wales
Diedunknown
Playing information
PositionWing
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
≤1909–10 Treherbert RLFC
1910–19 Hull F.C. 245 166 2
Total 245 166 2 0 0
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1913–14 Wales 2 1
1914 Great Britain 3 7
Source: [1]

Playing career

International honours

Francis won 2 caps for Wales in 1913–1914 while at Hull,[1] and toured with Great Britain on the 1914 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand.

Challenge Cup Final appearances

Francis played left wing, i.e. number 5, and scored a try in Hull's 6–0 victory over Wakefield Trinity in the 1913–14 Challenge Cup Final during the 1913–14 season at Thrum Hall, Halifax, in front of a crowd of 19,000.[4]

Club career

Hull Kingston Rovers first became aware of Francis when he scored a try in Treherbert RLFC's 10–22 defeat by Hull Kingston Rovers during the 1909–10 season, but he was thought by Hull Kingston Rovers to be too small, so they decided against signing him. An official of Hull Kingston Rovers then recommended him to the Hull F.C. chairman who travelled to Wales, decided that Francis' size wasn't an issue, and signed him for Hull F.C. for 75 gold sovereigns (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £27,720 in 2016)[5][6] Treherbert RLFC completed only 12-matches during the 1909–10 season, and as defaulters, they were prevented from playing in the 1910–11 season, by which time both Alfred Francis, and David Galloway had joined Hull FC.

Genealogical information

Alf Francis' marriage to Emma M. (née Baxter) took place at St. Matthew's Church, Boulevard, Hull, on 8 December 1915, and was registered during fourth ¼ 1915 in Hull district. They had children; Wellesley T. Francis (birth registered during fourth ¼ 1916 in Hull district) and Megan Francis (birth registered during first ¼ 1922 in Hull district).

References
  1. "Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  2. Williams, Graham; Lush, Peter; Farrar, David (2009). The British Rugby League Records Book. London League. pp. 108–114. ISBN 978-1-903659-49-6.
  3. "Statistics at rugbyleague.wales". rugbyleague.wales. 31 December 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  4. "A complete history of Hull FC's Challenge Cup finals". Hull Daily Mail. 22 August 2013. Archived from the original on 3 February 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  5. "Measuring Worth - Relative Value of UK Pounds". Measuring Worth. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  6. Fletcher, Raymond (2004). Hull Rugby League Club - 100 Greats. Tempus Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-0752424293.
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