Sydney Coopper
| Full name | Sydney Frank Coopper | ||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 8 October 1878 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | St Mary Hoo, Kent, England | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 16 January 1961 (aged 82) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | St Mawes, Cornwall, England | ||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||
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Sydney Frank Coopper (8 October 1878 – 16 January 1961) was an English international rugby union player.
Born in St Mary Hoo, Kent, Coopper attended the Royal Naval Engineering College in Keyham, Devon. He played rugby for the college, forming a successful three-quarter partnership with England player John Matters, and while based in Devon gained county representative honours.[1] From 1900 to 1907, Coopper was capped seven times for England as a wing three-quarter and contributed a try in their 6–3 win over Ireland at Leicester in 1902.[2]
Coopper served as a Lieutenant Engineer on the HMS Sparrowhawk which was sunk during the Battle of Jutland. He was mentioned in dispatches for helping keep the ship afloat long enough to enable most on board to be rescued.[3]
After retiring from the Navy in 1924, Coopper served as a secretary of the Rugby Football Union.[3]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "S. F. Coopper's Old Partner". Evening Standard. 2 March 1927.
- ^ "England v Ireland". The Observer. 9 February 1902.
- ^ a b "The England International who was sunk at Jutland..." World Rugby Museum. 26 November 2018.
External links
[edit]- Sydney Coopper at ESPNscrum