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Martin Whitcombe

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Martin Alun Whitcombe (born 14 September 1961 in Keighley, Yorkshire) is a former Rugby Union Footballer of the 80's and 90's.

He learnt to play rugby at Keighley RUFC and went on to have a long playing career for Leicester Tigers, Bedford RFC, Sale FC, and Leeds Tykes, at prop i.e. 1 or 3. At a representative level he played for Yorkshire, The Northern Division, and England at 19 Group, Under 23 and England 'B'.

Early life

Martin Whitcombe was one of four children growing up in the family run business, The Airedale Heifer Inn a public house in Sandbeds, Keighley, which was run by his rugby playing father Frank Whitcombe Jr. He attended Bingley Grammar School, where he was capped, caped, four times by England Schools 19 Group in the 1980 Five Nations Tournament.

After leaving school Whitcombe joined the Royal Air Force as a Physical Training Instructor. This three part course included PTI training at RAF Cosford the Basic Parachute Course at No. 1 Parachute Training School RAF and Adventurous training at Llanrwst in North Wales. After passing out with the rank of Corporal , Whitcombe was posted to RAF North Luffenham in then Leicestershire (now Rutland) living in the village of Uppingham. This enabled Martin to accept an earlier invitation to join Leicester Tigers.

Royal Air Force & Combined Services Rugby

While in the RAF Whitcombe was capped fourteen times in the Inter Services Tournement playing against the Royal Navy & the Army at Twickenham. The Royal Air Force won the Inter Services title three times in 1982, 1985, and 1986 during his seven years of service.

He represented the Combined Services rugby team eighteen times including the very competitive games against French Armed Forces.On the 29 December 1981 he played against Tony Shaw's Australian Wallabies at Aldershot Military Stadium. He also played against Australia again at the same ground this time on the 27 October 1984 against Andrew Slack's Australian Wallabie team. Whitcombe played against Canada at the US Portsmouth RFC on 14 October on their 1983 tour on England.

Club Rugby career

Whitcombe joined Leicester Tigers in July 1981 playing his first game for the club against Northampton Saints away, on the 16th October, he made his home debut against Swansea RFC on the 24th October at Welford Road and scored a try. Whitcombe represented Leicester Tigers against the Australian Wallabies at Welford Road on the 25th November 1981; the Australian team was Captained by Mark Loane. Whitcombe played twice against the Babarian's during his Leicester career and toured Zimbabwe with Tigers in 1982, playing in both games against Zimbabwe in Harare and Bulawayo. In 1984 on the Middle East tour to Bahrain & Dubai and in 1985 to France.

Whitcombe left Leicester in 1986 to join Bedford RFC, captained by former Tigers player Andy Key, and played against Kenya in Nairobi as part of the clubs Centenary Season celebrations. At the start of the 1987 season he joined Sale RFC, where he Captained the club for one season in 1992-1993 and played in the winning Courage league 1 team in 1994-1995. In 1995 when he joined Phil Davies at Leeds Tykes for the last three years of his rugby career playing in two promotion winning teams.

Representative honours

Whitcombe was capped by Leicestershire in the County Championship his first game was against East Midlands in November 1981. He was later capped by Yorkshire in 1986 and played in the 22-11 victory over Middlesex in the County Championship final at Twickenham on the 11 April 1987. He went on to make twenty one appearances for Yorkshire in the County Championship.

Whitcombe played for England U23 against England Students at Walsall RUFC on the 10 April 1985 after this game he was picked to represent England 'B' for their game against Italy 'B' at Twickenham on the 17 April 1985

After leeving the RAF in 1987, Whitcombe accepted an opportunity to play in South Africa for Durban High School Old Boys, (DHSOB). As a result Ian McIntosh the then Natal, (now Natal Sharks), Coach picked him to play for the provincial side against the touring Pacific Coast Grizzlies, at Kings Park Stadium, Durban on the 16 July 1988. The following week on the 23 July he made his Currie Cup debut against Transvaal (now the Golden Lions) in the winning Natal team at the same ground. In the Transvaal side that day was fellow Yorkshire team mate Peter Winterbottom. Along with England and Harlequin's No 8 Chris Butcher (Natal) these three players represent only a handful of English players to play in the Currie cup in the apartheid era in South Africa

Whitcombe played for the Rest v England in the Final Trial at Twickenham on the 3 January 1987 and was later selected for the England 'B' side to play against France 'B' at Welford Road Leicester, on the 3 March 1989

Together with Sale RFC & England 'B' No 8 Andy McFarlane these two players played for the Northern Division for nine years,making their debut's together against the South West Division at Waterloo RFC on the 6 December 1986. The North successfully won the Divisional Title in 1987 and 1988. Later that year on the 19 October 1988 Whitcombe played for Northern Division on the winning side against Nick Farr-Jones Australian Wallabies 21 - 9 at Cross Green Otley. Then on the 19 December 1989 against the USSR at Aspatria RFC. He played against Wales'A' at Pontypool RFC on the 14 October 1992, prior to playing against Naas Botha's South African Springboks at Elland Road Leeds on the 10 November 1992. (This was the first Springbok tour after the Apartheid Era.)

With the Northern Division he toured Zimbabwe & Namibia in 1992, France in 1993 and South Africa & Namibia In 1995.

Genealogical information

Whitcombe is the son of the former Rugby Union prop for North Eastern Counties, Yorkshire, Bradford RFC, and Keighley RUFC, Frank Whitcombe Jr, and was the grandson of the former Bradford Northern and Great Britain Rugby League international Frank Whitcombe.He is nephew to the former Bradford RFC back row forward Brian Whitcombe

George Whitcombe the association (Soccer) Footballer for Cardiff City, and Baseball captain for Wales, and Grange Albion is the great uncle to Martin Whitcombe.

He is grandson to the former Keighley Cougars Rugby League scrum half Thomas Cockroft and nephew to the former Keighley Cougars winger William Cockroft.

Life after rugby

Whitcombe joined National Division Three club Bradford and Bingley RFC in October 2010, where he is Director of Rugby.

See also

References

  • Farmer, Stuart & Hands, David "The Tigers Tale". The Official History of Leicester Football Club 1880-1993 ISBN 095148625X
  • McIntosh, Ian "Mac The Face Of Rugby" Don Nelson Publishers, South Africa ISBN 1-86806-190-6
  • Sweet,Reg "Natal 100 Centenary of Natal Rugby Union" ISBN 0620135689
  • Soul, David with Douglas, Derek "Heart and Sole" An Autobiography ISBN 1 85158 493 5
  • Moore, Brian with Jones, Stephen " The autobiography Brian Moore" ISBN 185225 2340
  • Moore, Brian "Beware of the Dog: Rugby's Hard Man Reveals All" ISBN 1847396518
  • Mace, John "The History of Royal Air Force Rugby 1919 - 1999" ISBN 0-9538436-0-2

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