Neville Butler (rugby league)
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Neville Edward Butler | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | 6 August 1917 Tenterfield, New South Wales, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 29 November 1944 Berlin, Nazi Germany | (aged 27)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Fullback | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [1] As of 1 March 2019 |
Neville Edward Butler (6 August 1917 – 29 November 1944) was a RAAF Flying Officer who was killed while flying a raid over Germany in WWII. He had been a top-grade rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s and 1940s for North Sydney in the NSWRL competition.
Background and rugby career
[edit]Butler was born in Tenterfield, New South Wales on 6 August 1917. He represented New South Wales in 1938 before signing with North Sydney in 1940. Butler played occasional games for Norths between 1940 and 1943 while he was training with the RAAF.
In 1943, North Sydney made the NSWRL grand final against Newtown. Norths would lose the match 34–7 at the Sydney Cricket Ground. North Sydney's loss in the grand final was attributed to the fact that Butler along with Harry Taylor and a couple of other players did not play in the game due to their service during war time.[2][3][4][5][6]
Military service
[edit]Butler enlisted with the RAAF in 1940. He was a Flying Officer and flew with RAAF 460 Squadron in World War II. Butler was killed on 29 November 1944 when his plane was shot down over Germany.
References
[edit]- ^ "Neville Butler – Career Stats & Summary – Rugby League Project". Rugbyleagueproject.org.
- ^ "Happy 110th Birthday North Sydney". North Sydney Bears. 6 February 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
- ^ Alan Whiticker/Glen Hudson: The Encyclopedia of Rugby League Players. (1995 edition) ISBN 1875169571
- ^ "Footy stars taken on battlefield". Courier Mail.
- ^ "WW2 Honour Roll". www.ww2roll.gov.au.
- ^ "The Big Day Has Arrived: First Leg of the Frank Hyde Shield". North Sydney Bears. 11 May 2017.
- North Sydney Bears players
- Rugby league fullbacks
- New South Wales rugby league team players
- 1917 births
- 1944 deaths
- Royal Australian Air Force personnel of World War II
- Australian military personnel killed in World War II
- Royal Australian Air Force officers
- Aviators killed by being shot down
- Australian rugby league players