William Penman (rugby union)
Birth name | William Mitchell Penman | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Date of birth | 12 May 1917 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of birth | Edinburgh, Scotland | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Date of death | 3 October 1943 | (aged 26)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Place of death | Rothwesten, Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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William Penman (12 May 1917 – 3 October 1943) was a Scotland international rugby union player. He was killed in World War II when he, serving as a captain of a Lancaster bomber, was shot down over Kassel.[1][2]
Rugby Union career
[edit]Amateur career
[edit]He was educated at the Royal High School of Edinburgh and then played for Royal HSFP.[3]
He played for United Services.[4]
He joined the RAF in 1935. He played and captained the Royal Air Force Rugby Union team.[1][5]
Provincial career
[edit]He played for the Scottish selector F. J. C. Moffat's XV against Watsonians in 1938. This was an annual match against Watsonians and looked on as an unofficial trial match.[6]
He played for East of Scotland District against West of Scotland District on 23 December 1939.[7]
International career
[edit]He was capped once for Scotland in 1939, in a match against Ireland.[1][2] At the time, he was the first Royal HSFP player to be capped for 4 seasons, and the first Royal HSFP player to be capped at Full Back.[8]
He played 3 times for the Barbarians, all in 1939.[9]
Military career
[edit]He was a Wing Commander in the 61st squadron of the RAF.[10]
He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Force Cross.[11]
Death
[edit]He was shot down in a night raid. His Lancaster bomber crashed at Rothwesten, north east of Kassel.[12]
He is commemorated at Hanover War Cemetery.[13]
On his death, his widow was left with a 10 month old daughter.[14]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c Bath, p. 109
- ^ a b Scrum.com player profile. Retrieved 20 February 2010
- ^ https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000452/19420428/077/0003
- ^ https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000452/19420428/077/0003
- ^ http://www.no-50-and-no-61-squadrons-association.co.uk/veterans-album/wg-cdr-w-m-penman-dfc-afc-kia/
- ^ https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000577/19381227/021/0003
- ^ https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000540/19391226/168/0009
- ^ https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000452/19390919/070/0003
- ^ https://www.barbarianfc.co.uk/player/penman-william-mitchell/
- ^ https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2075102/william-mitchell-penman/
- ^ https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/82451/Penman-William-Mitchell.htm
- ^ https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/118387
- ^ https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2075102/william-mitchell-penman/
- ^ https://losses.internationalbcc.co.uk/loss/118387
Sources
[edit]- Bath, Richard (ed.) The Scotland Rugby Miscellany (Vision Sports Publishing Ltd, 2007 ISBN 1-905326-24-6)
- Massie, Allan A Portrait of Scottish Rugby (Polygon, Edinburgh; ISBN 0-904919-84-6)
External links
[edit]- William Penman at ESPNscrum
- CWGC entry
- 1917 births
- 1943 deaths
- Scottish rugby union players
- Scotland international rugby union players
- Scottish airmen
- Royal Air Force personnel killed in World War II
- Royal Air Force pilots of World War II
- Royal Air Force rugby union players
- Aviators killed by being shot down
- Royal Air Force wing commanders
- Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom)
- Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)
- Royal HSFP players
- East of Scotland District players
- United Services players
- Barbarian F.C. players
- Scottish rugby union biography stubs