Hopkin Maddock facts for kids
Maddock in 1906
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| Birth name | Hopkin Thomas Maddock | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 1881 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Pontycymer, Bridgend County Borough, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 15 December 1921 (aged 39–40) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Cardiff, Wales | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | Christ College, Brecon | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Occupation(s) | Taxation officer | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Lieutenant Hopkin "Hop" Thomas Maddock (1881 – 15 December 1921) was a famous Welsh rugby player. He was known for being a very fast and tricky wing. Hopkin played for clubs like Pontycymer and London Welsh. He also played six international games for the Welsh national team, scoring six tries. Maddock set many scoring records at London Welsh, including 170 tries during his time with the club. He was also a brave soldier who earned a special medal for his courage during World War I.
Contents
Hopkin Maddock: A Rugby Legend
Starting His Rugby Journey
Hopkin Maddock first played rugby at Christ College, Brecon. After college, he joined his hometown club, Pontycymmer. Later, he moved to London and joined the London Welsh team in 1900.
At London Welsh, Maddock broke several club records. He is the only player to score five or more tries in a single match twice. He did this against Ilford Wanderers and then again against Oxford University.
Maddock also set the record for most tries in a season. He scored 25 tries in 22 games in 1905–06. Then, he beat his own record with 26 tries in 30 games in 1908–09. In his whole career with London Welsh, Maddock scored an amazing 170 tries. This record still stands today!
Playing for Wales
First International Games (1906-1908)
In the 1905–06 season, Maddock was playing his best rugby. He was chosen to play for Wales in the first game of the 1906 Home Nations Championship. This match was against England. Wales was in great form after beating New Zealand in a famous game.
Maddock was the only new player chosen for the Welsh team. He replaced Willie Llewellyn on the wing. His international career started perfectly. The Welsh team played very well. Wales scored early tries. Then, the captain, Gwyn Nicholls, passed the ball to Maddock. Maddock scored a try on his very first international game!
Maddock played so well that he stayed on the team. He scored his second international try in a win against Scotland. However, Wales did not win the championship that year.
In 1906, the first South African rugby team toured Britain. Maddock was chosen to play for the Glamorgan County team against them. The game was very close. The South Africans won 6–3.
Maddock was then left out of the Welsh team to play the South Africans. But he returned for the 1907 Home Nations Championship. In the first game against England, Wales scored six tries. Maddock scored two of them! Wales lost their next game to Scotland. Maddock was then replaced for the final game against Ireland.
Later Games and Captaincy (1908-1913)
Even though Maddock's international career seemed over, he kept playing for London Welsh. In the 1908–09 season, he helped his club win 13 of their last 15 matches. He scored 17 tries in the final 19 games that season. This included scoring at least one try in nine games in a row!
A very important match was against Oxford University in February 1909. Oxford had a very strong team and had not lost a game. London Welsh beat them 39–9. Maddock scored five tries in the second half of that game. His amazing performance is still talked about today.
The next season, Maddock became the captain of London Welsh. After three years, he was chosen to play for Wales again. This was for the first game of the 1910 Five Nations Championship against France. Wales won 49–14, scoring ten tries. Maddock scored two of them. Even with this big win, Maddock was dropped from the team. He never played for Wales again.
Maddock continued to play for London Welsh until 1913. He was captain again in the 1911–12 season.
A Brave Soldier
When World War I started, Maddock joined the British Army in 1914. He became an officer in the Machine Gun Corps. He was promoted to Lieutenant in 1918.
Maddock was awarded the Military Cross medal in 1918. This was for his bravery during a battle. He bravely fired his machine gun to cover his unit's retreat. He kept firing even when he was almost surrounded. He was the last person to safely cross a bridge.
Maddock survived the war. However, he never fully recovered from an injury he got in 1916. He sadly died from this injury in 1921, at the age of 40. The London Welsh players wore black armbands in his memory during their last game of 1921.
