Trevor Foster facts for kids
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Personal information
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| Full name | Trevor John French Foster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 3 December 1914 Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales |
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| Died | 2 April 2005 (aged 90) Bradford, England |
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Playing information
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Rugby union
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| Position | Flanker | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rugby league
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| Position | Second-row, Loose forward | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Coaching information
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Trevor John French Foster MBE (born December 3, 1914 – died April 2, 2005) was a famous Welsh rugby player and coach. He played rugby union for Newport and rugby league for Bradford Northern. Trevor was also a Sergeant and Physical Training Instructor in the British Army during World War II.
Contents
Early Life and Rugby Beginnings
Trevor Foster was born on December 3, 1914, in Newport, Wales. He is best known for his strong connection with the Bradford Northern rugby league club. He joined them as a player in 1938.
Before that, he played for Newport Schoolboys and Pill Harriers when he was a teenager. He then joined Newport, his hometown's rugby union club. He even played for a special invitational team called Crawshays.
Playing for Bradford Northern
Trevor played an amazing 428 games for Bradford Northern. He usually played as a second-row (second-row) and sometimes as a loose forward (loose forward). He scored 140 tries, which is a lot for a forward player! This included 24 tries in the 1947–48 season. He even scored 6 tries in one game.
Trevor was a key player for Bradford Northern after World War II. His team won the Rugby League Challenge Cup in 1947 and 1949. Trevor scored points in both of those final games. The Bradford team at that time had many great Welsh players.
Playing for Wales and Great Britain
Trevor Foster played for his country, Wales, 16 times between 1939 and 1951. He was the captain for 7 of those games.
He also played for the Great Britain team three times. He played against New Zealand in 1946 and against Australia twice in 1948. He would have played more games for his country if World War II had not happened.
In 1946, he was chosen for the Great Britain team that won the Ashes tour in Australia. However, he got injured before he could play any games on that tour.
Remarkable Fair Play Record
It's quite amazing that Trevor Foster was never sent off the field or even warned by the referee during his 17 years of playing top-level rugby. This shows how disciplined and fair he was, especially for a forward player.
After Playing: Coaching and Saving the Club
After he stopped playing in 1955, Trevor continued to help the Bradford club. He worked as a coach, a director, and even the chairman of the Supporters Club. He also worked as a timekeeper for home games.
| Sporting positions | ||
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| Preceded by Dai Rees 1936-1960 |
Coach Bradford Northern 1960-1961 |
Succeeded by Doug Greenall 1961 |
Saving Bradford Northern
In 1963, Trevor Foster did something very important for Bradford and rugby league history. The Bradford Northern club had to stop playing because of money problems. Trevor was the main person who led a campaign to save his beloved club.
Thanks to his hard work, the club was able to restart and rejoin the league the next season. Many people believe that without Trevor's efforts, the club might not exist today.
Awards and Recognition
Trevor Foster received several important awards for his contributions:
- In 2001, he was given an MBE award.
- In 2004, he was added to the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame.
Honoured in Bradford
Trevor Foster is highly respected in Bradford. He has been included in several special lists for the club's greatest players:
- 'Millennium Masters'
- 'Bull Masters'
- 'Team of the Century' (in August 2007)
Only six players have been on all three of these important lists. They are Karl Fairbank, Trevor Foster, James Lowes, Keith Mumby, Robbie Paul, and Ernest Ward.
Honoured by Arriva Yorkshire
On August 20, 2009, a bus company called Arriva Yorkshire honoured 13 rugby league players. They named a fleet of new buses after the 'Arriva Yorkshire Rugby League Dream Team'. Trevor Foster was one of these honoured players.
Later Life
Trevor Foster passed away peacefully in a hospital in Bradford on April 2, 2005, after a short illness.
