Rugby Player Menin Gate Memorial
There are six Rugby players of international standing listed on the Menin Gate Memorial.
Second Lieutenant William Purdon Geen, 9th Battalion King’s Royal Rifle Corps, 42 Infantry Brigade, 14th (Light) Division. Killed in action 31 July 1915, age 25. Educated at Northam Place, Potter's Bar, and then Haileybury College, and Oxford University. He was a rugby union wing and centre, who represented Wales, and played club rugby for Oxford University and Newport and county rugby for Monmouthshire. He was also invited to play for the Barbarians on several occasions. Geen unsuccessfully trialled for England in 1910, but was selected and played for Wales on three occasions in the 1912–1913 season. Injury prevented him from playing more internationals. Geen excelled athletically at Oxford, earning four Blues between 1910 and 1913. However, in three successive Varsity Matches, he failed to score after dropping the ball over the try line. In the holidays, he played club rugby for Newport, and he was part of the team that defeated the touring South African side of 1912–1913. He was also a decent cricketer keeping wicket for Oxford University Authentics and Monmouthshire. Geen was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the 9th Battalion, King's Royal Rifle Corps on 21 August 1914. He trained in Petworth and was sent to the Western Front in May 1915. The 9th was assigned to the 14th (Light) Division and served with it during the Second Battle of Ypres. He was killed in the ill-fated counter-attack at Hooge on 30 July. The Battalion carried out an attack to retake the trenches lost to the German flamethrower attack on 30 July. After a desultory bombardment that last forty five minutes the Battalion went forward at 2.45pm and three platoons charged the German trench at Bond Street but were almost wiped out by machine gun fire. The British attack was repulsed with heavy losses.
Lieutenant James Young Milne Henderson Mentioned in Despatches, 11th Battalion Highland Light Infantry, 46th Brigade, 15th (Scottish) Division. Killed in action 31 July 1917, age 26. Son of John and Edwardina ‘Ina’ Young Milne-Henderson, 15 Merchiston Park, Edinburgh. He was educated at George Watson’s College, Edinburgh where he played Rugby for the 2nd XV at age 13 and the 1st XV at age 15, as well as cricket, field hockey and was a champion swimmer winning the East of Scotland swimming championship. He played Rugby for Watsonians and was capped once for Scotland against England in 1911 in the first Calcutta match played at Twickenham, he played against Captain Ronald Owen Lagden and that same year he moved to India to take up employment and played Rugby for the Madras Rugby team. He returned to England to take up the post of Works Manager to McVitie and Price, Ltd., Willesden, London. On the outbreak of war he joined the Highland Light Infantry and saw action at Loos in September 1915. On 31 July 1917, during the opening day of the Third Battle of Ypres, aided by two tanks, the 46th Brigade attacked Frezenberg village, before a party from the King’s Own Scottish Borderers outflanked the enemy position. The 11th Highland Light Infantry came under fire from enemy positions at Square Farm, Hill 35 and Frost House. After the 1/7th King’s took Square Farm, the 11th HLI took Low Farm, but were checked by fire from Pommern Castle and Hill 35. Lieutenant Henderson was killed in this action. His younger brother Second Lieutenant John Milne Henderson, Royal Flying Corps, was killed in action in France on 28 January 1918. Their older brother was Royal Navy Commodore Thomas Milne Henderson OBE, he died in 1968.
Captain Ronald Owen Lagden Mentioned in Despatches, 4th Battalion King’s Royal Rifle Corps, 80th Infantry Brigade, 27th Division. Killed in action 3 March 1915, age 25. Son of Sir Godfrey Lagden, K.C.M.G., and Lady Lagden, of "Selwyn," Oatlands Chase, Weybridge. He was born in South Africa and was educated at Mr Pellatt’s Preparatory School on the Isle of Purbeck, Marlborough College, and Oriel College, Oxford graduating in 1912. At Marlborough and Oxford he excelled in a range of sports, winning blues at rugby, cricket, hockey and racquets. His single cap for England came in the 1911 match v Scotland at Twickenham, he played against Lieutenant James Young Milne Henderson, where England won 13-8. Lagden, playing in the back row, converted two of England's three tries. In 1912 he took a post at Harrow School as a mathematics master, continuing to play rugby for Richmond, where he was vice-captain in 1912-13. He was a member of the Officer Training Corps at Oxford with the rank of Lieutenant and joined the Army Reserve in 1912 and on the outbreak of war he joined the 6th Battalion King’s Royal Rifle Corps. He went to France in February 1915 and was posted to the 4th Battalion and joined ‘D’ Company. The Battalion was in the line at St Eloi and took part in an ill-fated attack on the German trenches on 3 March in which he was killed. He was posted as missing later confirmed killed.
Captain Basil Maclear Mentioned in Despatches, 2nd Battalion Royal Dublin Fusiliers, 10th Infantry Brigade, 4th Division. Killed in action 24 May 1915, age 34. He was born in Portsmouth and was the fifth son of Henry Wallich Maclear and Mary Maclear (née Casey) of Liverpool. He was educated at Bedford School and at the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was a talented sportsman who represented the RMC, Sandhurst at rugby, cricket, athletics and shooting, winning the Sword of Honour in 1900. He was gazetted Second Lieutenant in 1900 and joined the Royal Dublin Fusiliers seeing service in the Boer War, and was promoted to Lieutenant in 1904 and was in Fermoy, County Cork. He was appointed to the staff at RMC Sandhurst in 1911, where he remained until he was sent to the western front in March 1915. As he was resident in Cork Maclear was selected by Ireland to play against England, the country of his birth, in 1905, he finished on the winning side in all three of his appearance against England. He played a record four times against the 1905 All Blacks – for Blackheath, Bedford, Munster, whom he captained, and for Ireland, the fourth test of his brief 11-cap career. In 1906 he scored an 80-metre try against South Africa, and his final game for Ireland was in the team that suffered a humiliating 29–0 defeat to Wales in Cardiff in 1907. He was inducted into the Ireland Hall of Fame in 2015. On the 24 May 1915, now Captain Maclear, was in the line with the Battalion and was leading a bombing party to clear the enemy from a trench when he was killed. He was the first Irish rugby international to die in the war. Three of his four brothers were also killed in the war: Lieutenant Colonel Percy Maclear, Royal Dublin Fusiliers, in Cameroon 30 August 1914, Lance Corporal Joseph Arthur Maclear in action at Gallipoli 29 June 1915, and his eldest brother, Lieutenant Colonel Harry Maclear, at Loos 15 March 1916.
Lieutenant Colonel Edgar Roberts Mobbs, Twice Mentioned in Despatches, D.S.O., 7th Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment, 73rd Infantry Brigade, 24th Division. Killed in action 31 July 1917, age 37. Son of Oliver and Elizabeth Anne Mobbs, of Northampton. Mobbs grew up in Northampton in a large family. His brothers included Arthur Noel Mobbs and Herbert Mobbs, both of whom later worked as engineers. His brother Noel Mobbs (1878–1959) later became the founder of Slough Estates. Edgar was educated at Bedford Modern School, where he distinguished himself in sport; one of the school's houses is named in his honour. After leaving school he entered business and by 1911 was working as the manager of a motor garage, Pytchley Auto Car Company, living in Olney, Buckinghamshire. Edgar Mobbs began playing rugby for Northampton Saints in 1902 and soon established himself as one of the leading three-quarters in English rugby. After only a short time at the club he was appointed captain and led Northampton between 1906 and 1913. During this period he became one of the most influential figures in the club's history and was widely regarded as an inspirational leader on the field. Mobbs also represented the East Midlands and served as captain of the side. In addition he was selected for England, earning seven international caps between 1909 and 1910 and was the first player to score a try in England v Australia
internationals. His last game for England was as Captain of the team that played v France in Paris in 1910. He served on the RFU and Barbarians Committees and he captained the Barbarians v Leicester on 2 January, and 27 March, and v Royal Army Medical Corps on 10 April He also played for Buckinghamshire County Cricket Club. Mobbs is commemorated in the Ella - Mobbs Trophy, first competed for by the Australia and England rugby union teams in the 2022 series. At the outbreak of the First World War, Mobbs volunteered for military service but was initially rejected for a commission due to his age of 32. Undeterred, he personally raised his own unit of 264 men as ‘D’ Company, 7th Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment, which became known as ‘Mobb’s Army’ and included many Rugby players. Edgar Mobbs arrived in France in September 1915, and took part in the Battle of Loos. In March 1916 he was promoted to Major, and took command of the 7th Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment in April 1916, he was later being promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. He was wounded by shrapnel in August 1916 while taking part in an attack on Guillemont, during the Battle of the Somme. After two Mentions in Despatches in 1916, Mobbs was awarded a DSO in December 1916, gazetted 1 January 1917, for his work as a Battalion Commander. He took part on the Battle of Arras in April 1917 where the 7th Battalion Northamptonshire Regiment suffered severe casualties. The Battalion took part in the Battle of Messines, 7 June 1917, and he was wounded in the neck, but returned to the Battalion on 26 June. On 29 July 1917, while in his headquarters in Canada Street tunnels at Armagh Wood, he heard of the loss of officers from the walking wounded, and decided to lead the Battalion from the front, and moved to Shrewsbury Forest. He was killed in action while attempting to bomb a machine gun at Lower Star Post in Shrewsbury Forest that had trapped a detachment of his Battalion.
2565 Private James Ross, 1/14th Battalion London Regiment (London Scottish), 1st Infantry Brigade, 1st Division. Killed in action 1 November 1914, age 34. He had been born at Rutherford, Maxton and was the son of Emily and the late Richard Ross of Maxton. He was educated at Cargilfield and Fettes College, Edinburgh. He captained the rugby XV for three years whilst at Fettes and also played for the hockey and cricket XI. Whilst there he had played rugby for the London Scottish and was capped five times for Scotland against England, Ireland, Wales in 1901, against Wales in 1902, and England in 1903. He was captain of London Scottish in 1901 to 1902 and 1904 to 1905. He also played for the Barbarians between 1902 and 1906. He was described as a sturdily built, very hard working forward of the short and heavy type. He was working as a stockbroker as a partner in Robson and Ross in London on the outbreak of war when he enlisted in the London Scottish Territorial Battalion and went to France in September 1914. The London Scottish were the first Territorial Unit to see action in the Great War when they were ordered to hold the British lines near Messines. They were tasked to fill the breach near 4 Huns Farm and to try and stem the German attacks. Twice they did so in fierce hand to hand combat until ordered to retire. The Battalion lost 394 Officers and men out of 700. His brothers Second Lieutenant Thomas Ross, 1st Battalion Cameron Highlanders died of wounds received on 13 November 1918 in France age 18 and is buried in Premont British Cemetery. Second Lieutenant Richard Ross M.C., 1st Battalion Devonshire Regiment was killed in action on 25 September 1916, age 22 on the Somme. He is buried in Guards Cemetery, Lesboeufs.
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