William Wilson

I whānau mai i te 18 May 1889 - I mate atu i te 16 Jan 1976

Nama Hōia: WWI 17/287 AWMM
WWI 5/287A AWMM
Ingoa kārangaranga: Billy AWMM
Te Ope o Tū / te peka: Army AWMM
Te tūnga whakamutunga: WW1 Sergeant AWMM Wellington Infantry Regiment, 1st Battalion, 17th (Ruahine) Company AWMM
Pakanga: World War I, 1914-1918 AWMM

William Wilson — The New Zealand League Representative Football Team. THE NEW ZEALAND LEAGUE REPRESENTATIVE FOOTBALL TEAM, WHO LEFT ON SATURDAY EVENING LAST FOR MELBOURNE, WITH THE OBJECT OF PLAYING A SERIES OF MATCHES IN NEW SOUTH WALES AND QUEENSLAND. Back Row (from left): S. Walters (North Shore), K. Ifwerson (Grafton), B. Laing (City), W. Somers (Newton). Third Row: Parker (Wellington), McCarthy (Hawke's Bay), Brown (West Coast), A. Waddell (North Shore), Tancred (Wellington), Clarke (Ponsonby), Mr. Stirling (League delegate), W. Williams (Newton). Second Row: W. Walsh (Ponsonby), Mr. H. Oakley (manager), W. J. Mitchell (Canterbury), Mr. A. Ferguson (referee), W. Wilson (Wellington), Mr. W. Wynyard (selector). Front Row: Mr. P. Usher (League delegate), Mr. A. Powell (selector), W. Cloke (Newton), A. McGregor (Grafton), I. Stewart (City), W. Davidson (City). Absent: A. McClymont (Ponsonby), A. Matthews (North Shore), J. Rukutai (City), Herring (Grafton) and Mr. N. B. Levien (manager). New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, 29 May 1919, p.14. Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections SDR-19190529-14-01 No Known Copyright Restrictions

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Kōrero taurongo

William ‘Billy’ Wilson was born in Timaru in 1889, the son of Joseph Wilson and Tabitha Wilson. His mother was born in Batley, Yorkshire, England, while his father was from Barbados in the West Indies. He had three brothers, Joseph Simman, Nathaniel Arthur ‘Ranji’ and Charles Leslie, and two sisters, Elizabeth Maria May ‘Betty’ and Ada. His brother Ranji became an All Black and also served during World War I. Billy was a carpenter by trade.

Like Ranji, Billy began his senior rugby career with Athletic in Wellington. He represented Wellington B in 1910, but following the controversial club match in which a player’s jaw was broken, Billy was disqualified from rugby union after refusing to identify the player responsible. The incident attracted considerable attention because Billy, Ranji and their brother Joseph had all been playing and witnesses had difficulty distinguishing between them.

Billy switched to the newly established rugby league code in 1912, joining Athletic and representing Wellington. In 1914 he was selected for New Zealand against the touring Great Britain side at the Auckland Domain. Playing on the wing, he scored two tries in New Zealand’s narrow 16–13 loss.

Soon afterwards Wilson enlisted for service during World War I. He left New Zealand with the 3rd Reinforcements in February 1915, initially serving with the New Zealand Veterinary Corps before being attached to the New Zealand Army Service Corps. He served during the Gallipoli campaign, where he contracted pneumonia in May 1915 and was evacuated to Egypt. He returned to the Dardanelles in July and later transferred to the Wellington Infantry Regiment.

On the Western Front Wilson served for a time as a runner, carrying messages between positions. Fellow soldier Peter McColl described him as a “runner of note” who appeared to bear “a charmed life”, given the dangerous situations he survived. Wilson was slightly wounded in France in June 1917 but rejoined his unit three days later.

Football remained an important part of his wartime experience. Wilson represented the Wellington Battalion in Egypt, scoring three tries in a 14–0 victory over Auckland in 1916, and was later selected for New Zealand military rugby teams alongside his brother Ranji.

After returning from the war, Billy resumed his rugby league career and toured Australia with the New Zealand team in 1919 and again in 1921. A serious leg injury during the latter tour brought his international playing career to an end. He later returned to rugby union and was involved in coaching at Eastbourne. AWMM

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William Wilson

William Wilson

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William Wilson

William Wilson

Tuakiri

E pā ana ki

Mātātuhi me ngā tuhinga

Mātātuhi

Ngā tuhinga

Tauoranga kirirarau

Te whānautanga

Ope taua

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Te Whakangungu me te Urunga atu

Te maha o ngā ekenga waka

Mauhere o te pakanga

Whakapapa hauora

Te tūnga whakamutunga e mōhiotia ana

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