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James Pearson (rugby union)

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James Pearson
Birth nameAlexander William Angus
Date of birth(1889-02-24)24 February 1889
Place of birthEdinburgh, Scotland
Date of death22 May 1915(1915-05-22) (aged 26)
Place of deathHooge, Belgium
Rugby union career
Position(s) Centre
Amateur team(s)
Years Team Apps (Points)
Watsonians ()
Provincial / State sides
Years Team Apps (Points)
1910 Edinburgh District ()
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
1909-13 Scotland 12 (10)

James Pearson (24 February 1889 – 22 May 1915) was a Scotland international rugby union player. He played at Centre. At the First World War, Pearson joined the Royal Scots as a soldier; he was killed in Second Battle of Ypres.[1]

Rugby Union career

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Amateur career

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Pearson was born in Dalkeith, Midlothian. He was educated at George Watson's College, where he played cricket for the Watsonians. A friend encouraged him to take up rugby as well, and he soon excelled at that as well.[2]

Provincial career

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He played for Edinburgh District against Glasgow District in the 1910 inter-city match. Edinburgh won the match 26-5.[3]

International career

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He earned 12 caps for Scotland between 1909–13.[1]

Military career

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Memorial to the 133 rugby players killed in the Great War, at Fromelles

He served as a Private with the 9th Battalion, Royal Scots during the war. Following the Second Battle of Ypres, he was shot and killed by a sniper while going for water in Sanctuary Wood in May 1915.[4]

He is buried at Sanctuary Wood Cemetery (plot VE 27) but also remembered on the special memorial to the 133 rugby players killed in the Great War, at Fromelles in north France.[5]

References

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  1. ^ a b Bath, Richard (ed.) The Scotland Rugby Miscellany, p. 109. (Vision Sports Publishing Ltd, 2007 ISBN 1-905326-24-6)
  2. ^ McCrery, Nigel (2014). Into Touch: Rugby Internationals Killed in the Great War. Pen and Sword. pp. 190–191. ISBN 9781781590874. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  3. ^ "The Glasgow Herald - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com.
  4. ^ "Casualty Details: Pearson, James". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  5. ^ https://www.cwgc.org/stories/stories/private-james-pearson/
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