Cecil Mountford
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Full name | Cecil Ralph Mountford | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | South Island, New Zealand | 16 June 1919||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 19 July 2009 | (aged 90)||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Stand-off | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coaching information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
As of 2 February 2021 |
Cecil Ralph Mountford
Mountford was one of ten siblings, he and four of his brothers played rugby league for the South Island whilst
Early years
Mountford played soccer at school, as he was considered too small to play rugby league. In 1935 at the age of 16 he joined Blackball Rugby League club, where he earned the nickname 'The Blackball Bullet' due to his speed on the field.
Player for Wigan
Mountford signed for Wigan Rugby League Club in 1946, he shared in one of Wigan’s finest moments in the 1949/50 campaign when, as captain – in place of usual captain Joe Egan who was on tour with seven other Wigan stars – he led his side to a sensational 20-2 Championship Final win over Huddersfield at Maine Road.
Mountford played at Wembley Stadium on two occasions, the first being in 1948, when they beat the current title holders Bradford Northern 8-3 in a nail biting final. The second visit, in 1951, Mountford led the team to a 10-0 victory over Barrow in a rain-soaked Wembley final. He also became the first overseas player to receive the Lance Todd Trophy.
Challenge Cup Final appearances
Cecil Mountford played stand-off in Wigan's 8-3 victory over Bradford Northern in the 1947–48 Challenge Cup Final during the 1947–48 season at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 1 May 1948, in front of a crowd of 91,465.[3]
County Cup Final appearances
Cecil Mountford played
International career
Internationally he missed out on playing for New Zealand, but he did represent Other Nationalities in two European Championships, in a team labelled "The Rest", in 1950, watched by a crowd of 25,000 fans. He requested, and was granted, permission from Wigan to join the 1947-8 New Zealand tour of Great Britain but the Management decided that injuries were not bad enough to bring him in.[8] Instead, during the Kiwis tour Cecil played for Wigan against the Kiwis, which included his brother Ken.
Mountford was appointed head coach of the New Zealand team in 1979, leading the Kiwis on their 1980 tour of Great Britain and France and the 1982 tour of Australia and Papua New Guinea. New Zealand won 6 games, lost 8 and drew 1 under Mountford's coaching. He was replaced in 1983 by Graham Lowe.
Coaching at Warrington
In 1951 Mountford qualified as a first grade coach, being offered a 10-year contract at Warrington, despite Wigan initially refusing to release him as a player. Mountford made his first appearance for Warrington in October 1952 initially as a player coach.
Championship final appearances
Cecil Mountford was the
on Saturday 8 May 1954, in front of a crowd of 36,519.Challenge Cup Final appearances
Cecil Mountford was the
After completing his tenure as a coach, he returned to New Zealand in May 1961, before heading back to England as Manager of Blackpool Borough in 1972, which was short-lived when he resigned in June 1973. Mountford returned to New Zealand in 1974, initially providing coaching courses before being signed as the manager-coach of the New Zealand national rugby league team from 1979 to 1982.
Honours
In the
Genealogical information
Cecil Mountford's marriage to Agnes E. (née Battersby) was registered during first ¼ 1948 in Wigan district.[13] They had children; Carolyn E. Mountford (birth registered during third ¼ 1950 (age 73–74) in Wigan district), and Christopher L. K. Mountford (birth registered during first ¼ 1954 (age 69–70) in Runcorn district).
References
- ^ "Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Coach Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- ^ "1947-1948 Challenge Cup Final". wigan.rlfans.com. 31 December 2014. Archived from the original on 7 September 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "1946-1947 Lancashire Cup Final". wigan.rlfans.com. 31 December 2014. Archived from the original on 7 September 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "1948-1949 Lancashire Cup Final". wigan.rlfans.com. 31 December 2014. Archived from the original on 15 April 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "1949-1950 Lancashire Cup Final". wigan.rlfans.com. 31 December 2014. Archived from the original on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "1950-1951 Lancashire Cup Final". wigan.rlfans.com. 31 December 2014. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ISBN 1-86971-090-8
- ^ "Mud, blood and memories of the day when 102,575 made history at Odsal". The independent. 31 December 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2017.
- ^ Baker, Andrew (20 August 1995). "100 years of rugby league: From the great divide to the Super era". Independent, The. independent.co.uk. Retrieved 25 September 2009.
- ^ "No. 50950". The London Gazette (4th supplement). 13 June 1987. p. 32.
- ^ "New Zealand Rugby League Annual Report 2008" (PDF). NZRL. 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 September 2009. Retrieved 21 July 2009.
- ^ "Marriage details at freebmd.org.uk". freebmd.org.uk. 31 December 2015. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
Further reading
- Ces, Mountford (2003). Kiwis, Wigan and the wire: my life and rugby league. London League. ISBN 9781903659106.