Name Eynon Hawkins | Died December 17, 2001 | |
Eynon Hawkins (26 June 1920 – 17 December 2001) was an Albert Medal and George Cross World War II hero and a Welsh professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s, and 1950s, playing at representative level for Wales, and at club level for Salford, and Rochdale Hornets, as a prop, i.e. number 8 or 10, during the era of contested scrums. His birth was registered in Bridgend district.
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Early life
The son of a miner, Hawkins was born at Llanbaran, in Glamorgan. Educated locally, he left school at 14 and went into the mining industry, playing rugby union for Llanharan RFC, Bridgend RFC and Glamorgan County RFC in his spare time. He joined the navy in 1940, and, after training at HMS Raleigh and HMS Drake, spent nine months on a trawler patrolling the English Channel, before transferring as a seaman gunner to the Dems, with whom he served in the Atlantic, Mediterranean and Indian oceans.
A War Hero
On 10 January 1943 Eynon was a Royal Navy able seaman serving as a gunner aboard the British Tanker Company's MV British Dominion, one of a 14-strong convoy en route to Malta from the West Indies.
About 300 miles southwest of Madeira, the convoy in which Hawkins was serving was attacked. Hit by three torpedoes, the British Dominion caught fire almost immediately. The blaze was so fierce and the fear of explosion so great that, before the lifeboats could be launched, the order was given for the crew to abandon ship.
Many crew members jumped overboard. In the terrible confusion that followed, Hawkins, with great coolness and courage, managed to gather together a group of about nine men and keep them clear of the burning oil. He twice swam away from his companions to go to the assistance of other survivors who were in difficulty, encouraging them and swimming back with them to the group. The burning oil was still spreading and, as one of the Royal Navy escorts began to pick up survivors, Hawkins, still helping to pull his companions to safety, was badly burned on the face.
For his great courage in saving life at sea, Hawkins was awarded the Albert medal in bronze, which he received from King George VI at Buckingham Palace on 16 November 1943. He later also received the Lloyds medal for bravery at sea.
International honours
Hawkins won caps for Wales while at Salford, and Rochdale Hornets 1949–1953 6-caps.