Name George Bennett Died August 16, 1886 | Role Cricket Player | |
George Henry Bennett (8 July 1913 – 31 August 1970) was a Welsh rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1930s, playing at representative level rugby league (RL) for Wales, and at club level for Wigan and Bradford Northern as a centre, stand-off/five-eighth, or scrum-half/halfback, i.e. number 3 or 4, 6, or 7.
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Rugby union career
Born in Newport, Wales, Bennett started his career as a rugby union player, joining Weston-super-Mare in 1929. He left Wales due to the racism of the Welsh Rugby Union preventing him from playing for the national team, and signed for rugby league side Wigan in November 1930.
Wigan
Bennet played stand-off/five-eighth in Wigan's 15–3 victory over Salford in the Championship final during the 1933–34 season at Wilderspool Stadium, Warrington on Saturday 28 April 1934. He also played stand-off/five-eighth in Wigan's 30-27 victory over France at Central Park, Wigan, on Saturday 10 March 1934. Bennet played centre, i.e. number 4, and scored a try in Wigan's 12-21 defeat by Salford in the 1934 Lancashire Cup final during the 1934–35 season at Station Road, Swinton on Saturday 20 October 1934. In December 1937, after losing his place as a first team regular, he joined Bradford Northern.
Bradford Northern
Bennet played 151 games for Bradford, including the final of the 1944 Challenge Cup win against Wigan.
International honours
Bennet won three caps for Wales (RL) in 1935–1936 while at Wigan, becoming the first black man to represent a British national team at rugby league.
Note
George Bennet's surname is variously spelt with two T's as Bennett, or with a single T as Bennet.