Trevor Foster

For the British drummer (Albion Band), see Trevor Foster (drummer).

Trevor Foster
MBE
Personal information
Full nameTrevor John French Foster[1]
Born(1914-12-03)3 December 1914
Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales[1]
Died2 April 2005(2005-04-02) (aged 90)
Bradford, England
Playing information
Rugby union
PositionFlanker
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1937–38 Newport 35 12
Rugby league
PositionSecond-row, Loose forward
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1938–55 Bradford Northern 428 128 1 0 386
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1939–51 Wales 16 5 1 0 17
1946–48 Great Britain 3 2 0 0 6
1942–44 Northern Command 3 2 0 0 6
1943 Army XIII 1 0 0 0 0
Coaching information
Club
Years Team Gms W D L W%
1960–61 Bradford Northern
Source: [2][3][4][5]

Trevor John French Foster MBE (3 December 1914 – 2 April 2005) was a Welsh rugby footballer and coach. He played rugby union for Newport and rugby league for Bradford Northern.[2] Trevor Foster was a Sergeant Physical Training Instructor in the British Army during World War II.[6]

Early years

Trevor Foster was born on December 3rd, 1914, in Newport, Monmouthshire.[7] He joined the Bradford Northern rugby league club in 1938 for £400[8] from Newport RFC, his home town's rugby union club.

He played for Newport Schoolboys and Pill Harriers as a teenager, before joining Newport. He was also chosen to play for invitational team Crawshays.[9]

Bradford Northern career

He played 432 games in total for Bradford Northern, usually as a second-row and occasionally as a loose forward. During this time, he scored 130 tries, including 22 in the 1947–48 season and six tries in one game.[10][11] Trevor was a regular forward for Bradford Northern side in the post-war period, contributing to the Rugby League Challenge Cup in 1947 and 1949 with Trevor scoring in both games.

Trevor Foster played at second-row in Bradford Northern's 3–8 defeat by Wigan in the 1947–48 Challenge Cup Final during the 1947–48 season at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 1 May 1948.[12]

Trevor Foster played at second-row in Bradford Northern's 6–13 defeat by Wigan in the Championship Final during the 1951–52 season at Leeds Road, Huddersfield on Saturday 10 May 1952.[13]

Representative honours

Trevor Foster won 16 caps for Wales while at Bradford Northern between the years of 1939 and 1951, including seven as captain, and won caps for Great Britain while at Bradford Northern in 1946 against New Zealand, and in 1948 against Australia (2 matches).

Foster was selected for the 1946 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia but was injured before being able to play a game.[14]

Trevor Foster played at second-row and was captain for Northern Command XIII against a Rugby League XIII at Thrum Hall, Halifax on Saturday 21 March 1942.[15] Trevor was never sent from the field of play or even cautioned during his 17 years of topflight rugby.[16]

Retirement and coaching

After his retirement in 1955, Trevor Foster remained a servant of the Bradford club as Coach, Director, and Chairman of the Supporters Club, as well as timekeeper for Super League home games.

Club saviour

In 1963, Foster was a central figure in a campaign to save Bradford Northern club, which had disbanded due to financial problems. He led efforts to reconstitute the club, and it was then able to rejoin the league the following season.[17]

Honours

In the 2001 New Year Honours, Trevor Foster was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) "for services to the community in Bradford, West Yorkshire."[18] In 2004, he was inducted into Welsh Sports Hall of Fame.

Trevor Foster has been included in Bradford's 'Millennium Masters', 'Bull Masters', and in August 2007, he was named in the 'Team of the Century'. Only six players have been included in all three lists; Karl Fairbank, Trevor Foster, James Lowes, Keith Mumby, Robbie Paul and Ernest Ward.

Arriva Yorkshire honoured 13 rugby league footballers on August 20th, 2009, at a ceremony at The Jungle, the home of the Castleford Tigers. A fleet of new buses were named after the 'Arriva Yorkshire Rugby League Dream Team'. Members of the public nominated the best ever rugby league footballers to have played in West Yorkshire, supported by local rugby league journalists James Deighton from BBC Leeds and Tim Butcher, editor of Rugby League World. The 'Arriva Yorkshire Rugby League Dream Team' is: Trevor Foster MBE, Neil Fox MBE, Albert Goldthorpe, Alan Hardisty, Stan Kielty, Lewis Jones, Roger Millward MBE, Malcolm Reilly, Garry Schofield, Keith Senior, David Topliss, Dave Valentine and Adrian Vowles.[19]

Death

Foster died due to a heart attack April 2, 2005 in Bradford Royal Infirmary at the age of 90.[17]

References

  1. ^ a b Hadfield, Dave (6 April 2005). "Trevor Foster - Bradford rugby league 'legend'". The Independent. Archived from the original on 20 November 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  2. ^ a b "Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org (RL)". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  3. ^ Foster, Simon; Gate, Robert; Lush, Peter (2005). Trevor Foster: The Life of a Rugby League Legend. London: London League Publications. ISBN 978-1903659182.
  4. ^ Gone North Volume 1 by Robert Gate page 63 ISBN 0951119001
  5. ^ "Player Summary: Trevor Foster". Rugby League Records. Rugby League Record Keepers Club. Retrieved 22 February 2025.
  6. ^ "inside programme, Northern Command v. A Rugby League XIII, 1942". rugbyleagueoralhistory.co.uk. 31 December 2010. Archived from the original on 2 December 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
  7. ^ "Trevor Foster". The Telegraph. 20 May 2005. Retrieved 24 January 2014.
  8. ^ "Trevor Foster - Welsh Sports Hall of Fame". 24 January 2025. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
  9. ^ Newport RFC player profile Archived 17 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine blackandambers.co.uk
  10. ^ April 2, 2005, December 3, 1914- (5 May 2005). "Trevor Foster". www.thetimes.com. Retrieved 6 February 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ "Trevor Foster - Welsh Sports Hall of Fame". 24 January 2025. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
  12. ^ "1947-1948 Challenge Cup Final". wigan.rlfans.com. 31 December 2011. Archived from the original on 23 October 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  13. ^ "1951-1952 Championship Final". wigan.rlfans.com. 31 December 2011. Archived from the original on 24 August 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
  14. ^ "Trevor Foster". The Independent. 5 April 2005. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
  15. ^ "inside programme, Northern Command v. A Rugby League XIII, 1942". rugbyleagueoralhistory.hud.ac.uk. 31 December 2010. Archived from the original on 26 August 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
  16. ^ "Worth remembering Bradford's adopted son Trevor Foster - Yorkshire Post Letters". Yorkshire Post. 17 April 2025. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  17. ^ a b "City mourns Trevor Foster". Bradford Telegraph and Argus. 4 April 2005. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
  18. ^ United Kingdom list: "No. 56070". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2000. p. 17.
  19. ^ "Arriva Yorkshire Rugby League Dream Team". Arriva Yorkshire. 20 August 2009. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
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