Bedford were original ‘Red Army’ of rugby
Brendan Gallagher continues his series looking at rugby”s great schools
BEFORE Munster started making a name for themselves, the “Red Machine” or “Red Army” – in rugby terms – applied to Bedford School who have been a major presence in the British game for the best part of 150 years producing some of the richest characters in the game.
Over their long history, Bedford have spawned 18 full internationals, four British Lions, 30 Barbarians, 29 Oxbridge Blues and too many Schools internationals to accurately count. Bedford can also claim 33 unbeaten school seasons over the many decades although many of them come at the dawn of rugby time when they perhaps played only six or seven school matches in the Autumn term. In those early days they played more often against club and college sides.
In total Bedford can look back on five unbeaten seasons against all opposition, the most recent coming in 2015. Between 2007 and 2011 they were unbeaten at home, no mean feat when you look at a fixture list that includes Dulwich, Harrow, Oundle, Tonbridge, Uppingham, Wellington, Warwick and Rugby. No easy matches there, ever.
The roll of honour is long and it’s an ongoing story with the school claiming a number of major trophies in modern times, not least the RFU Champions trophy at Allianz Park when that 2015 side beat Epsom 28-21 in a free flowing final. Possibly even better that season was their 27-24 win over Sedbergh in a classic semi-final.
Bedford also reached the final the following year, beating old rivals Epsom 10-5 in the semifinal, but on this occasion they pulled up short in the final, losing 17-10 to a Ben Earlinspired Tonbridge. At U15 level meanwhile they won the Daily Mail Trophy in 1995 and 2006.
The Bedford story started in 1870 with the first organised rugby games at the school and by 1881 they had adopted their trademark red jerseys which were to spread fear among opponents for decades to come. A year later saw their first game against Dulwich, an annual fixture usually played in October that continues unbroken until this day although this cursed Covid season could yet threaten that run.
The seminal moment, however, was the appointment of E H Dasent as the master in charge of rugby in 1884, a position he was to hold for 25 years. Under Dasent rugby became a way of life and Bedford produced ten internationals during his reign, many of them singular characters. Towards the end of the 19th century Dasent produced eight consecutive unbeaten sides against schools while, at one stage, the Bedford line, when playing at home, wasn’t crossed for five seasons.
The season of all seasons in the Dasent era was undoubtedly 1907, when they were unbeaten in all games, amassing 1,027 points including 373 points in their six inter-school matches. Left wing R C Wilkinson scored 87 tries in total that season.
Percy Christopherson was the first international produced by the school, making his debut in 1891 against Wales at Rodney Parade when he scored two tries in their win although that didn’t stop him promptly being dropped. Selectors eh?
Jumbo Milton, the South African-born son of politician William Milton, who had played rugby for England and cricket for South Africa, was a bulky and very physical lock. Remarkably Jumbo played all three matches in the 1904 Home Union Championship while still a schoolboy and was a capped twice more before returning to South Africa to work in the mining industry.
Another extraordinary Bedfordian with South African connections – he was born there – was Freddie Brooks, another schoolboy prodigy like Milton who scored two tries in an England trial while at the school. A remarkable athlete, he was the Public Schools’ 100 yards, 110 yards hurdles, long jump and high jump champion and also captained the Bedford cricket XI.
In a bizarre twist of fate he returned to South Africa after school and the Boks wanted him to tour Britain in 1906-7 but he missed out on his residential qualification by a matter of months. He was encouraged to travel anyway because he would qualify mid-tour but on arriving back in England he started playing for the Bedford club, got picked for the England trial and scored four tries. He was then picked for England and scored their try in a 3-3 draw with South Africa at Crystal Palace.
Charles “Curly” Hammond was another notable player from the School XV during this era, a burly forward who won eight England caps including one as captain. Hammond was a mainstay at Quins before World War 1 and is often best remembered for an incident on tour in Germany when he and his team arrived late for a civic dinner in Hanover. As skipper he was jokingly challenged by the Hanover President to drink ten glasses of German beer by way of a fine – which Hammond promptly did before setting down for his dinner.
Then there was Basil Maclear, a blazing star at the school before he won 11 caps for Ireland between 1905-7. Maclear came from an Ulster family with his father Henry settling in Bedford where he became a GP and produced five rugby playing sons. Basil was killed at Ypres Salient in May 1915.
Another standout in the Dasent era was G C Wheeler, a Victoria Cross recipient during WW1 who became a hero at the school by scoring a dramatic last minute winner against the old enemy – Dulwich – which he finished off by jumping clean over their full-back, something that would be outlawed today.
A little later – after WWl – came Stanley Harris. Harris was a good enough wing to play for England and win two caps for the Lions in South Africa in 1924 but there was so much else to this maverick sportsman.
He represented England at polo, turned down a place in the GB fencing squad for the 1920 Olympics, while after being injured in WWl he used his rehabilitation time to take up ballroom dancing. Being Harris he was soon a world champion in the waltz. Harris turned down an offer to join the GB modern pentathlon team while, after emigrating to South Africa, he represented his new nation at boxing and tennis.
Basil MacFarland was another Ulsterman who went on to play for Ireland, at full-back in the 1920s and the conveyor belt of top quality players kept coming after the war. Leading that list would be openside flanker Budge Rogers – born and bred in the town – who went on to captain England. Rogers was originally a scrum-half but coach Murray Fletcher switched him to flanker where he played for the Bedford club while still a pupil.
Martin Bayfield learned his trade up front at Bedford School and future England scrum-half Andy Gomarsall was an outstanding schoolboy player, captaining England Schools to a Grand Slam.
In modern times, aside from those Champions Cup finals, we shouldn’t overlook a fine win in the Festival tournament at Rosslyn Park in 2014. They squeezed past Kingswood 14-12 in the quarter-final and then in the semi-final pool games clocked up outstanding wins against Epsom and Cranleigh. It was not looking promising at 17-5 down early in the final againt KCS Wimbledon before skipper Ollie Lyons and speedster Paddy McDuell raced in for converted tries to clinch the trophy.
“Bedford can claim 33 unbeaten school seasons over the many decades”