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Kathleen Hedley asks:
Would someone in your organization be able to give me any information
about this photo. I believe my father-in-law played rugby for
the Army. John Henry Persival Hedley, left hand man, front row.
I have been told he played for the Army against Ireland at Lansdowne
Road in the 1920s. He was a musician and trained at the Royal
Military School of Music in Twickenham. I believe he was in the
Irish Guards. The insignia looks like a lion above the numeral
IV. I thank you for whatever you can give me,
Email your reponse to Kathleen
Hedley
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John Dickens, ARU Secretary comments:
The photo is of the Kings Own Regiment Rugby team, from circa 1922,
the man seated with the ball is Army Captain AR Aslett. I would
suggest that the IV on the badge denotes that it is the fourth Battalion.
I have no record of an Army v Ireland match, however this may have
been the British Army v the Irish (the British Army in Ireland)
Army. There is no record of your father being capped for the Army
against the Navy, RAF or the French Army. You mentioned that your
father was a bandsman in the Irish Guards, please note that it was
not unusual for bandsmen to move between Regiments to fill gaps
as and when required and this may account for him playing rugby
for the Kings Own Regiment. The Kings Own Regiment was amalgamated
with the Borderers in 1969 to form the Kings Own Border Regiment
and has recently been further amalgamated into the 3rd Battalion
The Duke Of Lancaster’s Regiment (3 Lancs’)
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