What follows arrived over four years ago and was misfiled and just now rediscovered. It came from Joyce M. Allsop, who said, "My cousin Roy Whittaker played lacrosse in the 1948 London Olympic Games ... and won a bronze medal ... [I] would like to pass [the information] on [and] get it somewhere on the web." The PDF extraction below may not be perfect, but everything in the document has been included.

Lacrosse at the 1948 Olympic Games

A re-print of an article entitled "Waconians at Wembley" by J. I. Whitehead, Captain of the England Team

Seven Old Waconians had the distinction of playing for the all-England Lacrosse Team at Wembley Stadium in connection with the XIVth Olympiad this year, and it is appropriate that the "Waconian" should include a record of the event which reflects so well on the School as a lacrosse nursery.

The Renselaer Polytechnic Institute (of Troy, New York) lacrosse squad, paid a welcome visit to this country during the summer and met and defeated various representative teams in the North and South of England. Their tour culminated in their representing the United States of America in a match against an all- England lacrosse team at Wembley Stadium on 5th August, 1948, which resulted in a draw, five goals each.

The competition for inclusion in the eighteen players to compose the all-England side was very keen, and hard training (under the guidance and excellent example of Mr. C.L. Middleton of Melior Lacrosse Club) several trial games, and the players' showing when opposed to R.P.I., in representative games, all contributed to guide the selectors in their choice.

From prior matches it was clear that a speedy, fast passing attack, a fit and forceful mid-field section, and a solid straight defence were required to combat successfully the superior weight, longer 'crosses and 35 supreme confidence of R.P.I. Furthermore, a carefully arranged plan of operation of substitution to obtain constant mid-field freshness and an untiring attacking policy while maintaining a basic team link throughout was essential.

With these factors in mind, selection was made, and it was with great pride that we saw seven Old Waconians included in the eighteen chosen. They were: H.J. Ginn, G.D. Gleave, B.C. Makin, R.T. Renshaw, R.N. Whittaker, R.V. Wilson, and J.I. Whitehead, who had the very great honour of the captaincy. It would be fitting here to include the name of E. S. Edge, an Old Boy who has been associated with the Boardman and Eccles Lacrosse Club for many years, whose invaluable help and guidance from the substitute benches was a great source of encouragement.

Although everyone in the England team had previously played against R.P.I., on a representative team which has been beaten, there was a general feeling that we had the material and ability with which to win and the spirit of the players was excellent; it showed itself whenever they met and particularly during the game.

The broad principles of the game were adequately explained in a full page article in the day's official Olympic programme and the match was preceded by a short broadcast which amplified this, and also introduced the two captains and gave some brief details of the teams. It was in this talk that the name of the Cheadle Hulme School was brought to the notice of the sixty odd thousand spectators then present.


1. H. Wyatt, 2. A.L. Dennis, 3. J.I. Whitehead (Capt.), 4. R.T. Renshaw, A.Howarth (Referee)
"Article and photographs courtesy of Roy Whittaker"
The coin spun in our favour and we defended the "Torch" end of the ground for the first period. It was a tremendous thrill to lead out an all-England team from under the Olympic Torch to play on the famous Wembley turf, and there was a warm reception from the crowd.

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2009-09-26