Fred Roffey - Prop
Wales RLHeritage No | 69 |
Date Of Birth | 14/04/1895 |
Place Of Birth | Reigate |
Clubs | St Helens, Wigan Warriors, Pontypool, Ebbw Vale |
Regions | Monmouthshire |
Honours | Wales RL |
Frederick Leonard Roffey started his rugby with Pontypool before moving to Ebbw Vale when they returned as a rugby union after World War I. Born in South Godstone, Surrey, his family moved to South Wales when he was about three. He was 22 when he signed for Wigan. Ebbw Vale were a good team and when the Wigan Committee came down to watch a game they signed him and his team-mate Tommy Howley, They made their debuts together at Wigan and they also both worked on the ground in addition to playing, cleaning and painting the stands and doing odd jobs. At Wigan, he helped them to Championship Final and Lancashire Cup Final wins in 1922 and then the historic final ever Challenge Cup Final win for Wigan, which came on Fred's birthday in 1924. After 158 appearances for Wigan, where he scored 20 tries and kicked one goal, he moved to arch rivals St Helens "all on a point of principle". The Wigan Directors had been in South Africa looking for players and amongst the players was a forward and he wasn't rated by the rest of the team. He was getting paid more than the other forwards and the players decided they wouldn’t sign on unless we all got the same wage. Many did succumb, but Fred moved. He was eventually made captain of St Helens, helping them to a Lancashire Cup win in 1926. His final Saints appearance was on April 23, 1927 in their Championship semi-final loss to St Helens Recreation on the same day Cardiff City won the FA Cup. In 63 matches for the Saints, Fred scored 19 tries, including a winning try against Wigan late in the 1926-27 season. Outside rugby, Fred was a shift foreman for a cement manufacturer. He lived in Durham and Yorkshire and eventually died in Claro, North Yorkshire in October 1988, aged 93.
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