Tom Richards

Tom Richards holds the distinction of being the only player to have ever played for both the Wallabies and the British Lions. Richards has in fact played competitive rugby in four countries, quite unusual in his time. He started in his native Australia, playing for the Queensland representative team. After moving to South Africa with his family, he was selected for the Transvaal team. Moving to England, he played for Bristol and was selected for Glouchestershire. He then returned to Australia, again playing for Queensland. This position earned him a position in the Australian team that toured England in 1908, a trip that included the London Olympics. Scoring a try in the tournament’s only match against Cornwall, he took home the gold medal. In 1910, Richards was back in South Africa when the Lions were touring there. With much of the team injured, former Bristol player Richards was asked to help them out in a match against the host nation. After briefly playing for a French team in 1913, he volunteered for the Australian Imperial Force during World War I. He was at the original Gallipoli landing, fought on both the Eastern and Western front, and was awarded the Military Cross in 1917. Richards, who also worked as a journalist, died of tuberculosis at age 53.