Haddington RFC was founded in 1911 and many of the club, including the Captain, Francis Burnet, were also soldiers in the 8th Royal Scots.
So what became of the team during the war?
Well the answer is in common with many teams across Scotland, they suffered badly.
Lt Francis Alexander Burnet, club captain was wounded on 11th April,1918 fighting a desperate rear guard action against the Germans near Paradis. He had to be left behind as the stretcher bearers could not get to him due to the overwhelming German advance.
He was never found and is presumed to have died that day from his wounds. Age unknown
Lt George Reid, another of the founder members. He survived the fight that day but suffered an identical fate the next day in fighting around Pacaut Wood, Paradis. His body was never recovered either and he is commemorated on the Ploegsteert Memorial, he was 25 years old.

The first man in the photo to fall in action was Private 473 Alexander Faunt, he was a member of the 8th Royal Scots Battalion machine team He was killed on 1st March,1915 aged 22 years and is buried in the Cabaret-Rouge British Cemetery at Souchez.

Capt Thomas Todrick who had played for Haddington RFC as guest, died in December 1914 with the 8th Royal Scots.

2nd Lt John George Sandilands 11th Royal Scots, was killed in action on 23 March,1917 in the Arras Sector, his body was never found and he is commemorated on the Arras Memorial.

Private Alexander Campbell Stevenson, that being the case he was killed in action December 1914 whilst serving with the Royal Scots Fusiliers.

2nd Lt John William Hutchison, is listed as an officer in the 1/8th Royal Scots but had been transferred to another unit as he was killed in the fighting for Jerusalem, where he is buried. He was 23 years of age.

Pte 30103 Robert Goodall, Depot Royal Scots Fusiliers. He died at home from complications bought on by shrapnel lodged in his body, on 14th September,1919 he is buried in the cemetery at Haddington.

8 men lost their lives from the team founded only a few years before the start of the war.

The others:
Walter William Henry Romanel served as a Lieutenant with the 8th Royal Scots in the last year of the war. He survived the war.

Pte 1112 Alexander Paxton went to France on 5th November,1914, with 8th Royal Scots,one of the originals. He appears to have served until at least 1917 when he was invalided home. He survived the war.

Pte 1175 Peter Ormiston was another of the originals like Alex Paxton, he served with the 8th Royal Scots until at least 1917 when he was commissioned as an officer into the Kings Own Scottish Borderers. He survived the war.

Pte 330107 George McNeill Clapperton served with 2nd, 8th and 9th Royal Scots, survived the war

Whilst not in the photograph noted above it’s would be remiss not to mention Andrew ‘Jock’ Wemyss who helped found the club in 1911.

A Scotland Internationalist, Jock Wemyss was a successful journalist and BBC radio commentator and co-founder of the famous Co-Optimists invitational rugby club (1924) and he made his Scotland test debut versus Wales in Cardiff in 1914.

Scottish rugby suffered severely during the First World War and Wemyss - who lost an eye - was one of the few players who bridged that period, earning a total of seven caps.

After WW1 the first international to be played was France v Scotland.
On 1 January 1920, Wemyss played in what was said to be one of the most remarkable matches in the history of international rugby between France and Scotland in Paris.

The fixture, known as “Le match des borgnes” (the match of the blind), was so-called because five of the 30 players had lost an eye during the war.
Of the rest of the team from 1913-14, their fate is unknown, but one thing is for sure; when their country called, the men of Haddington Rugby Football Club answered.

Haddington RFC
November 2024