William Henry Thompson MBE (1933 – 2021) was a British rugby league referee. He refereed 17 Test matches, including the World Cup final in 1977. He also refereed three Challenge Cup Finals.
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | William Henry Thompson | |||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Huddersfield, West Riding of Yorkshire, England | 21 September 1933|||||||||||||||||||||
Died | February 2021 (aged 87) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Refereeing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: [1] |
Thompson was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 1985 Birthday Honours for services to rugby league.[2]
Biography edit
Born in Huddersfield, Thompson was an aspiring footballer in his younger years, and was on the books at Gillingham, but failed to make the grade.[3] He became a referee, and was added to the Rugby Football League's Grade One referee's list during the 1967–68 season.[4]
He took charge of his first Challenge Cup final in 1971, and became the first referee to send off a player in a Challenge Cup final when he dismissed Syd Hynes for an alleged headbutt on Alex Murphy.[5]
In 1980, he refereed the inaugural State of Origin game between Queensland and New South Wales in Australia.[6]
His final game as a referee was the 1984 Challenge Cup final, after which he was forced to retire, aged 50.[4]
Death edit
His death was announced in February 2021, at the age of 87.[7]
References edit
- ^ Billy Thompson - Referee Career Rugby League Project
- ^ UK list: "No. 50154". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 June 1985. p. 16.
- ^ "Billy Thompson (1934-2021)". Huddersfield Giants. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
- ^ a b "Billy Thompson - former top rugby league referee dies". Yorkshire Evening Post. 16 February 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
- ^ "Former referee Billy Thompson passes away, aged 87". YorkshireLive. 17 February 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
- ^ "Final whistle for English referee who helped ensure Origin's success". National Rugby League. 18 February 2021. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
- ^ Thomson, Doug (22 February 2021). "Billy Thompson MBE: A legendary referee with tales to tell". Total Rugby League. Retrieved 7 January 2024.