This season, Leicester Tigers have been celebrating 125 years of rugby at Welford Road and earlier this month, we welcomed three relatives of former Tigers player William Ewart Fardon – who played for the club back in the 1920’s and 30's.
William’s son Alan, 60, and his partner Dawn Farndon, 59, and their son James, 29 - William's grandson - were treated to a special unique tour of Welford Road as they found out more about his time here at the home of Tigers.
Farndon was born in Market Harborough in 1901 and played for Tigers 183 times. A wing by trade, he scored 86 tries and was the leading try scorer in the 1929/30 season, scoring four individual hat-tricks throughout the campaign.
On the families first-ever visit to Welford Road, Alan said:
Welford Road is a place that has huge historical relevance to our family so it’s amazing to be able to experience the stadium so intimately and find out more about my father’s playing days.
“Growing up in Leicester, he moved to London with his job and would stay at the YMCA in London, before getting the train up on weekends to play for Tigers. I have old cuttings of my father playing for Tigers and some of the cartoons that Leicester newspaper did at the time too.
“There were some great stories of Welford Road and the incredible atmosphere of the stadium. I remember my father would say how the pitch would quickly become a mud bath in the rain. There was one occasion that my father apparently scored a try with his shorts falling down as someone tried to tackle him, nicked his shorts and my father decided he would keep going to score the try."
The family also bought along an old All-Blacks shirt William had been given during his time with England as well as two of his county and club caps dated between 1925-26.
Alan continued: “My father was a rugby man through and through and many of his friends were international rugby players like Harold Day and Doug Prentice.
“We would always as a family visit Twickenham to watch England play and when my father passed away, his ashes were scattered on the turf at Twickenham. We then attended the following international and during the game the French wing got the ball and fell over just near where we scattered dad. We couldn’t help but laugh."
Following the stadium tour, the family thanked the club for hosting them, with a special thanks to Eric Barker in the Tigers community team, who organised the day for the family.
You too can enjoy a Tigers Tour this Father's day, simply follow the link below to find out more information.
