# Robin Thompson

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GB & Ireland rugby union & league footballer

Robin Thompson Personal information Full name Robin Henderson Thompson Born (1931-05-05)5 May 1931 Northern Ireland Died 14 August 2003(2003-08-14) (aged 72) Playing information Rugby union Club Years Team Pld T G FG P Ulster 0 0 0 0 0 London Irish 0 0 0 0 0 Total 0 0 0 0 0 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 1951–55 Ireland 11 0 0 0 0 Barbarians 0 0 0 0 0 1955 British & Irish Lions 3 0 0 0 0 Rugby league Position Second-row Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 1955–56 Warrington 50 10 0 0 30 As of 26 Jul 2021

**Robin Henderson Thompson** (5 May 1931 – 14 August 2003) was a [rugby union](/source/Rugby_union) international for Ireland, a former [British Lions](/source/British_%26_Irish_Lions) captain and [rugby league](/source/Rugby_league) player.

Robin Thompson won two [Ulster Schools Senior Cup](/source/Ulster_Schools_Cup) medals with RBAI ([Royal Belfast Academical Institution](/source/Royal_Belfast_Academical_Institution)) and played for Ulster Schools. He made the [Queen's University RFC](/source/Queen's_University_RFC) senior side in his first year in the university and while still only 18, he made his [Ulster](/source/Ulster_Rugby) début.

He won his first international cap in the [second row](/source/Rugby_union_positions#Locks) as a 20-year-old against France in [Paris](/source/Paris) in December 1951. He was also on the team that defeated France in Paris in January 1952. He played throughout the championship and against New Zealand in 1953-54 and the following season captained Ireland against both France and Wales. He was capped 11 times. He won the [Ulster Senior League](/source/Ulster_Senior_League_(rugby_union)) with Queen's University, the [Ulster Senior Cup](/source/Ulster_Senior_Cup) with [Instonians](/source/Instonians), and also played for [London Irish](/source/London_Irish), and the [Barbarians](/source/Barbarian_F.C.).

He was made captain of the [1955 British Lions tour to South Africa](/source/1955_British_Lions_tour_to_South_Africa). He played in three of the four tests on that tour.

Following the tour he turned professional and played [rugby league](/source/Rugby_league) for [Warrington](/source/Warrington_Wolves). But an injury and subsequent medical advice brought an end to his playing career while still only 25. After returning to Ireland, he subsequently became a media analyst.

## External links

- [Lions skipper Thompson dies](https://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/international/3150933.stm)

v t e British Lions – 1955 South Africa tour Forwards Elliot Greenwood Higgins McLeod B. Meredith C. Meredith Michie Reid Robins Roe C. Thomas Thompson (c) R. Williams B. Williams Wilson Backs Baker Butterfield Cameron Davies Griffiths Jeeps Lloyd Morgan Morris O'Reilly Pedlow Quinn Smith Sykes A. Thomas J. Williams Coach Manager: J. A. E. Siggins * Assistant Manager/Coach: D. E. Davies

v t e Ireland national rugby union team captains To 1900 Feb 1875: George Stack Dec 1875: Richard Bell Feb 1877: Richard Galbraith Feb 1877: William Wilson Mar 1878: Robert Walkington 1879: William Neville 1880: Hugh Kelly 1881–Jan 1882: Arthur Forrest Feb 1882: John Taylor 1883: George Scriven Feb 1884: Sandy McDonald Mar 1884: William Moore Feb 1885: William Rutherford Mar 1885: Arthur Forrest Feb 1886: Meredith Johnston Feb 1886: John Ross 1887: Robert Warren Feb–Mar 1888: Henry Neill Dec 1888–90: Robert Warren Feb–Mar 1891: Dolway Walkington Mar 1891: Robert Stevenson 1892: Victor Le Fanu 1893: Sam Lee 1894: Edmund Forrest Feb 1895: John O'Conor Mar 1895: Charles Rooke Mar 1895: Edmund Forrest 1896: Sam Lee 1897: Edmund Forrest Feb 1898: Sam Lee Feb 1898: Glyn Allen Mar 1898: William Gardiner 1899–1900: Louis Magee To the First World War 1901: Louis Magee Feb 1902: John Fulton Mar 1902: Louis Magee 1903–Feb 1904: Harry Corley Mar 1904–06: Charles Allen Feb 1906: Alfred Tedford Feb 1906–07: Charles Allen Feb 1908: Harry Thrift Feb–Mar 1908: James Parke Feb 1909: Fred Gardiner Mar 1909: George Hamlet Mar 1909: Fred Gardiner Feb 1910: George Hamlet Mar 1910: Tom Smyth Mar 1910–11: George Hamlet Jan 1912: Dickie Lloyd Feb 1912: Alexander Foster Feb 1912–Feb 1914: Dickie Lloyd Feb–Mar 1914: Alexander Foster To the Second World War Feb 1920: Dickie Lloyd Feb 1920: George Doherty Mar 1920: Thomas Wallace Apr 1920: Dickie Lloyd 1921: George Doherty Feb 1922: Bill Collopy Apr 1922–23: John Thompson Jan–Feb 1924: William Crawford Feb 1924: Bill Collopy Mar 1924–27: William Crawford 1928–Feb 1929: George Stephenson Feb 1929: Eugene Davy Mar 1929–30: George Stephenson 1931: Mark Sugden 1932: George Beamish Feb 1933: Eugene Davy Mar 1932: George Beamish Apr 1933: Eugene Davy 1934–36: Jack Siggins 1937–Feb 1938: George Morgan Mar 1938: Sam Walker 1939: George Morgan To the professional era Jan–Feb 1947: Con Murphy Feb–Mar 1947: Deryck Monteith Dec 1947–Jan 1948: Ernest Strathdee Feb 1948–Mar 1951: Karl Mullen Dec 1951–Sep 1952: Des O'Brien Jan 1953–Jan 1954: Jack Kyle Feb–Mar 1954: Jim McCarthy Jan 1955: Robin Thompson Feb 1955: Jim McCarthy Feb–Mar 1955: Robin Thompson Jan–Feb 1956: Jim Ritchie Feb 1956–Apr 1958: Noel Henderson Feb–Apr 1959: Ronnie Dawson Feb–Mar 1960: Andy Mulligan Apr 1960–May 1961: Ronnie Dawson Feb–Nov 1962: Bill Mulcahy Jan 1963: Tom Kiernan Feb–Mar 1963: Bill Mulcahy Dec 1963: Jimmy Kelly Feb–Mar 1964: Bill Mulcahy Jan 1965–Feb 1966: Ray McLoughlin Mar 1966: Tom Kiernan Jan–Apr 1967: Noel Murphy May 1967–Jan 1971: Tom Kiernan Feb–Mar 1971: Mike Gibson Jan 1972–Feb 1973: Tom Kiernan Mar 1973–Mar 1975: Willie John McBride Jan–Feb 1976: Mike Gibson Feb 1976–Mar 1977: Tom Grace Jan–Mar 1978: John Moloney Nov 1978: Shay Deering Jan 1979–Nov 1981: Fergus Slattery Jan 1982–Feb 1984: Ciaran Fitzgerald Feb–Mar 1984: Willie Duggan Nov 1984–Mar 1986: Ciaran Fitzgerald Nov 1986–Apr 1988: Donal Lenihan Oct 1988–Mar 1989: Phillip Matthews Nov 1989–Feb 1990: Willie Anderson Mar–Oct 1990: Donal Lenihan Feb–Mar 1991: Rob Saunders July 1991: Phillip Matthews July 1991: Rob Saunders Oct 1991–Feb 1992: Phillip Matthews Oct 1991: Terry Kingston Mar–May 1992: Phil Danaher Jun 1992: Michael Bradley Oct 1992: Phil Danaher Jan 1993–Nov 1994: Michael Bradley Jan 1995: Brendan Mullin Feb–Mar 1995: Michael Bradley Mar–May 1995: Terry Kingston May 1995: Nick Popplewell Jun 1995: Terry Kingston To the present day Nov 1995–Feb 1996: Jim Staples Mar–Nov 1996: Niall Hogan Nov 1996–Jan 1997: Keith Wood Feb–Mar 1997: Jim Staples Nov 1997: Keith Wood Nov 1997: Nick Popplewell Dec 1997–Apr 1998: Keith Wood Jun 1998–Apr 1999: Paddy Johns Jun–Oct 1999: Dion O'Cuinneagain 2000–Feb 2001: Keith Wood Jun 2001: Mick Galwey Sep–Oct 2001: Keith Wood Nov 2001: Anthony Foley Nov 2001: Keith Wood Feb–Mar 2002: Mick Galwey Mar 2002: David Humphreys Apr–Jun 2002: Keith Wood Sep 2002: Anthony Foley Sep 2002: Keith Wood Sep 2002: Anthony Foley Nov 2002–Mar 2003: Brian O'Driscoll Jun 2003: David Humphreys Jun 2003: Reggie Corrigan Aug 2003: Keith Wood Aug 2003: Brian O'Driscoll Sep–Nov 2003: Keith Wood Feb 2004: Paul O'Connell Feb 2004– Feb 2005: Brian O'Driscoll Feb 2005: Paul O'Connell Feb–Mar 2005: Brian O'Driscoll Jun 2005: David Humphreys Nov 2005: Simon Easterby Nov 2005: David Humphreys 2006–Feb 2007: Brian O'Driscoll Feb 2007: Paul O'Connell Feb–Mar 2007: Brian O'Driscoll May–Jun 2007: Simon Best Aug 2007: Brian O'Driscoll Aug 2007: Paul O'Connell Sep 2007–Mar 2008: Brian O'Driscoll Mar 2008: Ronan O'Gara Jun 2008–Mar 2009: Brian O'Driscoll May 2009: Rory Best Nov 2009–Mar 2011: Brian O'Driscoll Aug 2011: Leo Cullen Aug 2011: Brian O'Driscoll Aug 2011: Paul O'Connell Sep 2011: Brian O'Driscoll Sep 2011: Leo Cullen Oct 2011: Brian O'Driscoll Feb 2012–Mar 2012: Paul O'Connell Mar 2012: Rory Best Jun 2012: Brian O'Driscoll Nov 2012–Mar 2013: Jamie Heaslip Jun 2013: Peter O'Mahony Nov 2013: Jamie Heaslip Nov 2013: Paul O'Connell Feb 2014: Jamie Heaslip Feb–Nov 2014: Paul O'Connell Nov 2014: Eoin Reddan Nov 2014–Mar 2015: Paul O'Connell Aug 2015: Jamie Heaslip Aug 2015: Seán O'Brien Aug–Sep 2015: Paul O'Connell Sep 2015: Jamie Heaslip Oct 2015: Paul O'Connell Oct 2015: Jamie Heaslip Feb 2016–Nov 2016: Rory Best Nov 2016: Peter O'Mahony Nov 2016–Feb 2017: Rory Best Feb 2017: Jamie Heaslip Feb–Mar 2017: Rory Best Jun 2017: Rhys Ruddock Nov 2017: Rory Best Nov 2017: Rhys Ruddock Feb–Mar 2018: Rory Best Jun 2018: Peter O'Mahony Nov 2018: Rhys Ruddock Nov 2018–Feb 2019: Rory Best Feb 2019: Peter O'Mahony Mar 2019: Rory Best Aug 2019: Rhys Ruddock Aug 2019: Rory Best Aug 2019: Peter O'Mahony Sep 2019: Rory Best Oct 2019: Johnny Sexton Oct 2019: Rory Best Feb–Nov 2020: Johnny Sexton Nov 2020: James Ryan Feb 2021: Johnny Sexton Feb 2021: Iain Henderson Feb–Mar 2021: Johnny Sexton Jul 2021: James Ryan Nov 2021: Johnny Sexton Nov 2021: James Ryan Feb 2022: Johnny Sexton Feb 2022: James Ryan Feb 2022: Peter O'Mahony Mar 2022: Johnny Sexton Jun 2022: Bundee Aki Jul 2022: Johnny Sexton Jul 2022: Keith Earls Jul–Nov 2022: Johnny Sexton Nov 2022: Tadhg Furlong Nov 2022: Peter O'Mahony Feb 2023: Johnny Sexton Feb 2023: James Ryan Mar 2023: Johnny Sexton Aug 2023: Iain Henderson Aug 2023: James Ryan Sep–Oct 2023: Johnny Sexton Feb 2024: Peter O'Mahony Feb 2024: Caelan Doris Feb–Jul 2024: Peter O'Mahony Jul–Nov 2024: Caelan Doris

v t e British & Irish Lions team captains To 1910 1888: Robert Seddon Note 1 1888: Andrew Stoddart Note 1 1891: Bill Maclagan 1896: Johnny Hammond 1899: Matthew Mullineux Note 2 1899: Frank Stout Note 2 1903: Mark Morrison 1904: David Bedell-SivrightNote 3 1904: Teddy MorganNote 3 1908: Boxer Harding 1910: John RaphaelNote 4 To present 1910: Tommy SmythNote 5 1910: Jack JonesNote 5 1910: Tommy SmythNote 5 1924: Ronald Cove-Smith 1927: David MacMyn 1930: Doug Prentice 1936: Bernard Gadney 1938: Sam Walker 1950: Karl Mullen 1950: Bleddyn WilliamsNote 6 1955: Robin Thompson 1955: Cliff MorganNote 7 1959: Ronnie Dawson 1962: Arthur Smith 1966: Mike Campbell-Lamerton 1966: David WatkinsNote 8 1968: Tom Kiernan 1971: John Dawes 1974: Willie John McBride 1977: Phil Bennett 1980: Bill Beaumont 1983: Ciaran Fitzgerald 1986: Colin Deans 1989: Finlay Calder 1993: Gavin Hastings 1997: Martin Johnson 2001: Martin Johnson 2005: Brian O'DriscollNote 9 2005: Michael OwenNote 9 2005: Gareth ThomasNote 9 2009: Paul O'Connell 2013: Sam Warburton 2013: Alun Wyn JonesNote 19 2017: Peter O'MahonyNote 11 2017: Sam Warburton 2021: Alun Wyn JonesNote 12 2025: Maro Itoje Notes Note 1: Robert Seddon died on tour after a boating accident. Andrew Stoddart became captain for the remainder of the tour. Note 2: Matthew Mullineux decided that after losing the first test that he should withdraw from further test matches, handing on field captaincy to Frank Stout, but remained tour captain. Note 3: David Bedell-Sivright was injured during the first test. Teddy Morgan took over captaincy on the field but Bedell-Sivright remained tour captain. Note 4: The team that John Raphael captained was not selected by the four Home Nations governing body, but had been organised by Oxford University and billed as the English Rugby Union team. However, it was considered the Combined British team by Argentina because it also included three Scots. Note 5: Jack Jones was captain for the first test, but Tommy Smyth remained the tour captain. Note 6: Bleddyn Williams captained in the third and fourth tests v New Zealand and the first test v Australia. Note 7: Cliff Morgan captained in the third test. Note 8: David Watkins captained in the second and foruth tests v New Zealand. Note 9: Michael Owen captained the Lions in the first tour game, the test vs. Argentina in Cardiff. Brian O'Driscoll was injured at the beginning of the first test against New Zealand. Gareth Thomas replaced him as tour captain. Note 10: Sam Warburton was injured in the second test. Alun Wyn Jones replaced him as captain for the third test. Note 11: Tour captain Sam Warburton was named on the bench for the first test. Peter O'Mahony was the captain on the field. Note 12: Tour captain Alun Wyn Jones left the squad for 17 days due to an injury in the first warm-up match, and was replaced by Conor Murray temporarily.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Robin Thompson](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Thompson) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Thompson?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.