Northern Edition
Select Edition
Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

'Huge loss' - Rugby mourns passing of Cecil Duckworth

The late Cecil Duckworth /Getty

Worcester Warriors president Cecil Duckworth has died at the age of 83 after a long illness, the club have announced.

ADVERTISEMENT

During Duckworth’s reign the club climbed from Midlands Two into the Premiership and he also oversaw the significant development of the club’s Sixways ground.

Warriors co-owners Jason Whittingham and Colin Goldring said in a statement: “Everyone at Warriors is deeply saddened by the news of Cecil’s death.

“Our thoughts today are with Beatrice and the Duckworth family.

“His rugby legacy is an immense one and one that we are proud to have inherited.”

“Cecil has been a tremendous help to us over the last two years and a source of invaluable advice and guidance in his role as President.”

The club announced that they will hold a minute’s silence prior to next Saturday’s opening Gallagher Premiership match of the season against London Irish.

World Rugby chairman Bill Beaumont wrote: “Sad to hear of Cecil Duckworth’s passing. A true gentleman, passionate about rugby and turned Worcester’s Premiership Rugby dream into a sustainable reality. He will be missed. Thoughts with his family and the Worcester Warriors community”

ADVERTISEMENT

Former England flanker Tom Wood wrote: “Huge loss. A lovely man that gave so much to the game of rugby and the city of Worcester. Condolences to his family and all Worcester Warriors.”

The club tweeted: “We are deeply saddened to learn that our President Cecil Duckworth CBE passed away today aged 83.”

Luke Narraway wrote: “Such sad news about Cecil Duckworth. A huge influence on my generation coming through Worcester RFC minis. His generosity and interest in the next generation of mini/junior players paved the way for many to go on and realise their potential and dreams. Thank you Cecil.”

ADVERTISEMENT
LIVE

Chile vs Brazil | Men's International

Classic Wallabies vs British & Irish Legends | First Match | Full Match Replay

Did the Lions loosies get away with murder? And revisiting the Springboks lift | Whistle Watch

The First Test, Visiting The Great Barrier Reef & Poetry with Pierre | Ep 6: The Ultimate Test

KOKO Show | July 22nd | Full Throttle with Brisbane Test Review and Melbourne Preview

New Zealand v South Africa | World Rugby U20 Championship | Extended Highlights

USA vs England | Men's International | Full Match Replay

France v Argentina | World Rugby U20 Championship | Extended Highlights

Lions Share | Episode 4

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

0 Comments
Be the first to comment...

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

F
Flankly 1 hour ago
Maro Itoje: What was said as Lions fell 'far behind' on scoreboard

This is what dreams are made of

Umm. Credit to a winning team, but to be clear … the team you beat is ranked 6th in the world, did not make it out of the pool stage of the last RWC, and came last in the 2024 Rugby Championship. Not sure any bookie has them as favorites for the 2025 RC either.


Australia have made progress for sure, and of course that matters. But for a team made up of 4 leading rugby nations, including two that are ranked much higher than this opposition, a win is expected and a loss would be humiliating. Furthermore, with weeks of playing together, planning together and living together it is hard to argue that the Lions have had less opportunity for cohesion than Australia.


A win is a win, and no-one should question that. But a last-minute one-score win that depended on a 50/50 penalty call is one to humbly accept, rather than to crow about. It was neither a beating, nor even a compelling win. I thought win was not undeserved, but it’s a close call on which was the better team on the day.


And let’s get off this nonsense about it being like a world cup final. The local pub teams may feel that their big game is like a world cup final, but it’s stupid to pretend it is the reality. The RWC final is played by two of the top teams in the world, and there is no evidence that either of these teams fits that description. There is a game in Eden Park later this year between the #1 and #2 ranked teams that would be a lot closer to it, of course.


Well done to the Lions, and congrats to the Wallabies. Let’s enjoy a good game for what it was, without pretending it was something bigger than it was.

2 Go to comments
TRENDING
TRENDING Shocking state of Prem Rugby club finances revealed in business report Shocking state of Prem Rugby club finances revealed in business report