Birth name | Emily Frances Valentine [1] | ||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | ca. 1878 | ||||||||||||
Place of birth | County Fermanagh, Ireland | ||||||||||||
Date of death | 1967[ citation needed] | ||||||||||||
Place of death | London, England [2] | ||||||||||||
School | Portora Royal School | ||||||||||||
Occupation(s) | Nurse [3] | ||||||||||||
Rugby union career | |||||||||||||
|
Emily Frances Valentine, designated the first lady of rugby and "female William Web Ellis" by the media, [4] is the earliest documented female rugby player (at the age of 10) in 1887, and provides the only confirmed record of a woman playing in the nineteenth century. [5] Prior to the discovery of Valentine, the earliest named female rugby player was Mary Eley in 1917, who at the age of sixteen played for the Cardiff Ladies. [4]
Valentine, born in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland circa 1878, was the youngest of six brothers and sisters. [3] [4] [5] She played her first match of rugby union at the Portora Royal School, three years after her father William Valentine was named Assistant Headmaster. [5] According to her memoirs, in the winter of 1887, she removed her hat and overcoat to play alongside her two brothers (William, aged 16, and John, aged 10 or 11) [6] as their team was a man short. [3] [5] [7] Valentine first kicked place, but then scored a try in her first game after moving to the wing alongside her brothers in the backline. [5] [7] Valentine would continue to participate with the team in practices and intra-school matches according to the school's records which also includes correspondence from Valentine in 1951. [5]
Valentine moved to South Africa in the late 19th century. [1] She became a nurse and changed her name to Galway after marrying military doctor Major John Galeway OBE in 1909. [3] [5] Valentine moved to India until about 1915 [3] (and possibly Canada) [6] before settling in England. [5] [8]
One of Valentine's eight grandchildren is named Catherine Galway. [4] [5]