Bill Beaumont

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Bill Beaumont
Full name	William Blackledge Beaumont
Date of birth	1952-03-09
Place of birth	Chorley, Lancashire
Rugby union career
Position	lock
National team(s)		Caps	(points)
1975-82 1977,1980	England Lions	34 7	(0) (0)
correct as of 1 Sept 2006.

William "Bill" Blackledge Beaumont (born 9 March 1952, Chorley, Lancashire) was captain of the England rugby union team at a time when they struggled to win games. His greatest moment as captain was the unexpected 1980 Grand Slam. He played as a lock.

He won 34 caps for England, then a record for a lock, and was captain 21 times. He made his international debut as a 22-year-old in Dublin in 1975 as a late replacement for Roger Uttley. He toured Australia in 1975, Japan, Fiji and Tonga in 1979, and Argentina in 1981 with England. He played 15 times for the Barbarians, including the match against the All Blacks in 1978.

Beaumont took part in the 1977 British Lions tour to New Zealand after being called up as a replacement and played in the final three tests.

He took over as England captain in Paris in 1978. He was an inspiring captain of the North of England, whom he led to victory over the All Blacks in 1979, and also of England, who won their first Grand Slam for 23 years in 1980.

Beaumont then captained the 1980 British Lions tour to South Africa playing in 10 of the 18 matches. He was the first English captain of the Lions since Douglas Prentice in 1930.

Beaumont retired from rugby because of injury in 1982. He went on to be another captain, this time on the BBC quiz show A Question of Sport

He is also the managing director of his family's textile business in Lancashire, which is the only remaining textile manufacturer in Chorley.

Since 1999 he has represented England on the International Rugby Board. He was the tour manager for the 2005 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand.