Mal Williams

Mal Williams
Personal information
Full nameMaldwyn Williams
Date of birth9 September 1886
Place of birthCastlemaine, Victoria, Australia
Date of death2 May 1917 (aged 30)
Place of deathThe Somme, France[1]
Original teamTrinity College
Playing career1
YearsClubGames (Goals)
1908University7 (0)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of 1909 season.

Maldwyn Lesley Williams, known as Mal or sometimes Les, was an Australian rules footballer who played with University in the Victorian Football League.

Williams entered the University of Melbourne in March 1904, where he was resident at Trinity College.[2] He graduated in Medicine in 1908, and working as a surgeon at Bendigo Base Hospital, before going into private practice. He continued his college football career during 1910 and 1911, when he was a “dashing half-back” with the South Bendigo football team.[3]

In 1909 he joined the No. 2 Field Ambulance as Captain, and on going to Bendigo in 1910 he was posted to Kitchener Camp, later being attached to thte 67th (Bendigo) Infantry as a supernumerary medical officer. With the introduction of the universal military training scheme in Australia during 1911, he was given command of the B Section, 17th Australian Army Medical Corps. In 1914 he was promoted to Major, and assumed command of the whole Corps in 1915. He enlisted in Bendigo in July 1915, and entered camp on 24 August that year. He saw service with the Field Ambulance in Egypt before being transferred to France. Williams was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel in 1916 and was in command of the 1st Field Ambulance when he was shot through the lung by an “indiscriminate sniper”.[4]

He died of the wounds on 13 March 1917.[5] A few days later, the Australian Surgeon-General, Major-General Sir Neville Howse, VC, paid tribute to Williams by stating that, “everyone deplores the loss of a brilliant, popular young officer”.[6]

In October 1917, the British War Office confirmed that Williams had been mentioned in dispatches on 9 April.[7]

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Main, J. & Allen, D., "Williams, Maldwyn", pp.191-192 in Main, J. & Allen, D., Fallen — The Ultimate Heroes: Footballers Who Never Returned From War, Crown Content, (Melbourne), 2002. Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour: Maldwyn Leslie WilliamsAFL Statistics: Mal Williams
  2. ↑ "The War Memorial", The Fleur-de-Ly, vol. 3, no. 22 (Nov. 1922): 16.
  3. ↑ “The Supreme Sacrifice—Lieutenant-Colonel M.L. Williams—Died from Wounds—A Popular Officer”, The Bendigonian, 15 Mar. 1917, p. 10.
  4. ↑ “Lieutenant-Colonel M.L. Williams—Seriously Wounded—A Popular Officer”, The Bendigo Advertiser, 13 Mar. 1917, p. 5.
  5. ↑ “Died from Wounds—Lieut.-Colonel M.L. Williams—Widespread Regret”, The Bendigo Advertiser, 14 Mar. 1917, p. 3.
  6. ↑ “Lieut.-Colonel M.L. Williams—Killed by a Shell—Tribute by Surgeon-General House [sic]”, The Bendigo Advertiser, 23 Mar. 1917, p. 5; “Lieut.-Col. M.I. [sic] Williams—Killed by a Shell”, The Kyneton Guardian, 24 Mar. 1917, p. 2.
  7. ↑ “Personal”, The Argus, 6 Oct. 1917, p. 16.

Sources