Petley Price


Petley Price was a rugby union international who represented England on three occasions from 1877 to 1878.

Early life

Petley Lloyd Augustus Price was born at Poonah, Bombay Presidency on 25 April 1856 and was baptised there. His father was Lieutenant-Colonel Augustus Price of the 4th Bombay Rifles and his mother was Elizabeth Emma Hodgson, the daughter of Major-General Christopher Hodgson of the Bombay Artillery and his wife Elizabeth Rowlandson. Petley was the third child of Augustus and Elizabeth having been preceded by older twins Augustus and Florence Engel Augusta. Petley also had two younger siblings, Herman Chichely Augustus and Ada Elizabeth Augusta. Through his father Petley was also the great grandson of Sir Charles Price, 1st Baronet of Spring Grove, via Charles' third surviving son Richard Price and his wife Elizabeth Engel. Petley was later educated at the Royal Indian Engineering College in Cooper's Hill.

Rugby union career

Petley played rugby football at Cooper's Hill. At the time the college's representative side had a first-class fixture list and a very strong reputation. Petley was one of nine internationally capped players to have attended the college in the 1870s. He made his international debut for England on 5 February 1877 at The Oval in the England vs Ireland match, and was on the winning side. However, the following month he traveled with England to Edinburgh where Scotland were victorious. The following year on 4 March 1878 he once again played at The Oval, this time helping England to a draw with Scotland. This was to prove his last match for England before traveling to India as an engineer.

Career and later life

After his training at Cooper's Hill he became an Assistant Engineer in the Bengal Civil Service. He was still a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers in 1889.
In 1884 he married Mary Cotton Egerton,, the daughter of Commander Frederic Arthur Egerton of the Royal Navy and Juliet Olivia Burnett After his marriage, the couple moved to Canada and there had the first two of their five children Augustus Robert Petley and Elizabeth Rosina May. They then moved for a time to Nova Scotia and had three more children, Harold Tudor Egerton, Reginald and Ada Marjorie. The family soon moved back to Canada, to Mereside Ganges, Salt Spring Island, British Columbia.
Petley Price died on 30 December 1910 on Salt Spring Island and is buried in the church of St Mary