IT was a special moment for the family of a boy from Binfield Heath, who was a mascot for the England rugby team.
Ollie Ewens, six, was one of four to be selected to walk out on the pitch with the players ahead of the match with Australia as part of the autumn series of fixtures on November 9.
He is the great, great, great, great nephew of England player Lieutenant Colonel Edgar Mobbs, who died at Passchendaele on July 31, 1917 and the countries were competing for the Ella-Mobbs Cup, which was given to Australia for winning the match 42-37.
The cup was introduced in 2022 ahead of England’s three test tour to Australia and was the reason Ollie was chosen to be mascot at the match.
The cup is named after Mark Ella, an indigenous 25-cap Australian player and war hero Mobbs, who played nine tests for England before being killed on the Western Front during the First World War.
Mobbs was the England captain and played for Olney Rugby Club and in 1905-6 made his debut for Northampton Saints, later becoming club captain.
In 1908, he captained the combined Midlands and East Midlands counties against Australia setting up two tries against the touring Wallabies, only defeat against an English side. He played against the Wallabies at Twickenham scoring a try on his debut, then throughout the 1909 season he scored against Ireland and Scotland and in 1910 captained England against France, winning a first outright Championship since 1892.
After the outbreak of war he formed the “Sportsman Battalion” leading 264 men, of whom only 85 survived.
Mobbs was among the fallen, having been gunned down leading an assault on a machine gun post during the Third Battle of Ypres. His body was never found.
Ollie, a pupil at Shiplake Primary School, said: “I was so excited to wear the England kit and to run on to the pitch with the team — it was an amazing day.
“I really liked meeting England captain Jamie George and when I ran out on the pitch with George Furbank I tried to run faster than him. I thought the pitch was so big and the noise was so loud.
“It was really good to meet the England team and I got a rugby shirt, shorts and socks.
“It was very exciting that the cup was named after my great uncle. It was a special day and I was very, very excited and will always remember it.”
Sandra Greenslade, Ollie’s grandmother was at Twickenham to watch the match and her brother David Mobbs presented the trophy to Australia for winning the match.
She said: “It was a day he will never forget — being selected as a mascot against Australia. It was fitting that on Remembrance weekend, Edgar and other rugby players who lost their lives in both world wars and conflicts around the globe were remembered.
“Ollie wore his England kit, together with the three other mascots, and met the England players before the match, then ran out of the players’ tunnel on to the pitch to line up for the Last Post and minute’s silence before singing his heart out for the National Anthem, which he had been learning for weeks. Together, with his incredibly proud parents, Ollie then had a front row seat to watch the thrilling match. It was an occasion we will cherish forever.
“They re-named the cup two years ago after wanting to change it from the Cook Cup, which they played for 80 years. They wanted to make it more relevant for the players, so they choose Mark Ella, the Australian who played and was a very good player.
“They also wanted a English player and that is why they chose Edgar Mobbs, because of his heroic actions on the pitch and then later in the First World War, where he lost his life leading his men.
“They always have mascots, so they wanted to have one that was a relative of Edgar. I just felt incredibly proud to see Ollie running out on the pitch. I am just proud of my great, great uncle and also my brother who was presenting the cup.
“So, between all three things it was a pretty proud day and something we will never forget, despite being pipped to the post at the last minute by the Australians.”
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