One of Rugby League’s most legendary stars, Sir Billy Boston, has died at the age of 92.
Boston was an rugby icon, a trailblazer for black players and the very first rugby league player to be awarded a knighthood – which he received in 2025 – ending the sport’s 130-year wait for the honour.
He was born in Cardiff in 1934 and grew up playing rugby union before making the switch to rugby league and signing for Wigan Warriors in 1953 at 19-years-old.
A year later after just a few matches for Wigan, Boston was selected for Great Britain and faced Australia and New Zealand becoming the first non-white player to tour down under.
open image in galleryHe excelled for Wigan across 488 appearances and ended his career with a British-record 571 tries, 478 of which were scored for the Warriors. During his time with Wigan he helped the club to win three Challenge Cups and the Championship.
He reached the 100-try milestone in just 68 matches after his switch from union and featured in six Challenge Cup finals with his three wins coming in 1958, 1959 and 1965.
Boston also scored 24 tries in 31 appearances for Great Britain and was part of the 1960 World Cup winning team having scored a try in the final against Australia.
After his retirement from rugby, Boston ran the Griffin Hotel in Wigan and had a stand at Wigan’s Central Park Ground named after him. Sadly, the ground was demolished in 1999 and the hotel has since fallen into disrepair.
open image in galleryIn1988, Boston was also one of the first players inducted into the Rugby League Hall of Fame and is featured as one of five rugby league stars included in a statue at Wembley Stadium. There is another statue of him in his home city of Cardiff and a third in Believe Square in Wigan.
Boston was also appointed an MBE in 1986 and was inducted into the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame, when it was launched in 1990.
Following a diagnosis of vascular dementia in 2016, at the age of 82, Boston’s death comes just weeks after the passing of his wife, Lady Joan.