James “Buff” Berry

“Buff” Berry was born in Warrington in 1868 and joined the Warrington club in its rugby union days in the late 1880s. Berry played in the forwards in the club’s first match under Northern Union rules on 7 September 1895 and went on to make a further 10 appearances without scoring.  He was described as “a sterling and plucky forward.”

He was a married man who lived in Albert Terrace, Howley.  He worked for more than 20 years at Fletcher Russell and Co, gas engineers, and was a member of the Warrington Anglers Association.

He enlisted in 1914 shortly after the outbreak of the First World War and died on 8 September 1915, aged 48, shot while out with a digging party at night.  Death was described as ‘instantaneous’ and the Warrington Guardian headline read “Died like a man.”

Rifleman James Berry, S1776, 10th Battalion, Rifle Brigade is buried in the Rue de Bacqueroy Graveyard, Laventie in Pas-de-Calais, Northern France.

Source: 150 Years of The Wire, The Winter Era, Neil Dowson & Gary Slater

Playing record for Warrington:

Appearances – 11 (Starting – 11, Substitute – 0)

Tries – 0

Goals – 0

Drop Goals – 0

Points – 0