Tinny Dean
| Full name | Geoffrey John Dean | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 12 November 1909 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Lewisham, England | ||||||||||||||||
| Date of death | 12 December 1995 (aged 86) | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of death | Poole, England | ||||||||||||||||
| School | Rugby School | ||||||||||||||||
| University | Pembroke College, Cambridge | ||||||||||||||||
| Occupation(s) | Army officer / Farmer | ||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||
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Lieutenant colonel Geoffrey John Dean (12 November 1909 – 12 December 1995), known as Tinny Dean, was a British Army officer and England international rugby union player.
Born in Lewisham, London, Dean lived for a period in Australia as a child, due to his father's work as a leather exporter. He was educated at Rugby School and Pembroke College, Cambridge.[1]
Dean, a diminutive scrum-half, went by the nickname "Tiny", which was morphed into "Tinny" after he was commissioned into the Royal Tank Corps in 1931.[2] He played his rugby for the Army, Barbarians, Cambridge University, Combined Services, Harlequins and Sussex. In 1931, Dean gained an England cap, preferred over varsity teammate Brian Pope for the Five Nations match against Ireland at Twickenham.[3][4]
In World War II, Dean was awarded a Military Cross and served as a Squadron Commander with the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment in North Africa, where he was badly injured in 1941 when his tank ran over a landmine. His foot was immediately amputated and he underwent further surgery after getting gangrene. Following a period in Italian captivity, Dean returned home in 1942 and became an instructor at Sandhurst.[1]
Dean remained with the army until 1949, when he settled in Devon to breed cattle and pigs. He was a friend of RAF flying ace Douglas Bader, his former Combined Services halfback partner, who was also an amputee.[2]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b "Lt-Col 'Tinny' Dean". The Daily Telegraph. 22 January 1996.
- ^ a b "Modern Battle of Britain is still raging on". Liverpool Echo. 30 January 1996.
- ^ "Rugger Surprise". Daily Herald. 9 February 1931.
- ^ "Other Sport". The Observer. 15 February 1931.
External links
[edit]- Tinny Dean at ESPNscrum
- 1909 births
- 1995 deaths
- English rugby union players
- England international rugby union players
- Rugby union scrum-halves
- Rugby union players from the London Borough of Lewisham
- Army rugby union players
- Barbarian F.C. players
- Cambridge University R.U.F.C. players
- Combined Services rugby union players
- Harlequin F.C. players
- People educated at Rugby School
- Alumni of Pembroke College, Cambridge
- Recipients of the Military Cross
- Royal Tank Regiment officers
- British Army personnel of World War II
- English amputees