Blair Inskip Swannell (20 August 1875 – 25 April 1915) was an English-born international rugby union forward who played club rugby for Northampton, and internationally for the British Isles and later Australia. He was invited to tour with the British Isles on their 1899 tour of Australia and then their 1904 tour of Australia and New Zealand. He played a total of seven Test matches on these tours, and scored one Test try – against Australia during the 1904 tour. After settling in Australia, Swannell played a single game for his new home when they faced New Zealand. He was viewed as a violent player, and this made him unpopular with other players. Former Australian captain Herbert Moran said of him that "... his conception of rugby was one of trained violence".
During the Second Boer War, Swannell served in the British Army in South Africa, rising to the rank of lieutenant.
During the First World War he transferred from the Australian Army to the Australian Imperial Force in September 1914; and, retaining his rank of captain, he served with the 1st Battalion. Promoted to major on 1 January 1915, he was killed on 25 April 1915 while taking part in the Landing at Anzac Cove, during the first day of the Gallipoli Campaign.
Personal history
Swannell was born in Weston Underwood, Buckinghamshire on 20 August 1875 to William and Charlotte Swannell, and was the third child of at least five siblings. His father was a farmer, who ran a farm which employed 17 adults and children. He was home schooled as an infant before beginning his formal education at Repton School. After leaving school he attended the Thames Nautical Training College where he gained qualifications as a second mate. He remained single throughout his life.
In 1897 he made his first visit to Australia, as a mate on a schooner. On his return to Britain, Swannell joined the British Army and served in South Africa during the Second Boer War, where he was commissioned as a lieutenant in the 35th Battalion (Buckinghamshire) Imperial Yeomanry on 20 January 1902. He returned to the UK with his battalion on the SS Orotava in December 1902, and retained the rank of honorary lieutenant when he resigned his commission on 3 February 1903. It was reported that during his time in South Africa, he was personally recommended on the field for a commission by General Lord Methuen.
Swannell was a keen self-promoter, claiming a number of exploits that were so abounding, that his adventures were "too numerous to be recorded". These claims included: fighting among the insurrectionists in Uruguay, to have hunted seal down the South American coast and around Cape Horn as well as Labrador, and to have played rugby in France, Germany, South Africa, India and North and South America. Many of these claims are unsubstantiated. One claim that is problematic, made by the Fielding Star newspaper in 1909, was that he took part in the Cape Frontier war. This cannot be a reference to the Xhosa Wars as the last of that series of wars ended in 1879, when he was merely the age of four. An article from 1925, claimed he represented Wales and Argentina.
After touring Australia with the British Isles team for the second time in 1904, he settled in Sydney. A keen all-round sportsman he coached not only rugby but also hockey, was vice-president of the Sydney Swimming Club, and training senior military cadets for surf life-saving examinations. He also joined the Australian Militia, and by 1914 had reached the rank of captain and had passed the promotion exams for the rank of major.
Rugby career
Swannell played as a forward, and in his last Test specifically at number eight. He was an unconventional and hard rugby player, known for his violent play. He would turn up for training in unwashed kit, and wore the same pair of breeches for every game, again unwashed. His poor personal hygiene and overly violent playing style, made him an unpopular character in the eyes of other players.
Swannell first came to note as a rugby player when he represented English club team Northampton. It was while with Northampton that Swannell was invited to tour with Matthew Mullineux's British Isles team, on their 1899 tour of Australia. Swanell played in 17 matches of the tour including three of the four Tests against the Australian national team, missing only the opening defeat. Swannell scored in only one game on the tour, a try in a win over the New South Wales Waratahs on 29 July 1899.