Second Lieutenant Walter Riddell Sutherland, 8Th Battalion Seaforth
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Second Lieutenant Walter Riddell Sutherland, 8th Battalion Seaforth Highlanders, born at Hawick on 19 November 1890, was the fourth son of Alexander Sutherland, a Hotel Keeper, and Isabella Riddell Sutherland, of the Imperial Hotel, Hawick, Roxburghshire. His siblings were James, Isabella, Mary, Thomas, Alexander and John. He received 13 caps playing as a wing three-quarter for the Scottish rugby team between 1910 and 1914, scoring four tries (won 4, lost 9). He was killed on 11 November 1918, age 27, by a stray German artillery shell while cycling to join his regiment in the front lines little more than a month before the Great War ended, and is buried in Houchin British Cemetery Walter Riddell Sutherland (aka Wattie Suddie) was considered to be one of the best rugby players of his time. During his childhood he had five siblings although the youngest, John, died at the age of 13 months. As his family weren’t particularly wealthy when he was a young boy, conditions were cramped in the houses they lived. One of the flats only had two rooms and was expected to accommodate seven children and two adults. In 1896 his family moved to Beaconsfield Terrace, which was better than their previous homes, and his parents became the proprietors of the Imperial Hotel in Oliver Place in 1900. Having attended Hawick High School, at the age of ten, he started going to Teviot Grove Academy showing that the Sutherland family had become wealthier. He joined Hawick RFC at the age of 17 and later became the captain of the team. At the age of 18 he joined the Scotland national rugby union team. He earned 13 caps playing for the team and was recognized as the best Scottish wing threequarter during that time. He was also a very fast sprinter and a member of the Teviotdale Harriers (a running club based in Hawick) earning several titles such as Borders Champion for 100 and 220 yards. He also won the Scottish Amateur Athletic Association 220 yards title. However when World War 1 started, he stopped playing rugby and joined the army. He served with the Lothians and Border Horse, later the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders and finally the Seaforth Highlanders until 1918, by which time he was a Second Lieutenant. (The following is from "The Rugby Roll of Honour" by E H D Sewell, published in 1919) Second Lieutenant Walter Riddell Sutherland, 8th Battalion Seaforth Highlanders, was born at Hawick on November 19, 1890, and was killed by a shell at Hulluch on October 4, 1918, aged 27. When the call to arms resounded through the British Empire in 1914, and was freely responded to in all the Scottish Border towns, Sutherland was among the first to offer his services. He enlisted in the Lothians and Border Horse Yeomanry in September, and, in the following July, he transferred to the 14th Battalion of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders. With it he proceeded in May 1916 to France. In January 1917 he was invalided home, suffering from dysen- tery. On being discharged from hospital he went through a course of nine weeks' training necessary for non-commissioned rank. On its conclusion he applied for a commission, and proceeded to Pirbright, where he underwent his Cadet training. He was then gazetted Second Lieutenant in the Seaforth Highlanders and, after a short stay at the depot of that regiment, he proceeded to join the 8th Battalion in France. Sutherland was soon in the fighting line, taking part in the memorable affair at Buzancy, where the 15th Division covered itself with glory. He was fortunate to come through without hurt. Writing home to his father after the event, he incidentally revealed the fierce nature of the struggle when he informed him that he was one of the four unwounded officers out of eighteen to emerge from the fighting line. In almost the last letter home he gave a racy account of Athletic Sports held at an Instruction camp, in which he took part, greatly distinguishing himself, more particularly in the running events, by winning, almost every item. The manner of his death was that, such was his anxiety to be with his men after a period of rest, he hired a bicycle to to cover the distance separating him from them. Passing through the village of Hulluch, a stray shell from the enemy reached his vicinity - "a bow at a venture" - and he was killed, not leading his men as he would have have desired, but, nevertheless, in just such a manner as he had lived, doing his duty. Sutherland had received his education at Teviot Grove Academy in his native town, and at the time of his enlistment was training for a Sanitary Inspector in the office of the Burgh Engineer, Hawick. Reared in an atmosphere where sport of all kinds was a frequent topic, and in a town and district where outdoor sports were vigorously pursued, it was not surprising that, as a boy, Walter Sutherland not only evinced a keen interest, but showed a rare aptitude in all games. At his School sports he was successful in all the events for which he entered; and, in the School cricket and football teams, he was looked upon as the leader of his side. It was the latter game for which he showed a decided preference. Shortly after leaving school, and while his contemporaries were ploughing their way through Junior ranks, Sutherland became a member of the famous Hawick "Greens". At that time the club counted many well-tried players of all-round ability, and included such players as R H Lindsay-Watson, William Burnet, and Willie Kyle, the hero of a score of International Caps. He proved that he was worthy of the confidence reposed in him, and soon became recognized throughout Scotland as one of the coming three-quarter backs. Slim of build, but symmetrical of figure, Nature had not dowered him with great proportions; but he possessed speed of the highest order, abundant resource, and the necessary coolness for adapting himself to any circumstances which might crop up. His success in Club matches was instant and phenomenal, and in his early years with the team he had the satisfaction to see Hawick occupying the position of Joint Champions of Scotland. He was a prolific scorer, and the following records will show what a tower of strength he must have been: 1909-10 scored 13 tries, kicked 12 goals; 1910-11 scored 16 tries; 1911-12 scored 21 tries, kicked 8 goals; 1912-13 scored 14 tries; 1913-14 scored 8 tries in eleven games. At the age of nineteen he reached the height of every Rugby footballer's ambition, and was chosen to represent his native country. It was a great honour for one so young, but there was no doubt he deserved his place. The honour was repeated thirteen times, including the famous matches against the South Africans and France. How well he acquitted himself in these encounters is a matter of history. It is the barest truth that he never played a poor game; and, while his companions might feel a little nervy as the important contests approached, Sutherland was cool and collected. Two displays in his series of Internationals stand out prominently, and were pre-eminently his finest exhibitions; and one does not know which to admire most - his dashing display of running and tackling against England at Twickenham, or his masterly defence at Cardiff against a strong Welsh side. Of his display in the former match, no greater tribute could be given to any player than that paid by Mr Dallas, then President of the Scottish Football Union. At a meeting of the Council after the match, he said, "I cannot help referring to the extraordinarily fine display given by W R Sutherland in the recent match against England. It was Providence and Sutherland that saved Scotland that day from a much greater defeat". His International match record reads: England, 1910, 1911, 1911, 1913; Ireland, 1913; Wales, 1910, 1912, 1913, 1914; France, 1911, 1912, 1913; South Africa, 1912. On the running-track Sutherland's speed was shown to full advantage, and here also he earned both a local and national reputation. His principal honours included the 100 Yards and 220 Yards Border Championship in 1911, 1912, 1913, and 1914. He carried off in two successive years the 100 Yards Sprint at the Berwick-on-Tweed Harriers Sports. He won the 220 Yards Scottich Championship, and set the seal on his fame by being chosen to represent Scotland against Ireland in 1911-13, running second the first year; and, in the second, after a most magnificent race, by sheer pluck defeating the Irish Champion, Shaw, in the fast time of 22½ seconds. Writing to Lieutenant Sutherland's father, H M Finlay, Esq, Secretary, Irish AAA, said, "I cannot forget the race he ran against Shaw in the 220 at Belfast". D S Duncan, Esq, Secretary, Scottish AAA wrote, "He will never be forgotten by Rugby and Athletic Scotland". For the bulk of the foregoing information I am much indebted to Mr Walter Hume, Headmaster of Trinity School, Hawick, who adds, "It is not, however, the enumeration of his brilliant deeds on the football and athletic fields that forms the chief claim to the high esteem in which Walter Sutherland was held. He stood for all that was best in whatever he did. He early recognized that all outdoor sports were for recreation merely, and are not the serious business of life, and it was in that spirit and with that aim in view that all his energies were directed.