Eccles RFC is delighted to announce the return of Harrison Barker-Smith to the club.
DOR Sam Simpson had this to say on the recruitment.
"I’m over the moon to be bringing Harrison back to Eccles RFC. He’s a really good athlete with a real competitive streak. At 21 years old Harrison is a product of Bolton School and Eccles RFC’s M&J section. I had the pleasure of coaching Harrison for 3 successful seasons as a Junior, watching him develop into a lead character within a very talented group and gaining district recognition for his efforts. Although we were extremely proud for him on his GB waterpolo journey we knew the club was loosing a real prospect for the future so to be getting him back now at such a young age I’m really excited to see what he can help the club achieve."
Harrison commented "I last played for the club back in 2016. I only stopped playing as a result of playing waterpolo at a high level and unfortunately couldn’t commit to both sports. I was fortunate enough to represent team GB and be apart of the squad that qualified for the European finals in 2018. Since then I have retired from waterpolo to focus on my career over the past 4 years. I’ve toyed with the idea of playing rugby again for a number of years and I feel like now is the right time. I can see where Sam wants to take the team and can’t wait to be a part of it."
Welcome Home Harrison.
Harrison is not the first Eccles RFC player to play water polo for Great Britain. Charles Eric Forsyth (1885 - 1951) who played at fullback for Eccles RFC before WW1 was also a swimming champion who played water polo for Lancashire and captained the England team in 1903. He went on to play in the Great Britain water polo team at the Summer Olympics in 1908 which were held in London. Great Britain took the Gold Medal and Mr C.E. Forsyth scored 3 goals in the final!
Charles Eric Forsyth is captured in the Eccles RFC team photo of 1904/05 and he was a member of the Eccles team who toured Bedfordshire in Easter 1906. In the 1913/14 season the "England International water-polo player" was still going strong, playing for both the 1XV and 2XV Eccles teams in front of big crowds at the ground in Barton, and also was a member of the club committee. During WW1 C.E. Forsyth served in 1st Battalion of the Manchester Regiment. Whether he survived the war is unknown.
