Richard Michael Pirrie (6 June 1920 – 6 June 1944) was an Australian rules footballer who played with Hawthorn in the Victorian Football League (VFL).
| Dick Pirrie | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Richard Michael Pirrie | ||
| Date of birth | 6 June 1920 | ||
| Place of birth | Hawthorn, Victoria | ||
| Date of death | 6 June 1944 (aged 24) | ||
| Place of death | English Channel, off Juno Beach, Normandy, German-occupied France | ||
| Original team(s) | Hawthorn CYMS | ||
| Height | 175 cm (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Weight | 74 kg (163 lb) | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1940–41 | Hawthorn | 3 (0) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1941. | |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Family edit
The son of Richard Francis Pirrie (1879–1962),[1] and Isobel Agatha Pirrie (1897–1982), née McGuire,[2] Richard Michael Pirrie was born in Hawthorn on 6 June 1920.[3]
Education edit
He attended St Patrick's College, East Melbourne.
Football edit
His father, also known as "Dick" Pirrie, and his brother, Kevin Pirrie also played for Hawthorn.
His nephew, Kevin's son Stephen Pirrie, played with Richmond, St Kilda and Essendon in the Victorian Football League (VFL), and with Port Melbourne in the VFA.
War service edit
Following the outbreak of World War II, Pirrie enlisted in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), on 8 September 1941 and was given the service number PM/V77.[4]
Acting Sub-Lieutenant Perrie was posted to Britain, for training in amphibious landings. He was assigned initially to Royal Navy shore establishment, HMS Quebec,[5] which was a part of the British Combined Operations Training Centre, on the banks of Loch Fyne, Scotland.
By mid-1944, Pirrie had been posted to a shore establishment on the River Hamble, Hampshire, HMS Cricket,[4] where a component of the expeditionary force for the Allied invasion of North West Europe was being assembled.
On D-Day (6 June), he was attached to the crew of a British LSI HMS Invicta,[6] which landed part of the 7th Canadian Infantry Brigade at "Juno Beach", near Courseulles-sur-Mer.[7] Pirrie was killed when Invicta received a direct hit from a German shore battery.[6] He was the first member of the RAN to be killed in action on D-Day.[8][9][6][10] He was mentioned in dispatches (MiD):[11] "For gallantry, skill and determination and undaunted devotion to duty during the initial landing of Allied Forces on the coast of Normandy".[12]
See also edit
Footnotes edit
- ^ Deaths: Pirrie, The Age, (Monday, 17 September 1962), p.13.
- ^ Pirrie-McGuire, The Advocate, (Saturday, 9 August 1919), p.26.
- ^ Births: Pirrie, The Argus, (Saturday, 19 June 1920), p.13.
- ^ a b Pirrie, Richard Archived 14 July 2014 at the Wayback Machine (2020).
- ^ Commonwealth War Graves Commission, Sub-Lieutenant Richard Pirrie (2020).
- ^ a b c Bernard, Dorothy, "He Led the Invasion", The (Melbourne) Advocate, (Wednesday, 26 July 1944), p.13.
- ^ "Juno Beach". Combined Ops. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
- ^ Roll of Honor, The Age, (Saturday, 24 June 1944), p.4.
- ^ Deaths: On Active Service: Pirrie, The Argus, (Friday 7 July 1944), p.2.
- ^ News of the Day: Death on Birthday, The Age, (Thursday, 14 June 1945), p.2.
- ^ Hawthorn Naval Man Honored, The (Melbourne) Herald, (Wednesday, 39 August 1944), p.5.
- ^ Royal Australian Navy: Mention in Despatches (Posthumous), Commonwealth of Australia Gazette, No.206, (Thursday, 19 October 1944), p.2338.
References edit
- Holmesby, Russell & Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. 7th ed. Melbourne: Bas Publishing.
External links edit
- Dick Pirrie's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Dick Pirrie, australianfootball.com.