Leo Rankin

Australian rules footballer

Leo Rankin
Personal information
Full name	Leo Vincent Rankin
Date of birth	(1879-10-08)8 October 1879
Place of birth	East Melbourne, Australia
Date of death	10 May 1917(1917-05-10) (aged 37)
Place of death	Wareham, Dorset, United Kingdom
Original team(s)	Xavier College
Playing career¹
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1899	Melbourne	1 (0)
¹ Playing statistics correct to the end of 1899.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Leo Vincent Rankin (8 October 1879 – 10 May 1917)^[1] was a former Australian rules footballer who played with Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL).^[2]

Family

The son of John Rankin (1844–1916),^[3] and Mary Rankin, née Donoghue, Leo Vincent Rankin was born at East Melbourne, Australia on 8 October 1879.^[4]

Education

He attended Xavier College.

Football

He played in one match for Melbourne, against Carlton, on 9 September 1899.

Along with two other "single game players" — Joe Finlay and Arthur Sinclair — he was used to make up the numbers, when regular players Jack Davidson, Maurie Herring, Eddie Sholl, Dick Wardill, and Alf Wood were all unavailable.^[5]

Military service

He enlisted for service in the First AIF on 8 December 1915, and served overseas in the 55th Battalion.

Death

He died (of hepatitis) on 10 May 1917 at the Military Hospital in Wareham, Dorset, United Kingdom, and was buried in the military cemetery of the Lady St Mary Church, Wareham.^[6]

Notes

^ "Leo Rankin – Player Bio". Australian Football. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
^ Holmesby & Main (2014), p.730.
^ Deaths: Rankin, The Argus, (Tuesday, 14 March 1916), p.1.
^ Honour Roll Circular.
^ Demonwiki.
^ Red Cross Society file.

References

Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2014). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: every AFL/VFL player since 1897 (10th ed.). Seaford, Victoria: BAS Publishing. ISBN 978-1-921496-32-5.
World War One Nominal Roll: Private Leo Vincent Rankin (1718), collection of the Australian War Memorial.
World War One Embarkation Roll: Private Leo Vincent Rankin (1718), collection of the Australian War Memorial.
World War One Service Record: Private Leo Vincent Rankin (1718), National Archives of Australia.
Australian Red Cross Society Wounded and Missing Enquiry Bureau files, 1914–18 War: 1DRL/0428: 1718 Private Leo Vincent Rankin: 55th Battalion, collection of the Australian War Memorial.
304th Casualty List: New South Wales: Died of Illness, The Sydney Morning Herald, (Tuesday, 29 May 1917), p.8.
Private Leo Vincent Rankin (1718), Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Roll of Honour: Private Leo Vincent Rankin (1718), Australian War Memorial.
Roll of Honour Circular: Private Leo Vincent Rankin (1718), Australian War Memorial.