Departures of note

Sir William John Boston was a Welsh rugby league footballer regarded as one of the greatest players in the sport's history. Born in Cardiff's Tiger Bay in 1934, he began in rugby union before joining Wigan in 1953, where he spent 15 years and scored a club-record 478 tries in 488 appearances. He finished his career at Blackpool Borough, retiring in 1970 with 571 career tries, the second-highest total in rugby league history.

Boston was a trailblazer as the first non-white player to represent Great Britain on a Lions tour in 1954, scoring 36 tries in 18 matches in Australia and New Zealand. He won the 1960 Rugby League World Cup and three Ashes Series, and claimed the Challenge Cup three times with Wigan. He was inducted into the Rugby Football League, Welsh Sports, and Wigan Warriors halls of fame, and received an MBE in 1996.

In 2025 he became the first rugby league player in the sport's 130-year history to receive a knighthood, recognised for his services to the game. He died peacefully in hospital in Wigan at the age of 92, just days after the funeral of his wife of 70 years, Lady Joan.