A COMMEMORATIVE cap has been presented to an Army battalion in memory of a rugby playing winner of the Victoria Cross.

The cap was given to the commanding officer of The Highlanders, 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland during a ceremony at Catterick Garrison to mark the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War and Thomas Steele being officially inducted into the Rugby League hall of honour.

Mr Steele served with the Seaforth Highlanders, which was later incorporated into The Highlanders, during the First World War.

He was awarded the Victoria Cross for "most conspicuous bravery and devotion to duty" during the British advance on Sannai-I-Yat, Mesopotamia - now Iraq - on February 22, 1917.

He saw that soldiers from an Indian unit were falling back so he and a private soldier moved forward to set up a machine gun position.

The official citation read: “At a critical moment when a strong enemy counter-attack had temporarily regained some of the captured trenches, Sgt Steele rushed forward and assisted a comrade to carry a machine gun into position. He kept the gun in action until relieved, being mainly instrumental in keeping the remainder of the line intact.

"Some hours later another strong attack enabled the enemy to reoccupy a portion of the captured trenches.

"Again Sgt Steele showed the greatest bravery, and by personal valour and example was able to rally troops who were wavering."

Although severely wounded and under heavy artillery and rifle fire, he encouraged them to remain in their trenches and led them forward, helping to re-establish the Allied line.

Before the war, Sgt Steele had a successful amateur rugby league career with his local team Healey Street, near Oldham, before catching the attention of the professional Broughton Rangers team, for whom he played a small number of games before war broke out.

He continued to play for Healey Street after the war despite bring injured another 11 times, and died in 1978.

The cap was presented by League 13, the Super League Players' Association.

Ernie Benbow, chief executive of League 13, said: “League 13 resolved to improve the working conditions for today’s generation of Super League players and for future generations.

"However, it is just as important to preserve the legacies of those players who have come before, especially those who have shown courage and bravery above and beyond the call of duty."