Andrew Tucker (sport shooter)

Andrew Tucker

Andrew Tucker (right) with fellow shooters Brenda & Colin Almond (left & centre)
Personal information
Full name	Andrew St George Tucker
Born	17 July 1937 Edinburgh, Scotland
Died	9 July 2003 (aged 65)
Sport
Country	England
Sport	Sports shooting
Medal record Representing  England Commonwealth Games 1990 Auckland fullbore rifle pairs 1990 Auckland fullbore rifle

Andrew St George Tucker (1937–2003) was a Scottish-born, sports shooter who represented England and Great Britain shooting smallbore and fullbore target rifle. He won the Queen's Prize at Bisley twice, medalled at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland as well as winning the NSRA Lord Roberts Trophy for smallbore, He also won the Grand Aggregates at both the NRA Imperial Meeting and NSRA National Smallbore Meeting. He is the first and (as of 2023) only person to win the "big four" of both British titles and both Grand Aggregates. He ran Andrew Tucker Gunsmiths, manufacturing firearms and target shooting equipment including jackets, rifle slings and gloves.

Sports shooting career

Tucker began his shooting career in the cadet force shooting team at Felsted School, winning the Iveagh match at Bisley in 1954.[1] In 1964 he won the Grand Aggregate at the NSRA National Smallbore Rifle Meeting, and in the 1970s represented Great Britain at World Cups, partnering Malcolm Cooper.[1][2]

In 1974 he gained his first England full-bore rifle cap.[1]

In 1975 he won the Earl Roberts Cup (the British smallbore championship) after a tie shoot against Alister Allan.[3][4]

He travelled extensively to matches both with the GB Fullbore Rifle Team and independently. In 1976 he won the silver medal in the Grand Aggregate of the Dominion of Canada Rifle Association's meeting on the Connaught Ranges in Ottawa.[5][6]

Andrew Tucker in front of the scoreboard after winning the Queen's Prize in 1979

In 1979 Tucker won the Queen's Prize for the first time.[7] He won the Grand Aggregate at the 1986 Imperial Meeting,[8] and the Queen's Prize again in 1987.[9][1][10]

Andrew Tucker firing a fullbore target rifle

Tucker represented England and won a gold medal in the fullbore rifle pairs with Simon Belither and a silver medal in the individual fullbore rifle, at the 1990 Commonwealth Games in Auckland, New Zealand.[11][12]

In 1995, he captained the England touring team to Canada, where they beat the Canadians on their home range.[1]

Personal life

Andrew St George Tucker was born in 1937 in Edinburgh.[1] Although born in Scotland, his parents were English and he chose to represent England in competition. He attended Felsted School in Essex, where he joined the shooting team of the CCF.[2]

During National Service, he was posted to armourer duties on account of his shooting abilities. In 1958 he left the RAF and joined the prestigious gunmaking firm of Cogswell & Harrison of Piccadilly, where he met his future wife - the sister of a colleague.[1]

In 1964, Tucker married Kathy and they moved to Cobham, Surrey, founding Andrew Tucker Gunsmiths - manufacturing sporting firearms as well as shooting jackets, slings and gloves.[1] "Tucker jackets" became a common piece of equipment amongst British target shooters for the next 30 years.[13]

Tucker died aged 65 on 9 July 2003 following a five year battle with cancer.[1]

References

1. ""Andrew Tucker" Times". Times Digital Archives. 16 July 2003. p. 28.
2. Tony de Launay (Winter 2003). Robertson, Karen (ed.). "Obituaries - Andrew St George Tucker" (PDF). NRA Journal. LXXXVI (3). National Rifle Association: 78–79. ISSN 0028-0070. Retrieved 21 August 2023.
3. "Dagger third in final". Evening Post. 8 September 1975. p. 36. A closely contested final... resulted in a win, after a tie-shoot, for Andrew Tucker of Cobham, Surrey, scoring 788.
4. "SHOOTING". The Observer. 21 August 1977. p. 19. Alister Allan yesterday won the British individual smallbore rifle championship at Bisley in a tie shoot with Andrew Tucker, ... the man who beat him in an identical tie shoot for the title two years ago.
5. "British riflemen outshoot them all". Burton Daily Mail. 14 August 1976. p. 3. Two of Britain's top riflemen outshot al the stars of Canada, Australia and New Zealand to win first and second places in the Grand Aggregate, the overall championship of the major events of the Dominion Canada Rifle Association (DCRA) meeting at Connaught Ranges, Ottawa yesterday. ...Only a single point behind [Alistair Brown] the reigning British smallbore champion Andrew Tucker of Cobham, Surrey, won the second prize and Silver Cross with 654.
6. "Britain's Marksman on top". Daily Mail. 14 August 1976. p. 7. Only a single point behing [Brown] came the reigning British small-bore champion Andrew Tucker, of Cobham, Surrey, one of the country's leading all-rounders.
7. "SHOOTING:". Sunday Mercury. 29 July 1979. p. 44. ISSN 0039-5242. Retrieved 2 January 2024.
8. "Tucker short". The Daily Telegraph. 26 July 1986. p. 23. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2 January 2024. Andrew Tucker, who won the Bisley Grand Aggregate, was one point short of the lowest score, 143, to reach the [Queen's Prize] final, but he won the Prince of Wales in a tie-break immediately afterwards.
9. Leslie Howcroft (27 July 1987). "Tucker's title provides the answer". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2 January 2024. ANDREW TUCKER, when he won the Bisley Grand Aggregate a year ago to complete his set of four titles of both fullbore and smallbore shooting, asked: "What do I do next?" At Bisley on Saturday he found the answer by winning the Queen's Prize for the second time.
10. "The King's and Queen's Prize". nra.org.uk. National Rifle Association. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 2 November 2023.
11. "1990 Athletes". Team England. Archived from the original on 21 August 2019.
12. "Athletes and results". Commonwealth Games Federation. Archived from the original on 29 November 2021.
13. "In an Almond". TenPointNine. TenPointNine Tailoring. Archived from the original on 2 December 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2023.