Francis Edward Cotton (born 3 January 1947) is a former rugby union prop forward who played for England and the British Lions.
A "fearsome" prop,[3] he was primarily a tighthead but also played to a high level at loosehead, winning three Lions caps in 1977 on the left of the front row and the Grand Slam with England in 1980.
It was during these years that Cotton would win the Glengarth Sevens at Davenport RUFC, now renamed Stockport Rugby Club, along with Steve Smith and Clive Rees.
It was during the game against the Junior All Blacks on the 1977 tour that the famous 'Mudman' image of Cotton, standing at number one at the front of a lineout while caked head-to-toe in mud, was taken.
[7] He is an honorary president of the rugby charity Wooden Spoon improving the lives of disadvantaged children and young people in Britain and Ireland.