The Glory of Their Times - English Rugby League Book

The Glory Of Their Times
Crossing the Colour Line in Rugby League
Edited by Phil Melling and Tony Collins

Martin Offiah: I enjoyed the beauty of rugby league in the same way that people who aren't rugby league fans could appreciate the way I played the game.

It probably didn't endear me to the rugby league purists, but people outside the game will come up to me and say, "Man you're the greatest player of all time," and I say "No I'm not mate, I'm just a product of my time.".

More info/purchase: The Glory of Their Times

The Great Britain and Australian rugby league teams have been (and continue to be) criticised as representing only a few counties in northern England and two eastern Australian states - somehow this is meant to diminish the Lions' and Kangaroos' right to appear on the international sporting stage.

These critics - who are almost without exception English or Australian rugby union fans or journalists - fail to acknowledge that the sport of rugby league is inclusive of all levels of society. The Wallabies and the English rugby union teams have almost exclusively been comprised of players from one class - hardly representative of their country.

'The Glory of Their Times' explores one aspect of rugby league's long history of inclusiveness: the involvement of coloured players in British Rugby League.

The book covers the careers, achievements and challenges faced by sixteen black, Asian, Maori and Aboriginal players over the past century, including Lucius Banks, Billy Boston, Wally McArthur, Joe Levula, Ellery Hanley, Martin Offiah and Jason Robinson.

Fifty years before the first black footballer (soccer) represented England, Jimmy Cumberbatch was scoring tries for the England rugby league team. In the 1950s, Roy Francis became the first black professional coach in any British team sport. And in 1972 Clive Sullivan lifted the World Cup for Great Britain as the first black player to captain a British national side.

With contributions from notable writers including Dave Hadfield of the Independent newspaper, Peter Lush of Our Game rugby league magazine, Harry Edgar from the Rugby League Journal, and former players Clive Griffiths, Bev Risman and Cec Thompson, this book tells its story from the inside.

Featuring sixteen of the game's greatest stars, it recounts their lives, warts and all, from their struggles to incomparable achievements. It also tells the story of how rugby league opened its doors to black sportsmen when other sports turned their backs on them.

Of course, no profile of a rugby league player can be told in isolation. Within each profile the deeds, achievements and disappointments of their teams and supporters are brought back to life.

In many ways this book is an unexpected insight into the overall history of rugby league. Events that are often overlooked in more conventional history books of the game are contained in 'The Glory of Their Times'.

Peter Lush's contribution on New Zealand's George Nepia reveals the rise and fall of rugby league in London in the 1930s. Tony Collins explores the journey of Wally McArthur, the first Aboriginal to play for an English club, from the 1950s South Australian rugby league competition. Harry Edgar tells of how Joe Levula travelled to England from Fiji in response to an advertisement placed by the Rochdale Hornets in 1961.

'The Glory of Their Times' is a celebration of the inclusiveness of rugby league and a tribute to these 16 players.

It is also a wonderful rediscovery of stories from rugby league's past which should never have been forgotten.

The Glory of Their Times - Crossing the Colour Line in Rugby League
Editors: Phil Melling & Tony Collins
Foreword by Billy Boston
Vertical Editions - ISBN 1-904091-07-5
(Hardback, 220 pages, plus 16 pages of black and white photographs)

More info/purchase: The Glory of Their Times