Hull
Rugby League Club
by Raymond Fletcher
100 Greats Series
from Tempus Publishing UK
"Hull
have not had one hundred great players!" So said author
Raymond Fletcher. "That was the expected reaction of some when
told I was writing a book entitled 100 Hull Greats."
"They
could be right if the players were to be judged on their standing in
rugby league's world rankings: after all, only thirty-seven Hull players
have appeared for Great Britain while at The Boulevard," explains
Fletcher, who has been the author of the Rothman's Rugby League Yearbook
for 20 years.
"However,
in the context of the club's history, I have no doubt that each of the
100 players in this book deserves to be regarded as a great Hull player."
Foremost
amongst all of Hull's players must without any doubt be Billy Batten,
a legendary figure throughout the rugby league world and (thus far)
Hull's only inductee in the English RFL's Hall Of Fame.
While
the Hull Rugby League Club is fast approaching its 140th anniversary
(beginning in 1865 as Hull Rugby club), the author has only taken into
account the seasons since 1895 with the founding of the Northern Union
(rugby league).
Down
the years Hull has attracted some remarkable players to The Boulevarde.
Among them were Joe Oliver from Bately in 1928 and, fifty years later,
Steve Norton from Castleford. Both acquisitions, like Batten, began
great eras for the Airlie Birds.
Hull
also led the way with the signing of Australia's top players, including
Jim Devereux after the 1908 Kangaroos tour. The great Bert Gilbert and
South Sydney's teenage star Steve
Darmody soon also signed on, with many more following in
the decades after.
Bruce Ryan (Newtown 1943) was not an international player, but came
to be idolised by Hull fans in the late 1940s. Peter Sterling also had
two great seasons with Hull in the mid-1980s.
A
number of New Zealanders also had grand spells with Hull including 1980
Kiwi tourists Fred Ah Kuoi, Gary Kemble, James Leuluai and Dane O'Hara.
All
these players are profiled in the book, along with many locals and famous
names including: Joe Oliver, Garry Schofield, Arthur Keegan, Lee Jackson,
Lee Crooks, Karl Harrison, Cecil Fifield, Paul Eastwood, Stan Brogden,
David Topliss, Clive Sullivan and Johnny Whiteley.
Each
player has their own story, but none are more remarkable - or tragic
- than that of winger Jack Harrison. His greatest feat was scoring a
club record 52 tries in 1914/15 - a record that still stands and has
never been seriously threatened. He also formed a lethal combination
with centre Billy Batten.
When
WW1 opened Harrison immediately enlisted in the East Yorkshire Regiment,
becoming a Second Lieutenant and being awarded the Military Medal. Still
only 26, in the Battle of Oppy Wood on 3 May 1917, Harrison single-handedly
attacked a German machine-gun post. Harrison's bravery though saw him
killed in the battle and he has no known grave. Jack Harrison was posthumously
awarded the Victoria Cross for his selfless actions.
A
welcome addition to the 100 Greats Series, which is providing a wonderful
chronicle of the men that played the game of rugby league in England
over the past century.
Oh
- and just a short note - while Queenslander Jason Smith has made it
on the book's cover, and his 2002 form is confirming him as one of Hull's
greatest ever signings, Smith hadn't met the author's (quite reasonable)
criteria for inclusion of 30 club appearances and is not profiled.
Hull
100 Greats is yet another revealing read and a valuable reference.
Published
by Tempus Publishing - ISBN 0 7524 2429 7
