25th May 2015, 3.13pm: a sea of yellow and green, bouncing in unison.
“Kick it off! Throw it in! Have a little scrimmage!
Keep it low! A splendid rush! Bravo! Win or die!
On the ball city! Never mind the danger!
Steady on, now’s your chance… hurrah! We’ve scored a goal!”
The words of Norwich City’s famous old club song, On The Ball City, reverberated around Wembley Stadium, a sea of noise emerging from – fittingly – the East end of the ground. After a year of highs, lows, and even dizzier highs, the men in yellow and green had just gone a goal up against Middlesborough in the Football League Championship Play-Off Final.
It was Cameron Jerome who had put the Canaries ahead, pinching the ball off one-time City defender Daniel Ayala and slotting it past the seemingly frozen Boro keeper. At that moment, some 39,000 Norwich fans went crazy. Sat amongst the City faithful in the lower tier, I too lost it, jumping around for what seemed like an eternity. It was, indeed, “a splendid rush”.
Three minutes later, the rush turned into an overwhelming, near orgasmic high; but more of that in a moment.
In the minutes in between, both sets of supporters tried to make sense of the opening exchanges. It had been a breathless beginning to what would, no doubt, be a memorable afternoon – for one set of supporters, at least.
City had been brilliant from the word go, pinging around passes, creating space and carving open Boro’s normally resolute defense with surprising ease. There was Wes Hoolahan – little Wes, our Wes, the totemic playmaker who has enjoyed, and endured, both highs and lows during his lengthy stay at the club – zipping passes all over the park with amazing accuracy. Wes in full flight is a thing of rare beauty, and on this day he could do no wrong. When he did decide to keep hold of the ball, it appeared as if it was attached to his foot by a bit of well-worn elastic. His close control is normally good, but on this most important of days it was majestic.
In those opening exchanges, he was by no means the only Norwich player to impress. Nathan Redmond was a handful, Johnny Howson and Bradley Johnson were their usual hard-working selves, and Alex Tettey floated around the pitch, always popping up in the right place to intercept passes, break up play or lend a hand to the back four. Stephen Wittaker and Martin Olsson caught the eye, too, pushing forward with carefree abandon as Norwich surged forwards at every opportunity. Then there was Cameron Jerome, who already had the better of Boro’s normally stingy defence.
It took less than nine minutes for Norwich to set supporters’ pulses racing. Then, we rose as one as Johnson rattled the crossbar with a thunderous half volley – the kind of unstoppable pile driver that has, unlikely as it may seem given his previous track record – become his trademark this season
Boro, in a rare moment of quality, responded with a dazzling break that ended with Jelle Vossen – a man who looks like an East European villain from a Bond movie – responding with an even better volley. It, too, thundered into the bar. The collective gasp amongst the City fans was audible. From near ecstasy to near agony in less than 60 seconds. It was going to be a nerve-shredding afternoon.
Once Jerome had given Norwich the lead, Boro seemed flustered, as if all hope had drained from their collective consciousness. City, still buzzing from taking the lead, went in for the kill. With Hoolahan and Jerome to the fore, they began to pick the teesiders apart. Their passing and movement, in particular, was a thing of rare beauty. Performed at pace, it was of Premier League quality.
The second goal, when it inevitably came, was one for the ages. It involved some 17 passes, a dash of Wes magic, a killer final ball from the often-maligned Steven Whittaker, and a brilliant finish from Nathan Redmond. It was, as the old saying goes, just like watching Brazil.
Amongst the Norwich supporters, pandemonium ensued – an eruption of yellow and green as fans not so much jumped from their seats but leapt for joy. I have to admit that the next minute or two are something of a blur. I don’t think I hugged anyone, but I must have come close. What a goal! What a moment! Could this really be happening?
When the euphoria had died down and the game restarted, I slumped back into my seat and tried to soak it all in. Already, it had been a stunning day. Norwich supporters are not used to these kind of colossal showpiece occasions, or indeed this many rush-inducing moments in close proximity.
Sure, there have been some fantastic games, goals and moments over the last decade – Simeon Jackson’s injury time winner at Carrow Road against Derby in 2011, the same player’s promotion-securing winner at Portsmouth in the same season, a growing collection of derby victories over Ipswich, and Jonny Howson’s wonder goal against Man City at the Etihad spring to mind – but these memories have been tempered by a similar number of gut-wrenching lows. These are fairly well documented – relegation to league 1, the car crash that was Bryan James Gunn’s short reign as manager, and the soul destroying torture of the ‘Hootun’ years – but remain all too fresh in the memory.
As anyone of a yellow and green persuasion will know, Norwich’s most recent appearance at Wembley – until 2015, of course – had been the Milk Cup Final of 1985. That day, we edged a scrappy game that was low on memorable moments. I was six years old at the time, and had to make do with watching on television in Sheffield, where I grew up. From my hazy memories, I think I spent much of the time trying to spot my dad in the crowd (I didn’t, of course). It was my dad who had got my brother and I into following City, and though I’d flirted with supporting one of the Sheffield clubs (Wednesday, for the record), I was well on my way to becoming a lifelong Norwich fan. In truth, it took until my teenage years for me to take it seriously, and my passion and interest seems to have grown every season since. I don’t get over to Norfolk all that often these days, but I have happy memories of being taken to occasional games at Carrow Road as a child – in my mind, usually under lights – during trips to visit relatives in “the fine city”. Last year, I tried to work out the first game my dad took us to. Eventually, I gave up. I know my dad’s first game: it was in the 1950s, when Norwich were way down the leagues, and Newport County were the opponents. Strangely, my dad – a keen amateur footballer and cricketer throughout his youth – ended up playing against Newport County reserves while at Swansea University. In goal for County’s second string that day was the man who had been in goal for them at Carrow Road some eight to ten years previously. It’s a small world.
30 years on from the Milk Cup final, my dad was sadly not by my side – a pre-booked holiday meaning he missed the entire play-off campaign – but his cousin Adrian was sat in the row in front of me. We’d not booked at the same time, so it was a brilliant surprise. Adrian is as dedicated and typically pessimistic as any lifelong Norwich fan, and you could tell he wasn’t enjoying this occasion. Every so often, we exchanged nervous glances. However well we were playing, we both half expected the 11 players in yellow to somehow screw it up. It’s hard to change habits of a lifetime.
At half time, Adrian wandered over for a chat – the first time we’ve spoken properly in a number of years. He was his usual self, meaning that the clear thrill of City being 2-0 had been numbed by a crippling fear of failure. “We need a third goal,” he said. “There’s no way we can hold on to a 2-0 lead.”
I nodded and mumbled something about the first 15 minutes of the second half being key. Deep down I felt a little more confident. City have been a different side since Alex Neil took over from the enthusiastic but flawed Neil Adams in January.
The 33 year-old Scot inherited a hugely talented, but misfiring side. At the time, our form was erratic, and we looked like a side capable of both brilliance and ineptitude, often in the same game. A day or two after his appointment, and with Mike Phelan still technically in charge, Neil emerged from the stands to rescue what looked like an impossible situation at Bournemouth and inspire a famous win.
Week by week since, Neil’s Norwich side has grown in confidence, with only occasional blips – defeats at Carrow Road to Brentford, Wigan and Boro standing out – punctuating an otherwise stunning run of form.
His story, and that of Norwich’s climb back up the table and subsequent run to the play-off final – thrillingly at the expense of a dire Ipswich side capable only of tedious long ball football – is little less than jaw-dropping. Of course, he had talented players at his disposal – as our near neighbours, pundits and fans of other Championship clubs were all too quick to point out – but before his arrival things were looking more than a little shaky.
That Neil’s side looked so comfortable in the first half of this pulsating play-off final – against a team as organized and capable as Boro – is testament to the former Mansfield, Barnsley and Hamilton Academicals player’s obvious abilities as a manager. Like Paul Lambert before him, Neil has an aura. Unlike Lambert, though, he actually seems quite likeable. I mean, you wouldn’t argue with him – a stare alone seems enough to get his players in line – but there’s a calmness and professionalism that belies his tender years. He’s the kind of manager that we’ll be telling our sons and daughters about in 20 or 30 years time.
As Adrian sauntered back to his seat, I tried to revel in the atmosphere once more. It had already been an amazing day. I was sat on my own, but had come to London with a coach full of West Country based Norwich fans. Amongst them were two friends from the Bristol music scene, Jamie Harvey and Chris Cooper.
With most of the rest of the South West Canaries crew, we’d gathered by the Almondsbury Interchange at 8.30am, full of hopes and dreams, but wracked by nerves. Together, we’d wandered around the down-at-heel area around Wembley swigging from cheap cans of lager, smiling at fellow supporters and nervously discussing what would happen when the game finally kicked off. We’d walked down Olympic Way amongst a sea of yellow shirts, over-sized flags, inflatable Canaries and over-eager supporters relishing our club’s first big day out since the doomed 2002 play-off final against Birmingham in Cardiff.
We’d sung along with “On The Ball City”, stopped for photos, bought programmes, chuckled at stupidly dressed supporters being filmed by TV crew, and chatted to some friendly Boro fans.
We arrived at our seats 45 minutes before kick-off, watched the crowd build up, and belted out songs as the teams entered the field. Regardless of what would happen over the next 90 minutes, the roar from both sets of fans at kick-off was deafening. It is something I hope I never forget.
By the time Middlesborough got their act together in the second half – probing, albeit slowly, Norwich’s now deep-lying defence – the nerves returned. In truth, the men from Teeside never really looked like breaking us down – an astonishing feat given our defence’s propensity for comedic errors this season. If a Boro goal was to come, it seemed most likely to be the result of a skewed header from Russell Martin, a lapse of concentration from Sebastian Bassong, or Nathan Redmond not tracking back. As it turned out, Patrick Bamford was neutralized, Boro ran out of ideas, and messers Bassong and Martin spent most of the half smoking cigars at the edge of the box. Or at least that’s how it seems in hindsight; at the time, I was petrified that they’d make a mistake.
On 87 minutes, the mood in the East end of the stadium seemed to change. It was as if all 39,000 Norwich fans had realized the win was in the bag. A rousing chorus of On The Ball City made the hairs on the back of the neck stand to attention. The win was only a matter of moments away.
Personally, it was only when the fourth official signaled four minutes of added time that I began to feel comfortable. We were returning to the Premier League at the first time of asking, something that had seemed near impossible just a few months earlier. Strangely, it wasn’t the return to the top flight that was in the forefront of my mind in the closing stages. That may have been the prize, but at that moment it was all about the day itself: reveling in what felt like a famous cup final win at Wembley. Sure, it was technically only a match to sort out who would be joining Bournemouth and Watford in the Premiership, but it didn’t feel like that. Either way, the “splendid rush” at the final whistle is something I will never forget.
The minutes following the final whistle will live long in the memory, too; 38,000 fans chanting Alex Neil’s name, Delia paying tribute to the “yellow army”, and jigs on the hallowed turf by Nathan Redmond and Seb Bassong. Best of all, though, was looking round at a throbbing sea of yellow and green, as Norfolk – and those, like myself, with family ties to the county – celebrated quite possibly the most memorable single occasion in the club’s history. No doubt our neighbours from Suffolk, with their UEFA Cup exploits and roll call of legendary managers, will sneer. Let them; at present, it is only history they have to cling on to.
On the way out of the stadium, I paused to soak up the atmosphere one final time. I got chatting to a fellow Norwich supporter, who had traveled down from Norfolk on one of the 200-plus coaches that had made the trip. When he heard I’d come over from Bristol with a coach-load of other West Country exiles, he insisted on shaking my hand. It was that kind of day.
What the Premier League will bring next year is, in many ways, irrelevant. As Adrian said afterwards, it cannot possibly be as enjoyable as the insane fluctuations in fortune that the 2014-15 season has delivered. It may be a struggle, and we may end up being relegated at the end of it. In some ways, I don’t care what happens – for the time being, at least. Getting there was “a splendid rush”, and up there with the best days I’ve experienced as a sports fan – the likes of the 1998 Challenge Cup Final, where my beloved Sheffield Eagles overturned hot favourites Wigan, and cheering Sir Bradley Wiggins to victory in the London 2012 Cycling Time Trial. Whatever happens in future, I will never forget this glorious day.
On the ball, City!
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Tags: Boro, Canaries, Football League, Middlesborough, Norwich City, Play Off Final 2015, Play-offs 2015, Wembley
Rugby League in the UK has long been seen by outsiders as a provincial and parochial sport, strong professionally in the North of England but largely lacking elsewhere. While the sport has made great strides at an amateur level around the UK, and now boasts professional clubs in North and South Wales, it still finds it hard to break free of its Northern roots – despite the efforts of hundreds, maybe thousands of volunteers elsewhere in England, Wales and Scotland.
It’s this fact more than anything that has generally made the Rugby Football League, the game’s governing body, overly cautious when selecting venues for international matches involving England (and before that Great Britain). For the last decade, League internationals have been played in such glamorous locations as Huddersfield, Hull, Blackburn, Bolton, Wigan and Leeds. Some of these are League strongholds – Hill, Wigan and Leeds in particular – but others aren’t. It says something about the mentality of some League fans that Blackburn and Bolton were seen as “too far to travel” to watch their national team, and crowds were poor.
Somewhat surprisingly, League internationals generally aren’t that well supported in England. Despite being the pinnacle of the professional game, crowd numbers for Tri Nations, Four Nations and World Cup games on the whole have been disappointing – certainly in the last decade, at least. The last World Cup in particular was considered an unmitigated disaster, and the failure of England to reach the World Cup final resulted in the RFL dishing out thousands of free tickets to the Old Trafford showpiece via the Manchester Evening News.
Yet for all the criticism of the 2000 World Cup, there were some signs that the RFL wanted to use the game’s biggest global showpiece to spread the game throughout the UK. There were, bizarrely, games at Kingsholm in Gloucester and the Majeski Stadium in Reading. Both drew small crowds – between 3,000 and 4,000 at each – and the decision to take matches this far south drew huge criticism from within and outside the game. Yet there were plenty of games played up North that drew similarly disappointing crowds. The marketing was almost none existent, too.
Since that tournament made a loss, the RFL have not dared take significant international games involving England outside of the familiar surroundings of Yorkshire and Lancashire. It was something of a surprise, then, to see them recently announce a Four Nations Double-Header at Wembley on November 5. As an extra incentive to fans – as if seeing England-Australia and Wales-New Zealand wasn’t enough – tickets are available for as little as a tenner for a limited period. It’s a great initiative, and one that all League fans should support. It would be great to see general sports fans take a punt on the event, too, because League is as good a sporting spectacle as you’ll find. The RFL will need to work hard to spread the word down South, but there’s plenty of time for them to do that.
The inclusion of Wales in this year’s Four Nations tournament gave the RFL a great opportunity to try and rekindle interest in the 13-a-side code in South Wales. Back in 1995, in the fabled days of Jonathan Davies and company, Wales’ World Cup matches in the principality drew impressive crowds. Wales involvement in this year’s tournament would have been an excellent opportunity to test the water again, following a solid decade of development work in the Valleys.
Sadly, the RFL didn’t see it this way. With typically muddled thinking – and, reading between the lines, against the wishes of Wales Rugby League – they’ve decided to hold just one match in Wales: the Welsh national side against Australia, in Wrexham. The most attractive fixture for a Welsh audience – England-Wales – is not being held in South Wales but in Leigh, a tiny town on the fringes of Greater Manchester (but technically within the council borough of Wigan). Short-sighted? Just a bit.
Supporters of the RFL’s stance will argue – with some justification, perhaps – that this game is more likely to sell-out at a 10,000-capacity venue in Northern England. Perhaps. But surely more could have been gained by holding the game in South Wales, where the locals would surely have come out to support their side? There may have been a few less, but with marketing and a suitable choice of venue (Cardiff City’s Stadium, perhaps, which holds around 20,000) it could have been a great success.
It’s this muddled thinking – grandiose on one hand, extremely conservative on the other – that makes me fear for the 2013 World Cup, to be held jointly by England and Wales. The last Rugby League World Cup, played in 2008 in Australia – quite easily the greatest League-playing nation on earth – was something of a success. It turned a profit, matches were played all around Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, and New Zealand sprung a surprise by beating the hosts in the final.
One factor behind the success of the 2008 World Cup was the process by which host stadiums were chosen. The ARL, Australian Rugby League’s archaic governing body, opened up the process to tender. The Queensland government, in particular, saw this as a great opportunity, and offered financial incentives to host matches. It also got behind the RLWC in a big way, and crowds in Queensland were more impressive than those elsewhere.
The RFL took a decision some time ago to encourage cities and towns throughout England and Wales to bid to host matches. In 2000, they decided which stadiums would be used; this time, they will decide based on bids. Naturally, interest has been high, with the usual Northern towns and cities bidding and interest from places further afield – perhaps most notably Bristol.
I have some knowledge of the 2013 World Cup bidding process through my contacts within the game, and from my own small role in Bristol’s bid. As Media Manager for the city’s fast-growing community club, Bristol Sonics, I’ve done a small amount of PR work to promote the bid. I’ve not seen the bid document, and I wasn’t at the all-important RFL inspection visit, but I’ve seen how the process works. On one level, I was impressed.
Yet there are a number of factors that make me worry for the process. Like Australia in 2008, a number of government agencies have come forward and offered funding. Specifically, the 2013 RLWC has agreements with the North West Development Agency and the Welsh Assembly. The latter is undoubtedly a good thing, as it means that a number of games will be played in the principality, and in all likelihood in South Wales. That offers a great opportunity for the sport within the UK and shouldn’t be criticized.
The North West Development Agency cash is another issue altogether. Historically, few stadiums in the North West have been used for international League in recent years. While Wigan’s 20,000-plus DW Stadium is a regular and both the Halton Stadium (Runcorn, around 12,000 capacity) and the Haliwell Jones stadium (Warrington, 14,000) have been used, there are few other stadiums of note. By 2013, there will be new 20,000-seater stadiums in St Helens and Salford, both of which are likely to be used. In all likelihood, all of these stadiums will see fixtures.
The number of stadiums in the North West, coupled with the Development Agency cash, means that the bidding process is skewed against any town or city outside of Lancashire, Merseyside, Cheshire and Greater Manchester. This is particularly bad news for Yorkshire – but also Bristol, one of the only ‘non heartland’ cities that has bid. Bristol’s proximity to Wales, which is guaranteed a good handful of games, also counts against it.
The Yorkshire problem is a headache for the RFL. They have received a string of bids from cities and local authorities – Hull, Huddersfield, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and in all likelihood smaller places like Wakefield, Dewsbury and Castleford. Insiders say that Yorkshire boasts the greatest number of bidding towns and cities. The likelihood is that quite a few of these places will miss out.
This brings me on to Sheffield. In Bramall Lane, Sheffield United FC’s Premiership-quality soccer stadium (capacity circa 30,000) that also plays home to Cooperative Championship Rugby League side Sheffield Eagles, the city’s bid team have one of the best stadiums in the bidding process. Add to this Sheffield’s history of hosting sporting events (the city has a dedicated ‘events team’ that works with sports governing bodies and promoters), the Eagles wish to use the RLWC as a community development tool, and Sheffield’s ‘big city’ status, and it should be a no-brainer for the RFL.
If the process was based purely on the quality of bids, then a city like Sheffield – still in the North of England but outside of the all-important ‘M62 corridor’ – would almost be guaranteed a big game. But the bids are just a basis for the RFL’s decision. They are perfectly within their rights to choose whichever stadiums they want, regardless of criteria. Understandably, they are a touch paranoid about losing money. Hence, they are more than likely to play safe – and that means the usual suspects will get the nod. Again.
Personally, I think if they choose this route they will be passing up a golden opportunity to use the 2013 World Cup as a tool for solidifying the game’s routes in new areas, and enthralling a new audience. This is where a city like Bristol comes in.
At present, the South West isn’t one of Rugby League’s biggest growth areas, but in the last 12 months things have begun to happen. For example, Bristol Sonics this year launched a string of junior clubs at under 14 level around the city, as well as an elite Under 16s academy. Filton College has also started its own elite Rugby League Academy programme for 16 to 18 year-olds. Add in the Sonics’ two open age teams (and two social touch rugby teams), and amateur clubs in Swindon, Corsham, Gloucester, Somerset and Devon, and you have a picture of an emerging sport that’s beginning to make real inroads.
It should also be noted that the Bristol bid is largely being driven by two local councils – Bristol City Council and South Gloucestershire Council – in partnership with local tourism bodies and the city’s two soccer clubs, Bristol City and Bristol Rovers. The Bristol bid team sees the 2013 RLWC as an opportunity to get new people to the city, to energize youngsters and showcase what the South West has to offer. Hosting a game (or games) would be a genuine coup for the city, and be a vital tool in Rugby League development.
The same could also be said of Sheffield, a football-mad city with a Rugby League club (Sheffield Eagles) who are fiercely committed to development and community work.
Both of these cities would offer far more off-field benefit for Rugby League as a sport than hosting games in Leigh, Rochdale or Halifax (or many other traditional RL towns) – places that don’t need the boost to the community game and local volunteers that going to cities like Sheffield and Bristol would offer.
The Rugby League World Cup likes to think of itself as a global event. If you were organizing a global event, would you rather have games hosted by cities of international recognition, or small former mill towns in West Yorkshire and Lancashire? It’s not an either/or question, because the 2013 RLWC organizers can have the best of both. It’s time they made the right decision though – and that means taking a punt on cities that genuinely care, rather than those that think it’s their divine right to host games.
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This Sunday Cooperative Championship Rugby League club Sheffield Eagles will break new ground by becoming the first professional sports club to openly take a stance against homophobia in sport. It’s a far-sighted and enlightened move that shows that, at last, the tide may be turning against sport’s last great taboo.
The Egales, a second-tier pro Rugby League club who are probably best known for their heroic 1998 Challenge Cup Final win over Wigan Warriors, have long been one of British rugby’s most forward-thinking clubs. Yet they have scarcely done anything quite as quietly revolutionary as they will on Sunday (March 13).
When they step out of the changing rooms and on to the Bramall Lane turf, they will be wearing specially made playing shirts bearing the slogan “Homophobia: Tackle It!”. Never before has a professional sports club made such a bold statement about homosexuality and sport. It’s certainly a British first, and it may be a world first, too.
Homosexuality has long been deemed one of sport’s last great taboos. There are still only a handful of sportsmen who have openly declared their sexuality. While attitudes in society towards sexuality are slowly changing, in locker rooms the world over, the subject homosexuality remains out of bounds. It’s perhaps not that homophobia is rife – though there is still clearly a problem – but more that it is such a taboo that many gay sportsmen dare not declare their sexuality.
Recently, things have been changing for the better, though. The positive reaction England wicketkeeper Steven Davies’ received when he recently came out suggests that, in cricket at least, sexuality is much less of an issue than it once was.
Davies took his lead from Gareth ‘Alfie’ Thomas, a man whose “coming out” story is soon to be made into a Hollywood movie starring Mickey Rourke. Thomas made his move in 2009, on the eve of his cross-code switch to Rugby League. Like Davies, he made headlines worldwide, and was widely praised for what would once have been considered a brave move. The only professional rugby player of either code to previously “come out” was Australian international Rugby League star Ian Roberts, who made the move once he’d retired. The hostile reception he received in his native Australia says much about sporting and social attitudes in that country. Thomas himself has received much less abuse, though he was subjected to homophobic chanting in a Super League game against Castleford Tigers in 2010 – something that still shames right-minded and forward-thinking Rugby League fans.
There was a similar furore in the US media when NBA basketball heavyweight Johan Ameachi used his autobiography to come out. Manchester-born Ameachi, one of few Brits to succeed in the NBA, was by then a member of the NBA Hall Of Fame. While some of his former team-mates and opponents praised his decision, many were critical. In many sports, there’s an uncomfortableness and unspoken bigotry about homosexuality that seems hard to shift.
Football (soccer) remains the worst offender, with few footballers daring to make the move and come out. We all remember the tragic story of Justin Fashanu, who came out, was hounded by the tabloid press and eventually took his own life. That was the 1980s; it seems unbelievable that nothing has changed in football since then.
It’s why Sheffield Eagles’ moves to highlight the issue – in association with LGBT History Month, Pride Sports and the Rugby Football League – should be applauded.
Perhaps understandably, support for the Eagles’ initiative has been widespread.
“I think Sheffield’s decision to make this kind of statement is incredible and they deserve a huge amount of credit,” Ian Roberts told the Rugby Football League. “I’ve never heard of any team, in any sport anywhere in the world doing something like this before and I think it’s absolutely fantastic,” Roberts continued.“Sheffield are directly addressing a topic that many people still regard as taboo, it’s something people don’t like to talk about so it’s great to see a team taking the step to address that issue.
“This type of initiative has been a long time coming and it’s great to see a Rugby League club taking the first step and hopefully now this will help any of the young kids out there who look for role models in the sporting world to see that there are people who will support them regardless of their sexuality.”
John Ameachi was equally as positive. “I am really proud to see Sheffield Eagles take such a proactive step to break stereotypes and embrace their entire fan base,” he said. “It says something truly positive that it is Rugby League out of all our top sports and a team based in Sheffield in particular – a city I am proud to say I lived in – that are leading the way.”
Gareth Thomas, too, has leant his support to the Eagles initiative. In his role as a patron of LGBT History Month, Thomas said: “I am really proud to be a part of a sport that is moving forward so pro-actively on the equality agenda. I would like to congratulate the Sheffield Eagles for leading the way in promoting work to tackle homophobia and transphobia in Rugby League and in sport.
“I think the world of sport is moving forward, especially after the ‘coming out’ of another two elite sportsmen this last month; Graeme Obree, the cyclist and Steve Davies the England cricketer. I wish them and others who are thinking of talking about their sexuality every support and warmest wishes. It is still not easy but it is liberating.
“I am proud to be a Patron of LGBT History Month and Schools Out,” he said. “They have organised and spearheaded the sponsorship of the ‘Homophobia: Tackle It!” team shirts that Sheffield Eagles will wear on Sunday. They have brought together the Rugby League, Pride Sports, the NUT, UCU and NASUWT to sponsor the shirts.
“There is still much work for them to do in the build up to the Olympics next year but I know they are busy working behind the scenes to ensure that the biggest sporting event that our country has seen for many years will be a success for everyone, of every sexuality; from elite athletes, to local amateur teams and the thousands of volunteers who will be support the event. Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Trans people will be participating in 2012 in every way!”
Even Steven Davies, who would be forgiven for wanting to dodge the limelight after a couple of hectic weeks in the media spotlight, gave the Eagles some words of thanks.
“Personally, Gareth Thomas was a real inspiration to me,” Davies said. “He made me believe it would be possible for me to do the same and anything that helps even one person should be applauded.
“There may be added pressures in sports as the number of people that have come out is so small so it’s great that Rugby League is taking this step.”
We can all echo those sentiments. Here’s hoping the Eagles initiative is the first of many from professional sports teams across the globe.
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Tags: Gareth Thomas, homophobia in sport, Ian Roberts, John Ameachi, LGBT, Rugby League, Sheffield Eagles, Steven Davies
Tonight, all eyes will be on the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham where, subject to selection, Wales most capped Rugby Union international Gareth Thomas will make his Rugby League debut. Another solid crowd is expected, as the player affectionately known as ‘Alfie’ takes his first tentative steps to becoming a dual code star for the recently relocated Crusaders Super League side.
Even for the neutrals, it’s an exciting prospect. Ordinarily, the game itself would be of little interest – Crusaders and Catalans Dragons are hardly the greatest sides in the Super League – but ‘the Thomas factor’ makes it a much-watch (and, luckily enough for those of us who don’t live in North Wales, it’s on Sky Sports).
Few expect the 35 year-old Thomas to prove much of a hit, but that’s not the point. His recruitment – the highest profile cross-code switch for many years – is indicative of the new-found confidence in Welsh Rugby League.
This time six months ago, few believed the Crusaders had much of a future – in Super League or otherwise – and journalists were queueing up to condemn Rugby League’s long-held dream of a strong presence in Wales. The Crusaders had enjoyed a miserable first season in Super League, winning just three games, and their hot-headed owner, Leighton Samuel, was getting cold feet. The club was seriously in debt, crowds had been poor and Samuel wanted out. Having ploughed a significant amount of money into his dream of top-flight rugby in Bridgend, he’d finally had enough – leaving the club on the brink of closure.
It was only thanks to some frantic behind-the-scenes work from Wales Rugby League president Mike Nicholas that the Crusaders were saved from oblivion. A new owner was found: Wrexham businessman and Racecourse Ground owner Geoff Moss. He announced that the club would be moving North. In Rugby League circles, heads were shaken and much groaning ensued. If the Crusaders had failed to attract a following in South Wales, one of the UK’s only true rugby hotbeds, how would they make a go of it in North Wales?
Moss and new Crusaders Chief Executive Paul Retout obviously new what they were doing, because so far, the move has been a roaring success. On the pitch, the Crusaders have proved a match for most teams, winning three games and pushing Leeds and St Helens, last year’s Grand Finalists, close in another two. Crowds for their two home games so far have been impressive, too, with a record 10,300 turning up to see their season-opener against champions Leeds Rhinos.
The key, perhaps, to the Crusaders success is their new location. North Wales has long been starved of top class sport. According to the locals I’ve spoken to, there is a huge appetite for sport in the region, but until now options for actually watching it have been limited. Sure, North Walesians can travel to Merseyside or Manchester to watch soccer, or even into Cheshire to watch Rugby League. Some do, but many don’t. Now, they have a club they can call their own, based on their doorstep, representing their country (North Wales is a real hotbed of Welsh nationalism). And now, in Gareth Thomas, their new team has a true Welsh sports legend in its ranks. No wonder their support is growing by the week.
The feelgood factor surrounding the Crusaders recent successes can be seen elsewhere in Welsh Rugby League, too. At the end of February, a second professional Welsh Rugby League club made its debut in the Cooperative Championship 1, Rugby League’s third tier pro competition. The South Wales Scorpions are based at the Gnoll, Neath, one of Welsh Rugby Union’s most historic old grounds. They’ve won their first two matches, beating Workington and strugglers Doncaster, and show signs of great promise. More significantly, their team is almost entirely made up of local, Welsh-born players, many converts from rugby union.
Wales’ national side is showing signs of progress, too. Last autumn, they beat Scotland in the European Nations Cup final to win their first silverware since the mid 1990s. Back then, their side was made up of heritage players and aging RU converts. The current side, coached by cross-coder Iestyn Harris, is packed full of talented Welsh youngsters like Crusaders full-back Elliot Kear. They’re nowhere near challenging the likes of England, Australia or New Zealand, but there are signs of potential growth.
Player numbers in Wales’ amateur leagues continue to grow, too. In all age groups, there are something like 1500 people playing Rugby League in the principality now. Sure, these are very small numbers compared to those who play rugby union – Wales national game, remember – but they have shot up dramatically in recent years. Less than a decade ago there were only a handful of people playing League in South Wales, and only one amateur club of note (Cardiff Demons). Now, there are 12 clubs, with more clubs expected to be started in North Wales later this year.
Could it be that Rugby League is now beginning to make its mark in Wales, after over a century of botched attempts to win the hearts and minds of the Welsh? It’s still early days, but the signs are certainly good.
You can read a longer article on the current state of Welsh Rugby League, written by Hitting The Wall’s Matt Anniss, in the latest issue of Rugby League World Magazine.
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Tags: Crusaders, Gareth Thomas, Rugby League, Super League, Wales
Yesterday afternoon, I sat down to write a critique of Sunday night’s all-singing, all-dancing Super Bowl, with the provisional title ‘Bowled Over? Hardy’. You can probably tell where I was going with that one.
To be honest, I was finding it hard to write. Not because I didn’t have plenty to say on the subject of the world’s most hyped sporting spectacle – I could have gone on and on – but rather because I couldn’t quite make it work. Call it writers block, if you will. I found I was quickly losing the will to live, so quit while I was ahead and did some real work instead.
Earlier today, I stumbled on this blog entry from Rugby League World magazine writer Tony Hannan, which discusses the subject of ingrained attitudes towards particular sports. His argument, in summary, is that many of us are guilty of maing up our minds about a particular sport or event because of ingrained prejudices. He used a number of examples, including an online discussion between Rugby League fans about the Super Bowl – the very event I found myself struggling to discuss meaningfully.
I have to admit that I have long since made up my mind about American football. Like many Brits not schooled in its intricacies, I find it confusing, slow and, well, just a bit long-winded. This year, though, I decided to give the Super Bowl a go to see if I could be won over. To this end, I read up on the two teams beforehand, watched the BBC’s handy ‘red button guides’ to the rules of the sport, and plonked myself in front of the TV at 11 o’clock on Sunday night hoping to fall in love with NFL – or at least understand why so many millions around the world find it exciting, enthralling and engaging.
Suffice to say, my mind wasn’t changed. Although I now understand the game a bit more, there are still aspects of the rules that seem thoroughly illogical and, well, just a bit silly. I did quite enjoy it though – at least, when I switched over to the more Brit-centric commentary provided by Radio 5 Live Sports Extra, rather than the incomprehensible howling provided by US network CBS. One thing the Americans do brilliantly is turning their big sports events into real cultural events, and the hoopla surrounding the Super Bowl – the ceremonial coin toss with hall-of-famers, the glitzy half time show with The Who, the fireworks and cheerleaders – makes great viewing. Sadly, the sport itself doesn’t quite live up to the hype.
My conversion to NFL will have to wait, perhaps until I sit down with some real fans who can explain the ‘subtleties and nuances’ (copyright Rugby Union journalists the world over). But the point Hannan was making – that many sports fans refuse to watch some sports because of in-grained prejudices – remains. When I was at school in the 1980s, NFL was big in the UK thanks to broadcasts on Channel 4. Many of those I was at school with were big fans, but I couldn’t quite ‘get it’. This was as probably as much to do with the attitude of my parents as my own incomprehension. By then, I’d already been introduced to football (soccer, I mean), Rugby League and cricket. My dad was big on all three, and he saw American football as a ridiculous sport – all helmets, shoulder pads, silly outfits and commercial breaks. I certainly wasn’t going to argue – it seemed a perfectly reasonable assessment of something that made little sense to me.
The attitudes we pick up towards sports as children can stay with us for a long time. My parents weren’t all that keen on rugby union, for example, and as regular followers of the 13-a-side code in Sheffield, union was looked down on to a certain degree. Bizarrely, my dad had not been much of a rugby fan before he met my mum in the late 1960s. Growing up in Great Yarmouth with an extended family who were big into cricket and football, his only experience of the oval ball codes was a short stint playing rugby union at school. It was my mum’s family – regulars at Headingley to watch Leeds Rugby League – who turned him on to ‘The Greatest Game’. That conversion wasn’t instant – he would only go and see matches with my mum and her dad as a way to fit in, I suspect – but over the years his love of the sport grew. Now, he’s a director of Sheffield Eagles, specializing in the development of the sport in the city.
Over the years, I have met many who hold hardened attitudes towards certain sports, most based purely on silly prejudices. While at University I used to hang out with a football obsessive and wannabe sports journalist called Dan O’Hagan. A die-hard Wolves supporter, he couldn’t stand rugby of either code. To him, it was just a load of ‘egg-chasing nonsense’. He later admitted that he didn’t mind League, but he still saw it as a game for ‘Northerners’. Incidentally, Dan is now a regular commentator on Match of The Day and Eurosport.
While at University, I also had the misfortune to meet a Scottish BBC Sport executive called Charles Runcie. On the invitation of my journalism course tutors, he came and gave a guest lecture on sport and the BBC. He famously stated that no-one was interested in Rugby League as it was “just big blokes bashing into each other”. An ex public school boy who had been to one of the country’s top universities, he was as dyed-in-the-wool rugby union as you could find. There was an uneasy moment in the lecture when, following those famous words, my coursemates glanced towards me. I was shaking my head with a look of thunder on my face.
Runcie’s attitude was, perhaps, not surprising for someone of his background. Yet as an employee of the BBC – an organisation that covered Rugby League and was duty bound to report on the sport (he was in charge of Sports News, I later found out) – it was outrageous. Spurred on by a good friend on the course, I passed his comments on to Tim Butcher and Martyn Sadler at the Rugby League Express newspaper, and they ran a story headed ‘BBC boss slams league’. All hell broke loose. I was threatened with expulsion from the course, was told I had to apologise to Charles Runcie, and the story ended up in Private Eye.
Living in the West Country, I have met plenty who share Runcie’s attitude towards Rugby League. Like him, they have been brought up following certain sports, and their prejudices stem from early experiences or the attitudes of those around them. One former colleague at Future Publishing, a Bath Rugby Union season ticket holder, thought of Rugby League as a bit of a joke – a sport simply for Northerners from towns and villages with names like Batley, Featherstone and Castleford. Although these days he will admit to watching League on Sky, he still holds many of the same prejudices.
The question is, is it possible for a sport to succeed on its own merits and overcome such prejudices? One example suggests it is. My friend Phil, now Chairman of the Bristol Sonics Rugby League club, was brought up by his Gloucester Rugby Union supporting parents as something of a League bigot. Taken to Kingsholm on a regular basis, he was taught that League was just a game for pot-bellied miners and money-grabbing professionals. Up until 1995, it was a view that Phil subscribed to wholeheartedly. Then, as a curious spectator, he went to watch the cross-code challenge games between Wigan and Bath at Twickenham and Maine Road, Manchester. He describes it as “a Eureka moment”. In Wigan – and Rugby League in particular – he saw a fast, dynamic, thrill-a-minute sport played by outstanding athletes. He’s been hooked ever since. Ironically, he now holds as many prejudices about rugby union as he once did about rugby league.
The moral of the story? Prejudices can get in the way of enjoying a sport for what it is. Attitudes can be changed – but only if you are willing to get rid of the baggage you’ve been carrying around. Perhaps I could learn something from that, and give the Super Bowl another go next year.
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When it comes to Anglo-Australian sporting rivalries, there are few quite as bitter and intense as that between the two nations’ Rugby League teams. Despite the Australians having dominated the sides’ many encounters over the last 30 years, nothing gets the “green and golds” going quite like playing the English. While most would point to their dominance as reason not to fret when it comes to facing the “Poms”, the “unbeatable” Kangaroos always give a good impression of a side cornered in the days leading up to the game. Anyone would think they were running scared.
Following England’s qualification for next Saturday’s showpiece Gillette Four Nations Final at Elland Road (thanks, it should be said, to a terrifically physical performance over World Champions New Zealand), Australia’s Rugby League top brass have been quick to start the usual psychological war-of-words. So far, coach Tim Sheens has accused the English of roughing up his players with unseen “off the ball garbage” and complained about the probable appointment of English referee Steve Ganson for Saturday night’s final. Of course, he is not alone. Typically, Australia’s tabloid press have weighed in to the debate, predicting a war, with Australia’s forwards – so far fairly mediocre by their standards in this tournament – being urged to respond to supposed English foul play with some rough stuff of their own.
For those who follow international Rugby League closely, some of this may have a familar ring to it. In fact, you could be forgiven for feeling a strange sense of deja’ vu. You see, Australia have a bit of previous in this regard. For as long as I can remember, Australian coaches and players have been trotting out the same tired lines and predictable complaints. It’s almost as if there’s some kind of Australian Rugby League-endorsed handbook that instructs players and coaches to whinge as much as possible, as often as possible.
Sheens’ predecessors have all, at some point, complained about referee appointments. In the 1990 Kangaroo tour of Britain – the nearest the green and golds have come to losing a test series to “the Poms” since the 70s – coach Bobby ‘Bozo’ Fulton was particularly critical of that tournament’s French referee, Alain Sablyroles. After his side lost to Great Britain at Wembley in the first encounter, he blamed the referee for his side’s loss, and urged his bosses at the Australian Rugby League not to agree to neutral referees again in future. With a few notable exceptions, Anglo-Australian encounters have been refereed by Australian or English officials ever since. Similarly, each series or one-off encounter between the sides brings the same tired comments from Australian coaches. Last year’s World Cup Final was marred by some particularly unsavoury referee-bashing from Aussie coach Ricky Stuart, who accused British-based Austraian whistle-blower Ashley Klein and video ref Steve Ganson of making mistakes that cost his side the game. Chris Anderson, who led his side in two test series in the UK in the early noughties, was equally outspoken about refereeing appointments. Even the great Wayne Bennett, a true genteleman and arguably the finest coach the sport has ever seen, was prone to questioning the use of British referees.
Sheens has been critical of the standard of refereeing in this year’s Gillette Four Nations from the outset, and has been particularly critical of Steve Ganson. The latter, already a pantomime villain down under for giving a controversial (but correct) video ref decision against the Kangaroos in last year’s World Cup final, has been accused of missing “off the ball incidents” and not patrolling the play-the-ball area (and therefore allowing much messing around, wrestling and holding down). The tournament’s controller of referees, Stuart Cummings, has rightly dismissed Sheens’ complaints, but this has only added fuel to the fire as far as the Australians are concerned. At Monday’s traditional joint game-week press conference, Sheens said: “It’s not about a neutral referee it’s about a good referee. I don’t think the refereeing standard has been great, I don’t think anyone would say it has.” His comments to the Australian press over the weekend were less guarded.
The issue is a long-standing one, and one that the Australians themselves have more than contributed to. For years they have insisted that Australian referees are the finest in the world, and that no “neutral” officials – those from countries such as New Zealand and France – are up to the job of taking control of a full-blooded test match between Rugby League’s two most powerful nations. The Rugby Football League, for their part, have consistently fought for neutral officials in games between the sides, and have gone so far as training up full time officials from other test nations and allowing them game time in Super League. This, though, has never been good enough for the Australians.
It’s a farcical situation that does the game no favours. The real crux of the issue is the different interpretations of the laws of the game by officials in different countries. The Australians have been tinkering with the rules (and interpretations of them) for as long as anyone can remember. Last season, they even went so far as appointing two referees for each National Rugby League (NRL) game to try and cut out some of the wrestling around the play-the-ball that had become a feature of the sport down under. The international rules, though, are not the same as the NRL rules, so the Australians feel they are at a disadvantage if they are refereed by anyone other than a born-and-bred Aussie. The other leading Rugby League nations, for what it’s worth, are all committed to the principle of neutral officials.
It is likely that Steve Ganson will be appointed as referee for Saturday’s Gillette Four Nations Final, causing more gnashing of teeth down under. When England and Australia met two weeks ago, Ganson was given the nod – but only because they refused a French or New Zealand official. If it is Ganson that has been given the nod, it will be for the same reason. For once, their petulance and sabre-rattling has failed. Some would perhaps argue that the determination of the RFL to avoid an Australian referee at all costs is some kind of petty political pay-back for the way England were treated in the World Cup last year. There, England were forced to accept Australian officials in each of their four games. While it’s hard to argue that the outcome of any of England’s games would have been different given neutral or English officials, they were certainly penalised heavily thanks to the Australian officials’ different interpretation of the rules.
The most baffling thing about all of this is why the Australians think it matters so much. They have the strongest and richest league in the world, the greatest number of quality players at their disposal, and the best first choice 17 of all the leading Rugby League nations. Bar the odd high profile defeat, they have been near unstoppable in the last 30 years. On paper, they should be able to beat England comfortably every single time the two sides meet – regardless of what official controls the game. Even taking into account the differing interpretations of the rules, they should win on Saturday at a canter. So why can’t they just get on with it?
Sheens’ other major complaint has been about the supposed “garbage” and foul play from England in the tournament. It’s notable that his complaints have been dismissed by the coaches of the three other nations in the competition. Neither Fench coach Bobby Goulding or New Zealand boss Steven Kearney – a straightforward, no-complaints sort of coach that Sheens could learn from – have complained about England’s physical approach to the game. Sheens complaints seem a touch ironic considering that the most outrageous piece of foul play in the most recent Anglo-Australian encounter came not from an Englishman, but an Australian. It was Kangaraoo second-rower Paul Gallen – a brutish character famed for his love of cheap shots and thuggish behaviour on and off the pitch – who illegally hit young half back Sam Tomkins late with a vicious forearm charge. Perhaps Sheens, who has supposedly told his players to “get even” with the English, should take a look at his own players before criticising others.
Sheens outbursts are no doubt designed to put pressure on whatever official takes charge to “sort out the garbage”, as he puts it. It’s a cheap and hackneyed psychological trick which hopefully won’t work. When Saturday comes, we’ll find out. Either way, it’s likely that the game will be the sort of angry and full-on encounter that League fans relish. Don’t get mad, get even. Here’s hoping England can do just that – we’ve waited long enough.
Filed under: Comment and analysis, Rugby League, Sport | 3 Comments
Tags: Australia, England, Gillette Four Nations, Rugby League
Jonah Lomu
It could have been Rugby League’s greatest coup. During the 1995 Rugby Union World Cup, there was only one man making the headlines: Jonah Lomu. While that tournament in South Africa may now be best remembered for the host nation’s fairytale victory over the All Blacks in the final, it was the rampaging, blockbusting runs of the colossal Lomu that made the headlines. His almost single-handed demolition of a frightfully old fashioned, fuddled England side in the semi-final was a sight to behold. For a sport bereft of true stars – this being before the era of open professionalism, of course – Lomu was true box office.
Yet during the tournament, Lomu came close to switching his allegiance and joining the 13-a-side code, then known for offering Rugby Union players an opportunity to earn an honest living playing sport. Yet it wasn’t one of League’s glamour clubs making him “an offer he couldn’t refuse”, but rather an unfashionable upstart first division club based in one of Britain’s least fashionable cities.
It later emerged that Lomu, who played League as a junior growing up in New Zealand, had made a “handshake agreement” with New Zealand’s foremost professional RL club, Auckland Warriors, to give them first refusal on any cross-code move. Yet few knew of this before Union’s 1995 World Cup started. Certainly Lomu’s would-be employer in England had no idea – he headed to South Africa with a top-secret plan to snare the man soon to be the most celebrated rugby player in the world. Very few knew of his intentions – aside from former England union international turned sports tour operator, Mike Burton.
The man at the centre of the soon-to-be media storm was Gary Hetherington, Chairman and owner of Sheffield Eagles. Hetherington, a former journeyman player and double glazing salesman who had set up the Eagles in ‘alien’ Rugby League territory in 1995, realised he needed a marquee player to grab the attention of Sheffield’s soccer-mad public. He then had an idea.
“In 1995 Sheffield Eagles were competing well, but we needed to get to the next level,” Hetherington told us in a recent interview. “I’d been told about this Jonah Lomu, but no-one yet had heard of him. It was the start of Super League, when we’d just all signed up, and each club was going to get £1.2million all of a sudden. So what we did, me and Kath [Hetherington, his wife and fellow Sheffield Eagles Director] went to South Africa to the Union World Cup to see him play. We did it through Mike Burton. We flew out to South Africa, met up with Jonah and his agent Phil Kingsley Jones, and basically offered him a million quid over five years – which, then, was a huge amount of money.”
It was an audacious move, especially for a club the size of Sheffield, who had been surviving on average crowds of just 4,000. But Hetherington was no fool. He knew the value of Lomu’s signature to the Super Laegue competition, and the war over television rights that was being played out between Rupert Murdoch and Kerry Packer in Australia.
“Maurice Lindsay was Chief Executive of the Rugby League at the time,” Hetherington continues. “I told him that we were going to make a big signing and this is going to push us to the next level, but what I wanted is for News Corp and Super League to pay for it. They’d bank roll it, but they coukd deduct us 200,000 a year from our income. This was going to be a signing for Super League, to raise the profile of the sport, but his contract would be with Sheffield Eagles. All that was agreed, and there was a genuine interest from Jonah. But then he just exploded, with his performances against England and Ireland in the World Cup. He was still interested – the offer was still there – but then Leeds came into the market.”
The interest of Leeds and League’s other glamour club of the time, Wigan, blew Hetherington’s cover. Soon he found himself plastered all over the world’s news media, declaring his offer to the kiwi sensation. “There was enormous publicity, the ideal thing for the national news,” Hetherington recalls. “I remember Iain Robertson from BBC Radio coming to me desperate for an interview before the TV news. I didn’t realize how competitive it is between the radio and TV at the BBC. I did a deal with him. I said ‘I’ll do an interview with you provided you come and do a luncheon at Sheffield Eagles – Thursday and Friday’. And he agreed. But we got huge publicity out of it at the time.”
With the story now global news, Hetherington faced stiff competition from not only other clubs in the soon-to-launch Super League, but from the New Zealand Rugby Union. What could have been the signing of the century was soon dead in the water. “Of course what was happening is that when Leeds came in it muddied the waters a bit, because suddenly there was publicity and then Wigan started talking about it,” Hetherington sighs. “He didn’t make a move, and it was growing and growing and growing, and eventually Adidas came in with some money for the New Zealand Rugby Union and he stayed. But I can say this now: we actually came very close to getting him!”
At the time, many – including Sheffield’s own fans – thought it was a typical piece of Hetherington publicity-seeking. Sheffield’s owner had a track record for astute headline-grabbing, from the signing of Leicester Tigers’ England union international Steve Redfearn in 1986 onwards. He had previously run from Sheffield to St Helens to raise money for the signing of Great Britain international hooker Lee Jackson, and shocked British Rugby League by signing legendary Australian full back Garry Jack in 1993. Yet he asserts that his move for Lomu was genuine, and that for a few days in 1995, the course of rugby history was almost changed forever.
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Tags: Jonah Lomu, Rugby League, Rugby union, Sheffield Eagles
This month marks the 25th anniversary of Sheffield Eagles, the steel city’s professional Rugby League club. HITTING THE WALL heads to Don Valley Stadium to discuss the club’s past and future with local legend MARK ASTON. As usual, the former Challenge Cup winning scrum half is in feisty form…
In a dark, poky, windowless room deep in the bowels of Sheffield’s Don Valley Stadium, Mark Aston is getting on with the business of running one of Rugby League’s forgotten clubs, Sheffield Eagles. Surrounded by images of the club’s glory days – signed posters advertising a notable first home win over Wigan, a panoramic photo of the stadium from the 1992 visit of the Australian touring team, rather faded looking snaps of the Eagles’ first promotion to the top flight in 1989 – Aston is chained to the phone, chasing up sponsorship leads. In front of him is a chart listing all the first team players at his disposal, with rushed notes and annotations.
Mark Aston is Sheffield Eagles ‘everyman’. Currently, his roles include first team coach and Chief Executive – a job that would test all but the most dedicated to the very limits. He is, as far as Sheffield’s local media are concerned, ‘Mr Sheffield Eagles’, a tag he inherited off his former coach, boss and mentor, Gary Hetherington.
It was 24 years ago when Aston and Hetherington first met, the latter offering the Castleford colts’ player a chance to join the club he’d set up a year earlier in the previously Rugby League-free city of Sheffield. At the time, Hetherington was known in League circles as a bit of a maverick – a journeyman pro who had helped form the Rugby League Players Association and decided to start a professional club outside of the game’s so-called “heartlands” of West Yorkshire, Lancashire, Humberside and Cumbria. The street-wise Aston and scheming Hetherington didn’t hit it off at first, but within six months the Castleford-born youngster had signed professional forms with the Eagles.
It was the moment that would shape Mark Aston’s life. He played all but one year of his near two-decade professional career in Sheffield, playing a central role in the club’s constantly fluctuating fortunes. He was there when the Eagles played to crowds merely a few hundred strong at Owlerton Greyhound Stadium in Hillsborough in the mid 1980s, a lowly second division team constantly teetering on the brink of financial collapse. His record-breaking feat of scoring in every match in the 1988-89 season helped inspire his side to a first promotion to Rugby League’s top flight. It was he who kicked the first ball in Super League in 1996, as the Eagles opened the competition in front of 20,000 french fanatics in Paris. And it was he who won the coveted Lance Todd Trophy for man of the match when Sheffield beat Wigan at Wembley in May 1998 to win their first, and only, Challenge Cup. It was Aston, too, who saved Sheffield Eagles.
Along with his dad, Brian, current Chairman Ian Swire and others, Aston masterminded the ressurection of one of Rugby League’s most successful ‘development clubs’ after the darkest period in the Eagles’ history. In 1999, little more than a year after the famous Challenge Cup win, the Eagles’ then owners announced that they would be merging with fellow Super League strugglers Huddersfield Giants to form a brand new club, Huddersfield-Sheffield Giants. The merged club would play half of its matches in Huddersfield and half at Sheffield United’s Bramall Lame stadium. It was an announcement that devastated Rugby League fans in both Sheffield and Huddersfield. The latter felt that this would be end of one of Rugby League’s most historic clubs – Huddersfield being the birthplace of the game, of course – while the former saw it as nothing more than a takeover that would kill the sport dead in the Steel City. It was a saga that quickly became increasingly bitter as Aston and others battled to save their beloved club.
10 years on, the scars are still fresh.“When I first heard about the merger, I was furious,” Aston says, leaning back in his chair in his dark corner of the Eagles’ basement office. “They said they’d be merging with Huddersfield, and I thought what about all the work I’ve done with Daryl [Powell], and Gary [Hetherington] and everyone else for Rugby League in South Yorkshire?”
Then nearing the end of his playing career, Aston was employed as one of coach John Kear’s assistants, having previously worked for a decade as a schools coach in Sheffield. Over the 15 years he had then spent at the Eagles, he’d grown protective of both the club and the Rugby League development work that was core to their survival and later success. The merger announcement came as a bombshell for a man who had committed his professional career to the Steel City Rugby League dream.
“When I finally found out what was happening, I rang John Kear and said ‘what’s this about the merger’, and he said he didn’t have time to talk because he was with England. What? I was furious. He knew, but he wouldn’t talk about it,” Aston recalls. “So then I gets a call from [Sheffield Chief Executive] Ralph Rimmer, putting me on a conference call with [Huddersfield Chairman] Ken Davy, because he wanted to put a proposition to me. They explained that there would be Huddersfield-Sheffield Giants and Huddersfield on its own in the National Leagues. I blew my gasket then. I said ‘you’re selling Sheffield down the river and you’re keeping your club going in Huddersfield, and you want me to coach that’. I said you can f… right off. And that were it.”
It seemed that Rugby League in Sheffield was, not for the first time, doomed. The club had long struggled to attract fans, and had been on the brink of extinction several times. But through all the hardships, the Eagles had survived, thanks largely to the salesmanship and business sense of Gary Hetherington. With Hetherington now out of the picture having sold the club to electronics tycoon Paul Thompson in 1996, the Eagles were destined to become a footnote in British sporting history.
Fortunately for Sheffield Eagles’ small band of die-hard fans, Mark Aston had devoted too much of his life to the Eagles to let the club slip away quietly. Initially, he was in two minds about what to do, with a surprise offer of work from Eagles’ local rivals Doncaster only adding to his dilemma (“They threw a ridiculous amount of money at me, but there was no way I would work for those people,” he reveals). But then a trip to his local amateur club, Sheffield Hillsborough Hawks, helped make his mind up once and for all.
“I remember going down Hillsborough to watch some games one weekend and there were people there absolutely distraught, asking me what we were going to do about the merger,” he remembers. ” I said I don’t know. And they said ‘but we want our own club’. And I thought ‘how are we going to do that’? So I went home that night and spoke to my dad and asked him how we were going to keep it going, because we’ve got to keep it going. I’d been here so many years. These people that had been here, run the club and jumped ship had only been here, what, four years? Wembley was fantastic, but the problem was what happened afterwards. I used to go round schools and clubs and do the lottery with my dad, and people would say to us ‘the problem with rugby is that you need to win something big’. So as soon as we win something big, what do these lunatics do but open the gates and assume people will come. It doesn’t work like that. Sheffield is a football city – it always has been and always will be. They didn’t do the work. How many schools saw the Challenge Cup? There was a few, but that should have been taken to every school in Sheffield. Every kid should have had a chance to have their picture taken with it. It didn’t happen, because they thought that people would just turn up.”
Within a month of the merger announcement, Sheffield Eagles mark two – or, to give the company its full name, Sheffield Eagles 2000 Ltd – had been formed, with Mark Aston as its figurehead. Rugby League politics dictated that the Eagles would have to be get the backing of the majority of the game’s clubs before they could rejoin the professional ranks. With significant opposition from the clubs they would be playing against in the ‘Northern Ford Premiership’ (then Rugby League’s second tier competition), the vote would be touch and go. In the end, the new Eagles scraped in with a majority of two.
There were, of course, conditions attached. For starters, the new Eagles were to be disqualified from any share of the TV money that was propping up many of Rugby League’s pro clubs at the time. They would also not be allowed into Super League for at least three years. They would also have to put up a significant bond as a form of insurance, something that would prove tricky. To make matters worse, they’d have to get a team together in time for the start of the Northern Ford Premiership season, less than two months away. Amazingly, Aston’s new-look Sheffield Eagles managed to tick all the right boxes, making their debut against Lancashire Lynx in Chorley in December 1999. They won, too, completing a miraculous ‘phoenix-like’ resurrection.
It was a moment of triumph for the desire of Aston – and many others, it should be said – to keep Rugby League alive in a city that has rarely been anything less than apathetic towards the sport.
“Ten years ago when we presented to the member clubs of the RFL, there were plenty there who said it hasn’t been a success in Sheffield. That grates me still now,” Aston says. “We stood up and said we won Wembley a couple of years ago. Is that not a success? Hillsborough Hawks are as big as any amateur club. Is that not a success? It didn’t fail from minute one when Gary set it up, because we played to 40,000 at Premiership Finals and Gary was very soon self sufficient. That was a massive success. The one that wasn’t a success, even though we won at Wembley, was when the other people that owned the club didn’t run it in the way that I believe it should be. They just didn’t care. They were jobsworths. We saw it when we took the lottery on – they went from 5000 members at its height to 2000 members. What about the golf days and the luncheon clubs? All gone out? How can you get rid of things that made the business successful?”
Ten years on, Sheffield Eagles languish in Rugby League’s lower divisions, a return to the Super League still a distant ambition. Crowds are low at their Don Valley Stadium base, but plans are afoot to move to a different stadium within the city’s boundaries. On-field success for Aston’s Eagles has been patchy, the club moving between the first and second divisions of the Cooperative National Leagues. This season’s third-place finish in the Cooperative Championship (the division below the Super League) was their best performance since they were reborn in 1999, and Aston is genuinely positive for the future. The club is still not in an overly healthy position financially, but they are widely regarded as one of the best-run clubs within Rugby League. They may not be cash-rich or have a wealthy backer, but they are surviving and planning for the future – something that seemed impossible a decade ago.
Key to this long term planning is the Eagles’ development and community work. While it would be hard to argue that the club has set the world alight on the field – the 1998 Challenge Cup win aside – off it they have made great strides in introducing Rugby League to Sheffield. When Gary Hetherington set up the Eagles’ first schools development programme in the late 1980s (one of the first such programmes in Rugby League) it was born out of necessity rather than missionary zeal. But Aston, who spent most of his 20s coaching Sheffield school kids (including one Naseem Hamed), is more of a missionary. He sees increasing participation in Rugby League in the Steel City – and surrounding area – as the Eagles’ number one priority.
“When we decided to reform the club ten years ago, we sat down and talked about what we wanted to do and what our core values would be,” he says. “The number one was development. We wanted to keep the schools going. We’ve fought with the directors for the last ten years about development, because they see it as something we can cut back on when we’re skint. If we don’t invest in development then we may as well lock the doors and walk away. That’s what I’m about, and that’s what this club should be about.”
There is no doubting Aston’s passion for his cause. The Eagles successes development-wise are fairly modest in many regards – there are, after all, still only a handful of amateur clubs in their catchement area – but they have always punched far above their weight when it comes to getting kids playing the game. Aston’s development team – which includes a number of first team stars, taking on a similar to role to that undertaken by their boss in the late 1980s and early 1990s – still work in the vast majority of Sheffield’s schools, giving would-be Astons of the future the chance to try an alien sport for the first time. This programme has produced a number of ‘home-grown’ first team players (Simon Morton, an Eagles regular for six years, being the most notable example), though nowhere near the number Aston would like. The city’s biggest amateur club, Hillsborough Hawks, is finally thriving, with outstanding teams at a number of age groups (their under 18s, for example, are in the Gillette National Youth League) – 20 years after Sheffield’s development officer set the club up.
Then there’s the small matter of the Eagles’ scholarship scheme. Launched last year, the club currently have eight talented youngsters on their books – with more signings likely. It finally seems, 25 years after the Eagles first took flight, that they might be producing some would-be professionals who can cut it with their counterparts from Rugby League’s so-called ‘heartlands’.
“It’s taken a long time,” Aston admits. “I think the scholarship has been a breath of fresh air, because now kids understand that there’s an opportunity. There might only be five or six of them that really make it, but those five or six can potentially be as good as anyone at Castleford, Leeds or Wigan, it’s just that they haven’t been exposed to the game for long enough. The only thing that letting some of our kids down is their knowledge and understanding and awareness of the game. They’ve got the athletic build and the strength, and the understanding will come as long as we get our coaching right on the scholarship, which then feeds back into the amateur clubs and then back into the schools. The fundemental skills are no different to what we’re doing at first team level. We should be teaching the scholarship kids and kids in schools the same skills we’re doing with the first team. We’re getting to a stage where we’re coaching the coaches to coach the kids. We want to take our scholarship up to the next level. It’s good, but it could be better. The pleasing thing is that we’ve got coaches on the scholarship programme from all the clubs – some are from Hillsborough, a few are from Doncaster, Barnsley – then they can get the right sort of philosphies that we want to get into the scholarship programme and take them back into their amateur clubs. We’re delighted we’ve signed eight kids, there’s proof it’s working. We just need to do more. And if we generate more money as a club, we’ll make sure the money is channeled in the right direction. That’s the pleasing thing about it – it won’t necessarily be channeled into the first team, it’ll go into development work.”
While there will no doubt be plenty in Rugby League willing to downplay Sheffield Eagles achievements over the last 25 years, there is no doubt that the club has been a qualified success. Certainly, the fact that the Eagles are still alive and kicking – and prioritising their missionary-like development work – should be cause for celebration. After all, few of Rugby League’s ‘development’ clubs have lasted this long. The Eagles, it should be said, have done much of this without significant backing from the game’s governing body, the Rugby Football League – something which can’t be said for clubs in London, Wales and the North East.
“There is light at the end of the tunnel,” Mark Aston says, leaning back in his chair in the Eagles’ dingy Don Valley Stadium office. “When I saw Hillsborough Hawks Under 16s play the likes of Hull and Cas Panthers and beat them last year, I thought ‘shit the players are here now’. There’s still plenty to do and we know that, but we’re definitely ngoing in the right direction.”
Filed under: Comment and analysis, Interviews, Rugby League, Sport | 1 Comment
Tags: Mark Aston, Rugby League, Sheffield Eagles
The brilliance of Brownlee
In the early hours of Saturday morning UK time, a new British World Champion was being crowned in the altogether sunnier climes of the Gold Coast, Australia. Those within triathlon had seen it coming for some time, but to outsiders it seemed like some kind of sporting fairy tale. A 21 year-old student from Leeds, in his first full year as a senior pro, had just swept aside the best in the world at the Grand Final of the ITU’s Triathlon World Series.
But it was no fluke. Of the five races he entered in this year’s Dextro Energy ITU Triathlon World Championship series, the Briton won all five – including the Grand Final. His dominance over elite men’s triathlon in 2009 has been nothing short of complete.
Meet Alistair Brownlee, British Triathlon’s new hero.
Brownlee’s reputation has been growing since he surprisingly qualified for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, despite being little more than a well-regarded junior. In Beijing, he actually led the race for some time, before fading towards the end and finishing down in 12th. It surprised most in triathlon as much as it shocked sports fans in Britain, who had never before heard of the unassuming, boyish triathlete. But there were those who predicted such a performance from the youngster. New Zealand’s Bevan Docherty, who claimed a bronze in Beijing, had predicted great things from Brownlee on the back of the Yorkshireman’s gold medal performance at the 2008 ITU World U-23 Championships.
Docherty is as good a judge of talent as anyone else on the triathlon circuit. Famed for the consistency of his results and an admirable ability to push his body to the absolute limit in search of silverware, he obviously saw something of himself in Brownlee. As this season has showed, he was right with his assessment of the Briton’s immense ability.
Yet despite these ringing endorsements and a “one to watch” tag coming into the 2009 season, few thought Brownlee’s time in the spotlight would come this quickly – or, for that matter, that he would so completely and utterly dominate the ITU triathlon season. It is an amazing feat that needs to be put into some kind of context.
There are precedents for triathletes becoming World Champions at an early age – most notably, perhaps, Britain’s own Spencer Smith, who won the first of two back-to-back world titles at the age of 20 in 1993 – but those were in the days of the ‘single race format’. 2009’s World Championship winner was not decided in this age-old manner, but rather on the results of an eight-race series. Triathletes amassed points from all of the World Championship Series races they entered – as well as the lower-ranked World Cup races should they so chose – with their best four results being carried into the weekend’s Grand Final in Australia. Double points were to be awarded at the season finale, giving it a gravity and kudos akin to the one-off World Champs races of old.
Brownlee’s feat in topping this year’s rankings, then, is something very special indeed. Coming into the final, Brownlee had won all four of the World Championship series races he’d entered – in Madrid (scene of his remarkable Olympic qualification a year earlier), Washington DC, London and Kitzbuhel, Austria. No other male elite triathlete had even won two races, with Brownlee’s nearest rival for the world title, 2008 champion Javier Gomez, getting close thanks to a succession of second and third place finishes.
The manner of Brownlee’s wins were impressive, too. Although an excellent all-rounder – as all great triathletes are – Brownlee’s biggest strength is his running. Able to run off the bike better than anyone in triathlon, he is capable of scorching times at the back-end of races. In all of his races this year – bar the European Championships, where he came second behind Gomez – he has broken the field by maintaining the sort of pace that would make elite 10,000 metre runners proud. As the season progressed, he seemed to get better, too, with his win in London particularly impressive (even considering his major rivals all crashed out during the bike leg).
This almost untouchable form meant that going into Saturday’s race, all he had to do was get round safely and make sure he finished within five places of Gomez, he nearest rival, to take the world title. Lesser athletes may have been tempted to hang back and take it easy, but that is not the champion’s way. Brownlee wanted to win… and in some style.
Following a decent swim, a conservative bike and a shaky second transition, Brownlee was placed down the field going into the final 10 km run. Even this disadvantage didn’t phaze him. First, he caught up with Gomez, and between them they set about reeling in the field. Soon, they were leading, surging past fading athletes with short, clunky strides and legs apparently made of lead. It was at this point that the fun and games really started. First, Gomzez tested Brownlee, inserting a quick injection of pace to see if he could break him. Brownlee roared back, surging past and building up a small lead of a few metres. Gomez retaliated, and so it went on for the best part of three kilometres. It was a true World Championship race, the duo each desperate to win; Gomez to retain his slim chances of snatching the title away from the Briton, Brownlee to cap a wonder season. With little over 500 metres to go, Brownlee made the decisive break, sprinting away from his Spanish rival to take the tape.
The look of pain and anguish on the 21 year-old’s face as he crossed the finish line said it all. He was, quite simply, exhausted, having pushed his body to the absolute limit in order to realize his dream. Maybe it was then that the magnitude of what he’d achieved began to sink in: he was the 2009 Triathlon world champion.
It was an amazing performance. The split time for his 10km run was an astonishing 29.30 – an awe-inspiring time given the conditions and the energy-sapping swim and bike portions that had gone before it. But more impressive, perhaps, was the manner of Brownlee’s win. During that run he looked so smooth and fluid, almost as if he was gliding over the concrete. Compare this with the muscular Gomez, who put in one of his finest performances to date, or bronze medallist Jan Frodeno. Whereas Brownlee looked effortless – apart, perhaps, from his last desperate lunge for the line – his competitors appeared to be running through quicksand.
It is more than a little scary to think that Brownlee is still in the early days of his career. He has the potential to become one of the sport’s all-time greats, up there with the likes of Simon Lessing, Spencer Smith, Simon Whitfield and Chris McCormack. I spoke at length with the latter, known for his feats at the longer Ironman distance but previously an ITU World Champion, back in July. He went out of his way to bring up Brownlee and had nothing but praise for the British youngster. “I’m so in awe of this kid,” McCormack said. “The way he’s dominating Olympic distance racing at the moment is amazing. My era was incredible – Simon Lessing, Simon Whitfield, Hamish Carter, myself. It was really the stepping stone to the amazing performances you see now from athletes like Alistair Brownlee, Gomez and these guys. These athletes have developed into supermen. I just love it. I love watching these guys and I love the athletes they’ve become. I never ever sit there and compare. If any of the older guys ask me if we could compete nowadays, I say no – Alistair Brownlee would tear us up mate if I’m honest with you!”
High praise indeed. Certainly, hopes are high that Brownlee will deliver Britain that first triathlon gold medal at London 2012. Certainly, if he keeps developing at his current rate – adding even more endurance ability to his raw talent and pace – he could be unstoppable come the OIympics. But it is still early days; with the Games still three years away, it would be unwise to hang the mdeal round his neck at this stage. He will have a lot of competition in London, not least from his own brother, Jonathan. The latter, two years younger than Alistair, picked up a silver at the World U-23 Championships over the weekend. He could be, if anything, turn out to be better than his brother in the long run. It’s an astonishing thought.
Until then, we should just savour in the brilliance of Alistair Brownlee, Britain’s newest Triathlon World Champion.
Filed under: Comment and analysis, Sport, Triathlon | Leave a Comment
Tags: Alistair Brownlee, sports comment and opinion, Triathlon
mattanniss
Hitting The Wall 
Eagles aim to add another chapter to their Steel City fairytale
Unless they read the Sheffield Star, your average Sheffielder probably has no idea that one of the city’s sports teams stands on the brink of something very special indeed. The team in question is Sheffield Eagles, the Steel City’s Rugby League club. Last weekend, the Eagles defied the odds (yet again – they have history in this regard) to beat hotly tipped Leigh Centurions and reach their first ever Cooperative Championship Grand Final.
For the record, the Eagles finished fourth in the Cooperative Championship, Rugby League’s second-tier competition (the equivalent to football’s NPower Championship). To get through to Sunday’s Grand Final, they had to win three knock-out cup ties. First, they brushed aside Super League-bound Widnes Vikings at Bramall Lane, their adopted home since 2010. A week later, they racked up 50 points against last year’s Grand Final winners, Halifax. Then, on Thursday, they produced a brilliant defensive display to nudge out second-placed Leigh Centurions 20-10 at the Leigh Sports Village. In doing so, the Eagles became the first club from outside the top two to qualify for the Championship Grand Final.
In Sunday’s final at the Halliwell Jones Stadium in Warrington, home to Super League minor premiers Warrington Wolves, the Eagles will face the strongest team in the competition: table-topping Featherstone Rovers. Sheffield will go into the game as rank outsiders, having lost to the dominant West Yorkshire side twice this season. In truth, few will give the Eagles much chance of causing an upset. But then no one gave them much of a chance in the 1998 Challenge Cup Final at Wembley. Then, they produced one of British sport’s greatest ever upsets by beating the near-unbeatable Wigan 17-8.
Sheffield Eagles’ Head Coach – and managing director, sponsorship manager and local legend all rolled into one – Mark Aston knows all about the Eagles propensity for upsets. He has been with the club almost continually since he signed as a cheeky young scrum half in 1985. In the 26 years since, he’s built up a reputation inside and outside the game as “Mr Sheffield Eagles”.
He won the Lance Todd Trophy for Man of the Match in that famous ’98 Challenge Cup Final win, and a year later was integral in setting up a new Eagles club following the merger of the original club with Huddersfield Giants. He played in the Eagles comeback game against Lancashire Lynx (or Chorley Lynx, or whatever it was they were called at that point) in December ’99. He’s been coaching them almost continually ever since, largely with mixed results. Given the budget he has to work with (one of the lowest in the Championship), he’s done a pretty darn good job.
Of course, there is one other player who will forever be associated with Sheffield Eagles: Daryl Powell. The club’s first signing in 1984, Powell went on to become the Eagles’ record try scorer and play 31 times for his country (much to the annoyance of Rugby League legend Alex Murphy). Although he left Sheffield to join Keighley (and later Leeds Rhinos) in 1995, Powell still retains a special place in the hearts of most Eagles supporters.
As fate would have it, Daryl Powell is now coach of Featherstone Rovers. He’s also the reigning Cooperative Championship Coach of the Year and a former Leeds Rhinos Head Coach. He is, without doubt, one of the best British coaches in the game – even if he hasn’t had many chances to prove himself at the highest level lately.
Powell and Aston are, naturally, great friends. As young players in the late 80s and early 90s, they would travel down to Sheffield together every day from their base in Castleford, West Yorkshire. They’d then drive from school to school in the Steel City, coaching puzzled youngsters in the mysteries of the oval ball game. At the end of the day, they’d go training together, or head back to Castleford and sink a few pints. For a period, they were almost inseparable.
Those years between 1986 and 1995 taught Daryl Powell and Mark Aston a lot of things – not least the importance of Rugby League development work, getting kids playing the sport and providing opportunities for talented teenagers to become professional players. They also learnt a great deal from their coach and mentor, Sheffield Eagles’ founder Gary Hetherington. For all his bravado and salesmanship, Hethertington – now in charge of Leeds Rhinos – was a pretty shrewd coach. He was a bit of Rugby League visionary, too, and there’s no doubt his beliefs have rubbed off on both Powell and Aston.
In the last few years, I’ve been lucky enough to get a bit of an insight into the inner workings of the Eagles, and through my sporadic work for Rugby League magazines I’ve written a few pieces on Featherstone Rovers. There are a number of similarities between the clubs, despite their historic differences, that bear the hallmarks of Hetherington – and of course his now successful apprentices.
Off the field, both clubs are amongst the most forward thinking in the Championship. Outside of Super League (and, of course, Super League-bound Widnes Vikings), no two clubs prioritize youth player development more than Sheffield and Featherstone. Both fought a long, hard battle with the Rugby Football League’s Performance Department over their inclusion in the elite Junior Academy and Scholarship programmes. That they won and are now proud members of that elite group speaks volumes of both Aston and Powell’s priorities. Neither club is flush for cash, but both head coaches convinced their respective boards of directors of the importance of youth development.
The similarities don’t end there, either. Featherstone Rovers have over the last few years proved themselves outstanding at what clubs refer to as community work – basically initiatives that grow strong links between the clubs and the local communities they represent. Featherstone Rovers have always been at the heart of their community, a small, former mining village in West Yorkshire, but for years they lost sight of this. In recent years, they’ve invested much time and effort in re-establishing those links. There’s now a buzz about the club that was missing for nigh on two decades. Sure, they have their problems – most notably sporadic incidents of crowd trouble – but they’re dealing with those head-on.
The Eagles have never had that link with their community, perhaps because of a nomadic existence and the Steel City’s long-held obsession with the round ball game. But the Eagles work harder than almost any other club at youth development, with players visiting schools – much like Aston and Powell did all those years ago – on a daily basis. Now, most school children in Sheffield get a taste of Rugby League at some point during their formative years. Considering where the club has come from – and the tall task it still faces making a noise in its home city – that’s some going.
The Eagles have been forward thinking in other areas, too, most notably in taking a stand against homophobia in sport. Their ‘Homophobia: Tackle It’ initiative – a joint venture with the RFL, Pride Sports and LGBT History Month – garnered much press coverage around the world earlier this year, and high profile support from all sorts of unlikely sources (most notably Elton John).
When Sheffield and Featherstone go head-to-head on Sunday, it will be an emotional occasion. It will be a game packed with great stories just waiting to happen. Aside from the friendship – and now rivalry – between Aston and Powell, there’s Featherstone’s desire to make amends for last year’s shock Grand Final loss to Halifax (and the horrific scenes that followed, when a Halifax fan nearly died after a cowardly attack from a drunken Rovers supporter). Then there’s Sheffield’s attempt to rekindle their greatest moment, that now famous ’98 Wembley cup final.
There’s also the prospect of seeing the first homegrown Sheffielder to grace a major Rugby League cup final, young centre Corey Hanson. His backstory is particularly good, having defied the odds – including a difficult childhood and spells in care – to sign for his hometown club after being spotted playing for local amateur team Hillsborough Hawks. He’s now studying at Sheffield Hallam University after excelling on the Eagles’ scholarship programme, proof that sport can offer a way out for those in difficult circumstances. He once told me that if it hadn’t been for Rugby League, he’d probably be in prison – like most of his childhood friends from the notorious Norfolk Park area of the city.
If that wasn’t enough, the game could also see a dream return to the Eagles starting line-up for Jonny Woodcock, a Rotherham school teacher who thought his career had ended when he sustained serious knee ligament damage two years ago. Man-of-the-match in the Eagles last final appearance – the National League 2 Play-Off Final in 2006, Woodcock has returned to help his side reach their biggest final in 13 years.
Given all these would-be fairytale endings and potentially great stories, it grates a little that the Eagles get next to no recognition in Sheffield. They’ve always been up against it in a city so rich in soccer history – Sheffield FC were the first football team in the world, kids – but it’s a matter of deep frustration to die-hard fans and directors alike that they don’t get much coverage in the Steel City. In the last 15 years, they’ve arguably had more success – or at least achieved more, if that makes sense – than Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday combined. Having done some PR and media work for the Eagles, I can confirm just how hard it is to get Editors and journalists in South Yorkshire to listen. If it doesn’t involve 22 overpaid charlatans kicking a round ball around, they’re not interested.
More fool them. Whether they’re interested or not, the Eagles are going places. They’re not there yet, but they’re certainly on their way. Win or lose, Sunday’s final is another huge moment for them. Fingers crossed Mark Aston can get the better of his old mate and conjure another fairytale ending for a club built on defying the odds.
Filed under: Comment and analysis, Rugby League, Sport | 1 Comment
Tags: Cooperative Championship Grand Final, Corey Hanson, Daryl Powell, Featherstone Rovers, Jonny Woodcock, Mark Aston, Rugby League, Sheffield Eagles