Hunslet R.L.F.C.: Difference between revisions
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In the 1920s, the club played in white shirts, but the players used to steal them for work. Determined to prevent this happening, the club decided to changed to coloured jerseys in 1932. They could not use the Leeds city colours as rivals [[Leeds Rhinos|Leeds]] wore those, so Hunslet decided to adopt the [[University of Leeds]] colours of myrtle white and flame red. |
In the 1920s, the club played in white shirts, but the players used to steal them for work. Determined to prevent this happening, the club decided to changed to coloured jerseys in 1932. They could not use the Leeds city colours as rivals [[Leeds Rhinos|Leeds]] wore those, so Hunslet decided to adopt the [[University of Leeds]] colours of myrtle white and flame red. |
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Hunslet celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1933/34. The club did this in some style as Hunslet beat Widnes at Wembley Stadium in the Challenge Cup Final. Hunslet |
Hunslet celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1933/34. The club did this in some style as Hunslet beat Widnes at Wembley Stadium in the Challenge Cup Final. Hunslet reached the Championship Final in 1938 meeting their neighbours Leeds in the only all-Leeds final. The match was played at the [[Elland Road]] football ground, to accommodate a huge demand from the city’s rugby league supporters. Over 54,000 people watched the game, a then record for a match in England, Hunslet triumphed 8-2 to take the title for the second time in the club’s history. |
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In the 1940s the club was doing well and played in front of large crowds, this wave of success was only halted by the Second World War, Hunslet dropped out of the wartime Yorkshire league in 1942-3 but returned to the competition in 1943-4. |
In the 1940s the club was doing well and played in front of large crowds, this wave of success was only halted by the Second World War, Hunslet dropped out of the wartime Yorkshire league in 1942-3 but returned to the competition in 1943-4. |
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Revision as of 20:22, 2 June 2008
| Hawk | |
| Club information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Hunslet Hawks Rugby League Football Club |
| Colours | White, myrtle and flame |
| Founded | 1883 |
| Website | www.hunslethawksrl.co.uk |
| Current details | |
| Ground(s) | |
| Competition | National League Two |
Hunslet Hawks are a British rugby league club. They are based in Hunslet, to the south of Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club are sometimes known as 'the Parksiders' after their former stadium.
Some famous Hunslet players include Jason Robinson and Cec Thompson.
History
Early years
A special general meeting of the Hunslet Cricket Club was held on the 21st May 1883, the committee resolved to grant two local teams: Albion and Excelsior the sum of £30 to form the Hunslet Rugby Club based at Woodhouse Hill. The name of the cricket club was also changed to 'Hunslet Cricket and Football Club'. At the end of that year the Imperial side joined the Hunslet club.
The players initially wore blue and white quartered shirts, but this soon changed to their familiar white shirts with chocolate coloured badges. Hunslet originally played on the field behind the Parnaby Tavern next to Hunslet cemetery.
Hunslet announced their arrival the following season by beating Leeds St John's (later to become Leeds Rhinos) in the third round of the Yorkshire Cup. Better fixtures drew larger crowds and as a result the landlord wanted to put up the rent. The search was on for another ground, club officials purchased at little cost 10.25 acres of waste land at Hunslet Carr from the Low Moor Iron and Coal Company and had to shift 2,000 tons of rubbish to create what would become Parkside, which they moved to in 1888.
The first game at Parkside was played on 11th February 1888, when they played and beat Mirfield. Just one season later Hunslet won their first trophy, the Yorkshire Cup, beating Leeds St John's. In 1895, Hunslet were one of the twenty-one clubs that broke away from the Rugby Football Union, and joined the Northern Union. Hunslet adopted chocolate and white shirts in the 1890s.
Twentieth Century
Billy Batten signed for Hunslet as a seventeen-year-old in 1905.
In the 1905-06 season Hunslet won the Yorkshire Cup. They were the first club to win All Four Cups, which they did in the 1907-08 season. Powered by a pack known as the Terrible Six, Hunslet were led by Albert Goldthorpe, already in his late thirties but a dominant figure in the early years of the code. Many players left Parkside following this success either being transferred to other clubs or going into retirement.
After Batten failed to come to terms with Hunslet in 1912, he was transferred to Hull for the then record sum of £600. In 1921, Harold Buck became the game’s first £1,000 transfer when he moved from Hunslet to Leeds. According to some sources, the deal included a player in part exchange.
In 1924, the club's record attendance was set at 24,700 for a third round Challenge Cup match.
In the remaining years up to the 1930s, Hunslet had rather a lean period, until 1932 when they regained the Yorkshire League Trophy and made it to the final of the Yorkshire Cup.
In the 1920s, the club played in white shirts, but the players used to steal them for work. Determined to prevent this happening, the club decided to changed to coloured jerseys in 1932. They could not use the Leeds city colours as rivals Leeds wore those, so Hunslet decided to adopt the University of Leeds colours of myrtle white and flame red.
Hunslet celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1933/34. The club did this in some style as Hunslet beat Widnes at Wembley Stadium in the Challenge Cup Final. Hunslet reached the Championship Final in 1938 meeting their neighbours Leeds in the only all-Leeds final. The match was played at the Elland Road football ground, to accommodate a huge demand from the city’s rugby league supporters. Over 54,000 people watched the game, a then record for a match in England, Hunslet triumphed 8-2 to take the title for the second time in the club’s history.
In the 1940s the club was doing well and played in front of large crowds, this wave of success was only halted by the Second World War, Hunslet dropped out of the wartime Yorkshire league in 1942-3 but returned to the competition in 1943-4.
Post war
Hunslet's fanbase went into decline as post-war slum clearances changed what had been a residential area into an industrial one. Hunslet tried to keep the success going but never quite achieved it despite reaching a number of semi-finals and finals. However, Hunslet produced a number of international players as well as a respectable league record. The club always had strength in a supply of local talent mixed with both Welsh and Australian imports.
The Parksiders lost the 1956 Yorkshire Cup Final to Wakefield Trinity. Hunslet lost 44-22 against St Helens in the 1959 Championship Final at Odsal.
In the 1960s the club were classic underachievers. Although the players were a group of experienced and talented people they were unable to harness their skills to best effect. This changed when Fred Ward was appointed player-coach at the start of the 1962/63 season. It was decided that the team never looked that imposing in green and a decision was made to go back to white, this time with two chocolate hoops. In his first season, Hunslet won the Second Division Championship and secured a position in the top division as well as winning the 1962 Yorkshire Cup Final over Hull Kingston Rovers.
Hunslet lost in the 1965 Yorkshire Cup final against Bradford Northern and that same year reached the semi final of the Challenge Cup. In order to avoid going on black and white television against Wakefield who also wore hoops in the middle of their shirt, the club got a strip with a chocolate V. They won the semi-final and went to Wembley with it, stitching green blazer badges to the shirt. They lost the final narrowly 20-16 to Wigan. The side were again split up by transfers and retirements. Just two years later in 1967 the dream was over. Ward left the club and with that the club entered free fall.
Parkside's stand was burned down by vandals in 1971. Parkside was sold off to an industrial developer for around £300,000 in 1972. The last game at Parkside was on 21st April, 1973 against York. Parkside was demolished and Hunslet became tenants at the Elland Road greyhound stadium. By July 1973, the club had folded.
Due to the efforts of their former Great Britain forward Geoff Gunney, local businessmen and supporters the club managed to reform as New Hunslet for the 1973-4 season and moved to the Leeds Greyhound Stadium. In 1974, New Hunslet adopted green and white as team colours. The stay at the Greyhound Stadium was cut short when the owners closed the ground. The club reverted to New Hunslet for the 1979-80 season.
The next ground to host Hunslet was Mount Pleasant, Batley, before Hunslet moved to Elland Road football stadium then owned by Leeds City Council. After leaving Elland Road, Hunslet had a brief spell at Bramley.
The 1990s and onwards
On 19th November 1995, the club, now known as Hunslet Hawks, moved to the South Leeds Stadium, only about half a mile from Parkside. On that day, Leigh were the guests at Hunslet's first home game for twenty-two years. They then narrowly missed out on promotion from Division Two in 1996.
In 1997 the Hawks appeared at Wembley Stadium for the first time since 1965 in the first (and last) Challenge Cup Plate Final but were beaten by Hull Kingston Rovers 60-14. Also in that year, the Hawks were promoted to the First Division as champions.
In 1999 Hunslet won the Northern Ford Premiership Grand Final against Dewsbury 12-11 at Headingley. After that game the Hawks were denied entry to Super League by the RFL who cited a document called 'Framing the Future' as justification. This caused a number of players to leave the club and for the average attendance to fall by more than 1,200 to 800.
2008 Squad
| 1 |  Matt Bramald
|
Full-Back |
| 2 | Andrew Robinson
|
Wing |
| 3 |  Edgar Moreno
|
Centre |
| 4 | Paul Seal
|
Centre |
| 5 | Steve Morton
|
Wing |
| 6 | Matty Firth
|
Stand Off |
| 7 | Mark Moxon
|
Scrum Half |
| 8 | Matt Carbutt
|
Prop |
| 9 | Jonny Wainhouse
|
Hooker |
| 10 | Danny Murgatroyd
|
Prop |
| 11 | Danny Cook
|
Second Row |
| 12 |  Sergei Kovatolov
|
Second Row |
| 13 | Gareth Greenwood
|
Loose-Forward |
| 14 | Will Cartledge
|
Second Row |
| 15 | Darren Robinson
|
Hooker |
| 16 | Karl Gunney
|
Scrum Half |
Head Coach: Greame Hallas