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Your biggest Rovers miss


Andrew Vause

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I'd be really interested to hear people's view of which of the following players were Rovers' biggest miss after their sale. 

I've kept it since 1974 my first game. Here goes, feel free to add your own:

 

Dates shown are approximates. 

Steve Nash -Salford 1975

John Newlove -Hull Ca.78

Vince Farrar- Hull Ca. 78

Keith Bridges- Bradford Ca.78

Jimmy Thompson- Bradford Ca. 78

Steve Evans - Hull 1982

David Hobbs -Oldham 1985

John Gilbert -Widnes 1986

Graham Steadman-  Castleford 1989

Deryck Fox- Bradford 1992

Paul Newlove -Bradford 1993

Jamie Rooney -Wakefield 2002

Danny Kirmond -Huddersfield 2008.

Zak Hardaker -Leeds 2011.

 

 

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1 hour ago, Robin Evans said:

My first rovers hero..... 

 

He was my first Rovers hero. Sadly I never saw him play in the flesh for Rovers. The first game my dad took me to v Wigan, April 74, Steve was injured and Colin Wood played on his place. 

Steve was sold shortly after. 

However I did have the pleasure of seeing some of Steve's playing memorabilia as a young kid. My mam was a midwife visiting his wife after the birth of one of their children ca. 74.

I remember him playing for Salford at the a**e end of his career, in our cup run of 83.

Steve was 34 then and was still class, he'd represented Great Britain 5 months earlier in the first test v the Aussie Invincibles. It was obvious by then being up against Peter Sterling that his powers were waning. 

What a truly great player Steve really was. 

 

 

 

 

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The biggest collective miss was the departure of John Newlove, Bridges, Thompson, Farrar, plus one you didn't mention Andrew - Charlie Stone, all around 1977/78. These 5 losses were the reason for the club's fall from grace from Champions to relegation fodder in the space of a couple of years.

The biggest single loss was of course Nashy from arguably the best side in the land. It took 18 months to get back to the same level, with a handful of scrum halves tried until  Phil Butler cemented his place in the side. Not only did we miss Steve in our side he was also the key player in the Salford side that snatched the Championship from our grasp in 1976.

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Steve Nash, Paul Newlove, Jimmy Thompson, Keith Bridges, Vince Farrar Karl Harrison and Graham Steadman spring to mind before many others who could be on the list. One not mentioned, who in my opinion was Mel Mason, went to Leeds and won the MOM in the Championship Final against St Helens. 

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7 hours ago, jamescolin said:

John Newlove, Paul Newlove and Steve Evans. All great players. But going really far back DON FOX. I know it is outside the list and time but I felt I must add him.

Yes Steve Evans as well for me. Don Fox left in my first season as a Season Ticket holder, I was gutted.

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2 hours ago, Robin Evans said:

I never saw Don Fox. I would have loved to have seen much more of that era.

 

I caught the back end of Don's FEATHERSTONE career luckily. But unluckily he was transferred to Wakefield shortly afterwards and I knew a couple of Sharlston lads change their affinity to Wakefield as a result. I remember in those days that players didn't move around club to club as often as they do now and sometimes your allegiance was attached to a player. Wouldn't it have been nice if two thousand Bradford fans had followed Chisholm to Fev. Not likely eh Robin????

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54 minutes ago, The Phantom Horseman said:

We could have put them in the two new stands, and charged them an extra couple of quid each ?

As long as they don't go into the family stand that would be fine TPH. Because the incessant shout of "forward" would have been a little bit grating?

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Stuart Dickens 2006, when he went to Salford for a couple of months and returned. When he returned, you realised what he brought to the team.

Is it also fair to include Daryl Powell in this (albeit coaching), took us a fair while to settle back down.

2008 RFL Wakefield & District Young Volunteer of the Year

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I played as the opposing scrum half against Don Fox when he played for Sharlston and I was in the Rovers under 18's. His great potential was evident back then in 1952. Later in the year I was in Egypt doing my National Service. 

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Good thread.

I'd argue that the most pivotal loss was Peter Fox as coach in 1974. With due respect to some capable chaps who came after him, perhaps Peter could have inspired such as Nash, Newlove, Thompson, Bridges, Farrar and Stone to stay. Who can say how much we could have won 1974 to 1980 then?

Pure speculation but good fun.

Whilst Steadman was a controversial departure, and it hurt that it was Cas, I don't think his loss seriously weakened the team at the time, even though I loved watching him play. We got good money which was used to bring in Butt, Manning, Simpson, etc. Plus Pearson came through. Karl Harrison was sold the same summer as Steady, and he was a big loss in retrospect.

Later, Deryck Fox felt like the end of an epoch in the way that Newlove's loss didn't, painful though it was. In retrospect, the Newlove cash wasn't well spent, which didn't help.

I'm surprised no-one's mentioned in modern times the loss of Liam Finn at the end of the year we lost Daryl Powell. What a terrible piece of transfer dealing that was.

Probably though, our greatest ever loss was the captain of our under18s team in 1955, before he had even played a professional game. Inexplicable, even 65 years later.

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Mark. I was at the funeral the other week of Roy Littlewood, Littlewood's soft drinks, and in the Order of Service is a team photo of Rovers from the 50"s. It is certainly not the First Team as  Roy stopped playing to run the family business with his Father.

If you want a copy of the photo please let me have your email address and I will send you a copy.

By the way who was the Captain of the under 18s in1955 ?

 

 

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21 minutes ago, Jimmy B said:

Can only be Neil Fox

Don't be too hasty, Tommy Smales (loose forward) was also in that side, before signing for Wigan. I've seen a photograph of the junior side somewhere and I think there were several more future professionals, one of them being Brian Shaw, cricketer Chris Shaw's father, who signed for Hull KR I believe?

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On 18/06/2020 at 16:44, jamescolin said:

John Newlove, Paul Newlove and Steve Evans. All great players. But going really far back DON FOX. I know it is outside the list and time but I felt I must add him.

The loss of Terry Clawson to TB a couple of years before was also a massive loss, although he did come back. Judging by his achievements later in his career it makes you think how much more he could have achieved throughout the sixties? A Rugby League Hall of Fame candidate surely? 

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Not being hasty Steve. Tommy Smales may well have been captain. If the photograph of the under 18’s is the one I know about, there are others who also signed as professionals, Alan Marchand (scrum half): Mick and John Reynolds , Les Evans, but as they all signed initially for Rovers they can’t be described as “losses”.

Lets not forget, Featherstone Rovers is a RUGBY club.

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2 minutes ago, Jimmy B said:

Not being hasty Steve. Tommy Smales may well have been captain. If the photograph of the under 18’s is the one I know about, there are others who also signed as professionals, Alan Marchand (scrum half): Mick and John Reynolds , Les Evans, but as they all signed initially for Rovers they can’t be described as “losses”.

JB, I was referring to the question, who was the captain of that side?

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