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Full name | Graeme Leonard West | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | New Zealand | 5 December 1953|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Height | 6 ft 5 in (196 cm) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Position | Second-row, Prop | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Graeme Leonard West [3] (born 5 December 1953) is a New Zealand former rugby league footballer and coach. Standing at six-foot, five inches, he played in the forwards, captaining English club Wigan Warriors. West also played representative rugby league for New Zealand and is the father of Super League player, Dwayne West. [4]
West was selected to play for the New Zealand national team in the 1975 World Cup tournament. He was signed by English club Wigan for the 1982–83 Rugby Football League season from New Zealand side Taranaki. He was actually 29 when he signed, though Wigan believed him to be 2 years younger. Within weeks of him making his début, he played left-second-row in the 15–4 victory over Leeds in the 1982–83 John Player Trophy Final during the 1982–83 season at Elland Road, Leeds on Saturday 22 January 1983. [5] He became captain in 1984, leading Wigan to Wembley for the 1984 Challenge Cup Final, which was lost to Widnes. He captained Wigan to victory in the 1985 Challenge Cup Final. West was a non playing substitute for defending champions Wigan in their 1987 World Club Challenge victory against the visiting Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. He retired from the first team in 1989 to lead the reserve 'A' Team as player-coach, but made a late appearance against Castleford in 1991 due to injuries and a fixture pile up, scoring a try late in the game that gained a standing ovation.
Graeme West played left-second-row and scored a try in Wigan's 18–26 defeat by St. Helens in the 1984 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1984–85 season at Central Park, Wigan, on Sunday 28 October 1984, played left-prop in Wigan's 34–8 victory over Warrington in the 1985 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1985–86 season at Knowsley Road, St. Helens, on Sunday 19 October 1986, [6] and played as an interchange/substitute (replacing Prop Shaun Wane), and scored a try in the 28–16 victory Warrington in the 1987 Lancashire Cup Final during the 1987–88 season at Knowsley Road, St. Helens, on Sunday 11 October 1987. [7]
Graeme West played left-second-row (replaced by interchange/substitute Brian Case) in Wigan's 15–4 victory over Leeds in the 1982–83 John Player Trophy Final during the 1982–83 season at Elland Road, Leeds on Saturday 22 January 1983, [8] played left-second-row in the 11–8 victory over Hull Kingston Rovers in the 1985–86 John Player Special Trophy Final during the 1985–86 season at Elland Road, Leeds on Saturday 11 January 1986, [9] and played left-prop in the 18–4 victory over Warrington in the 1986–87 John Player Special Trophy Final during the 1986–87 season at Burnden Park, Bolton on Saturday 10 January 1987. [10]
In 1994, following the sacking of John Dorahy, West was appointed as coach of Wigan, after fans petitioned for him to get the job. In his first month as coach, at the end of the 1993–94 Rugby Football League season West secured the First Division Premiership Trophy against Castleford, and then travelled with Wigan to Brisbane, guiding them in their 1994 World Club Challenge victory over Australian premiers, the Brisbane Broncos - The first time it was won by an English team in Australia. At the end of his first full season, he and the team won the League Championship, Challenge Cup, Regal Trophy, and Premiership - the 'Grand Slam' of all 4 trophies. Even though Wigan dominated Rugby League from 1985 to 1995, it was the only season the club achieved this feat. During the 1994 Kangaroo tour Wigan hosted a match against the Australian national team but couldn't pull off a win. Despite a second half comeback, the tourists won the match 30 - 20.
West stayed on in that position until February 1997 when, following an early exit from the Challenge Cup in 2 consecutive years, he was replaced by Eric Hughes.
After leaving Wigan, West spent short spells at Lancashire Lynx and Widnes Vikings.
In 2008 West was named in the Taranaki Rugby League Team of the Century. [11] He still lived and worked in Wigan up to the early 2010s, but then returned to his native New Zealand.
Eric Hughes is a retired English rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and coached rugby league in the 1980s and 1990s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for England (Under-15s), and representative level rugby league (RL) for Great Britain and England, and at club level for Widnes, Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, St Helens and the Rochdale Hornets, as a wing, centre or stand-off, and coached at club level for Widnes, Rochdale Hornets, St Helens, Leigh and Wigan Warriors. He unwittingly added confusion to the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs team as he was unrelated but played at the same time as the three Australian brothers named Hughes; Garry, Graeme and Mark.
Andrew Gregory is an English former professional rugby league footballer. A Great Britain international representative scrum-half, he is an inductee of the Wigan Hall of Fame. He was the first player to win five Challenge Cup Final winners medals, first player to play in eight Challenge Cup finals and one of only two players to have played in six Ashes series against Australia, the other being Garry Schofield.
Dean Bell, also known by the nicknames of "Mean Dean", and "Deano", is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer, and coach. A New Zealand international representative centre, he played his club football in England, Australia and New Zealand, but most notably with Wigan, with whom he won seven consecutive Challenge Cup Finals, a Lance Todd Trophy, and a Man of Steel Award. He later coached English club Leeds for two seasons. He is a member of the famous Bell rugby league family that includes George, Ian, Cameron, Glenn, Cathy Bell and Clayton Friend.
Andrew Platt is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played as a prop and second-row forward in the 1980s and 1990s.
Martin Dermott is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played as a hooker in the 1980s and 1990s, and was capped 11 times for Great Britain.
Henderson Gill is an English former professional rugby league footballer. He played for Bradford Northern, Wigan and Rochdale Hornets in the Championship and South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NSWRL competition. Gill primarily played on the wing during his career. He was capped 15 times for Great Britain between 1981 and 1988.
Andrew Goodway is a former English professional rugby league footballer and coach. He played for Oldham, Wigan and Leeds in the Championship and Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the NSWRL competition. He played as a prop, second-row or loose forward. He is a former Great Britain and England international.
Stephen Hampson is a former rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played as a fullback in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, and coached rugby league in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s.
Brian Case is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and England, and at club level for Warrington, Wigan and Leigh, as a prop.
Kenneth Kelly is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and England, and at club level for St. Helens, Bradford Northern and Warrington, as a stand-off, or scrum-half.
Ian Potter is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and England, and at club level for Warrington, Leigh, and Wigan as a second-row, or loose forward.
Nicky Kiss is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s. He played at representative level for Great Britain, and at club level for Wigan, as a hooker.
Shaun David Wane is an English professional rugby league coach and former professional rugby league footballer, who is currently the head coach of the England national rugby league team. He is also Leadership and Management Director of Wigan Warriors, for whom he served as head coach from 2011 to 2018 winning three Super League Grand Finals and one Challenge Cup.
David R. Stephenson was an English rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. He played club level rugby union for Fylde Rugby Club, and representative level rugby league for Great Britain, and at club level for Salford, Wigan, Leeds and Leigh, as a goal-kicking wing or centre.
Glyndwr Shaw was a Welsh dual-code international rugby union, and rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s. He played representative level rugby union for Wales, and at club level for Neath RFC, as a prop and representative level rugby league for Great Britain and Wales, and at club level for Widnes, Wigan, Warrington and Rochdale Hornets, as a prop, or second-row.
Colin Whitfield is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s, and coached in the 1990s. He played at club level for Salford, Wigan, Halifax, Canterbury-Bankstown and the Rochdale Hornets, as a fullback, wing, or centre, and coached at club level for Widnes.
Michael Scott is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. He played at club level for Halifax, and Wigan, as a second-row, or loose forward, i.e. number 11 or 12, or 13.
John Pendlebury is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, and coached in the 1990s. He played at representative level for Lancashire, and at club level for Wigan, Salford, Halifax, Bradford Northern and Leigh, as a scrum-half, hooker or loose forward. and coached at club level for the Halifax Blue Sox.
Gary Sanderson is a former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. He played at club level for Warrington as a second-row.
Kevin Ronald Tamati is a New Zealand former rugby league representative player and coach. He played at representative level for New Zealand, New Zealand Māori, Auckland, Central Districts and Wellington, and professionally at club level for Widnes, Warrington and Salford, Chorley Borough in the forwards. He has coached the New Zealand Māori, and professionally for Salford, Chorley Borough/Lancashire Lynx, British Army Rugby League and Whitehaven. He is the cousin of fellow international Howie Tamati.