Bull Masters - Ellery Hanley MBE
November 26th 1978 was a very special day at Odsal. The Bradford Northern club were at home to the Rochdale Hornets in a League Division One clash. That day marked the professional debut of a man who would one day be acclaimed as one of the games finest ever players, Mr Ellery Hanley.
Unsurprisingly Hanley scored on his debut, in a game, which ‘Northern’ won 30-18. Over the following 6 years with Bradford, Hanley made 126 appearances scoring phenomenal 89 tries. Undoubtedly his greatest season for the club came in 1984/85 when he scored 55 tries in only 37 appearances, a feat made all the more special by the fact that he alternated between wing, centre and stand-off, with equal devastating effect. Such was Hanley’s contribution to the Bradford cause, that the fans gave him the nickname of ‘Mr Magic’, as he almost single handedly kept Bradford in the top flight. Had he had a high quality team around him, who knows what dizzy heights he would have reached at the Bradford club.His Great Britain debut came (whilst still at Bradford) as a substitute in January 1984, against France in Avignon. Many more international appearances followed for his country, many of which were as captain, and undoubted inspiration.
His 55 tries in 1985 identified Ellery as the hottest property in British and possibly world, rugby league. A world record transfer to Wigan for the sum of £150,000 plus Phil Ford and Steve Donlan resulted as it became almost impossible to hold onto a player with clearly, so much extreme ability. From there, his career catapulted as he became one of the most decorated players in the game winning medal after medal in a side containing the likes of Hampson, Bell, Iro, Miles, Kenny, Edwards, Gregory, Skerrett, Betts, Goodway, Platt and former Northern star Henderson Gill.
Despite playing in such an ‘All Star’ team, Hanley was still the standout player in a team which dominated rugby league for many many, years. He also found his ‘true’ position as he occupied the, loose forward, number 13 jersey for many years, mostly as captain. His impact was such that he had numerous brief spells with Australian clubs Balmain Tigers and Western Suburbs at a time when the Australian game was over-loaded with quality players. Hanley was, in any country or team, a huge draw-card.His peak came in 1989 as he achieved one of the greatest accolades any rugby league player can win – ‘The Adidas Golden Boot’ awarded to the World’s Most Outstanding Player. This was all in a season which saw him score one of the games greatest ever tries at Wembley against St Helens, a game where he also one the Lance Todd Trophy Man of the Match award! Quite simply Ellery’s personal milestones, achievements and medals are far too numerous and lengthy to mention. He has achieved almost every honour in the game, a fact which saw him receive the ultimate human honour – the MBE!A 4 year stint with the Leeds club followed his Wigan career where he again broke the world transfer record, despite being 30 years of age. He was immediately appointed captain. His impact at the club was again immeasurable as he thrilled fans and fellow professionals alike. His try scoring exploits continued at Headingley, yet his leadership and defensive qualities just seemed to get better and better.
In 1995, Ellery was lured with the mega-bucks to join up with the Australian Rugby League, signalling the end of an era for rugby league fans in Britain – the exit of ‘The Black Pearl’. 428 tries appearances in 498 tells it’s own story!Ellery did have course have his critics. They cited his lack of media co-operation as being a big missed opportunity in the game. He was the role model for many youngsters, and for the game so surely (they say) he should have being spreading the rugby league gospel. The truth however, is that he is a very personal man and wishes to keep his private life just that.
There was one rare quality that Ellery possessed in abundance however – he was a winner! Whenever he stepped onto the field he went on there to win. Such mental and physical toughness is, sadly, a rare quality these days in British sport.For those of you too young to remember Ellery, let me try to encapsulate his abilities into one sentence. Imagine Jason Robinson, Steve Renouf, Darren Lockyer, Iestyn Harris and Robbie Paul – he was all those players in one! Strength, speed, elusiveness, power and leadership were the hallmarks of his game. No other player in the game had such an affect on a game or a crowd by his mere presence.To see Ellery Hanley play was a true privilege, and one which I and many league fans the world over, enjoyed for many years.