Aust. league club makes offer to Kevin Franklin

Press, 3 October 1979, Page 38

Aust. league club makes offer to Kevin Franklin

By

JOHN COFFEY

Kevin Franklin, one of the most versatile rugby league players in the South Island, will negotiate with a New South Wales club during the off-season.

An attractive preliminary i offer was made to Franklin! by an executive member of! 6 Wollongong club after hei had appeared for New Zea-' land Marist in a match at I Newcastle last week. “A bit of money — I would not like to I say how much — was mentioned, but there was: not much sense in going; into details over these because of the present international transfer ban,” Franklin said yesterday. "But arrangements were made for negotiations to be! carried out by mail. He! asked me to send my par-| ticulars, and such matters as' employment and accom-l modation would have to be! fiscussed,” he said. The transfer regulations between the major rugby league nations require players to stand dowm for 12 months to fulfil residential qualifications, as the former! Kiwi forward, Kurt Soren-j fen, did in 1978 before hav-| Ing a highly-successful sea-j ton with Cronulla-Suther-Bnd in Sydney this year. However, Franklin, and no toubt Australian clubs, are I’.vare that the rules are to »e reviewed at the next! reeling of the International! Board. There appears to be al {roving body of opinion Shat the enforced stand-down I

i has more detrimental thanll ! beneficial effects. i I Franklin represented West : Coast as a forward for sev- < ! eral seasons before moving i Ito Christchurch last year.; He was switched to the cen- i itres by his club, Marist-’ Western Suburbs, and has i ■ made 10 appearances for ] Canterbury as an outside I 'back. f In the later stages of the ] season just completed, ] ’ though, Franklin was used < as a loose forward by the Marist coach. Mr John ; j Flanagan. Franklin per-j formed with such telling re- ; j suits that he was the “man ;|of the match” in the prelimlinary final against Papanui [ :'and did much towards help-i I ing Marist gain a place in the championship grand ’ final. I The likelihood that Frank- ■ I lin would make his mark in I the back three of the scrum iwas evident from his youn- I ■ger days. He was twice I chosen as a schoolboy Kiwi , and also earned New Zea- < land selection at 17-years ; and 19-vears levels. While Franklin is quite ] : content “to play wherever I > am put,” he said yesterday j that he was keen “to have a Igo in the forwards” if he is ; ! still in Christchurch next I I season. That is not surpris- i ling, for he was at both loose 1

i forward and second-row durjmg the game in Newcastle. Ironically, Franklin was omitted from the Canterbury squad for the subsequentlyabandoned fixture against Great Britain in August. Two players with international experience, Lewis Hudson and Michael O’Donnell, were preferred in the centres, and Franklin had by then assumed the loose forward role for his club. He acknowledges that the presence of Barry Edkins, Paul Truscott, Wayne Wallace and Derek McLaughlan provides him with stiff opposition for representative honours either as a secondrower or loose forward. But Australian talent scouts have a keen eye for talent, and the official,, who just happened to be in Newcastle with his own club team, would probably have been aware that sides in the Wollongong district had received fine service from such New Zealand forwards as Oscar Danielson, Eddie Moore, Doug Gailey, Bill Burgovne and Leo Mulcare. Franklin, at least, has time to ponder over his football future. He is on holiday in Greymouth, taking advantage of the big run of whitebait in the Grey River.