Kiwi league trio elevated to star status

Press, 10 March 1982, Page 42

Kiwi league trio elevated to star status

NZPA staff correspondent London If the bookmakers have it right, three New Zealanders will mount the famous steps of the Wembley Stadium on May 1 to collect one of rugby league’s most prized possessions, a British Challenge Cup final winner's, medal. The medal would be the culmination of a season in which the Kiwi trio — Dane O’Hara, James Leuluai and Gary Kemble — have been elevated to star status with their English club, Hull. Even after five months,

Leuluai still finds the lavish attention paid him by Hull fans, in what is the heartland of English league, rather overwhelming and sometimes embarrassing. “It’s difficult when you can't go into a pub without being surrounded by fans wanting to talk to you,” said Leuluai yesterday. “I’ve even had times when I’ve been out on . training runs and people in cars have stopped to have a talk.” But on the other hand, he said, the warmth of the Hull fans has produced many

moments to savour. “When I ran out on to the field last Wednesday night after being out with a pulled hamstring for three weeks, they started singing for me and that was tremendous. It’s also great that they sing for the team even when we are having an off-day.” Even though the Yorkshire city also supports a second major league club, Hull Kingston Rovers, Hull frequently has attendances of 16,000 for their home games at The Boulevard. Leuluai said that the size

of the crowds and the atmosphere would make it difficult to return to playing in New Zealand: “It's going to be hard to go back to a situation where you often get a crowd of about 500,” he said. Part of the attraction of the Kiwis to the Hull crowd is undoubtedly the fact that their speed has added a new dimension to the club’s play. “Hull used to play pretty much straight up the centre in the normal British style and use their forwards to crash over from about five

yards,” Leuluai said. "But with the pace of Dane on the wing and Gary chiming in from full-back, we’ve scored a lot of tries down the flanks this year.” It is the club’s consistent form along with a favourable draw that has made it two to one favourites with the British bookmakers to carry off the Challenge Cup. Hull is two games away from Wembley but faces what appears to be an easy path to the semi-finals this week-end when it plays a second division side, Halifax,

at home. For the Kiwis, a place in the final at Wembley would be “like a dream come true,” according to Leuluai. “It would certainly be the highlight of my career. But even without that, I’ve already won a medal for the John Player Trophy and that’s something that many of the top English players > would like. “That was the first final I'd ever been in, and winning the medal in front of 25,000 at Headingly — the biggest crowd I have ever played in

front of — was tremendous,” he said. Leuluai and O’Hara are under contract to Hull for three years while Kemble’s contract was restricted to one year because he hhd not played the obligatory six games for New Zealand necessary for Home Office approval for a longer term. The trio expect to return to New Zealand after the premiership grand final day on May 16 and will then probably form part of the Kiwi team that tours Australia in June and July.