Gridiron trial for goal-kicker

Press, 20 July 1984, Page 34

Gridiron trial

for goal-kicker

A lucrative career in American football might lie ahead of the Great Britain rugby league full-back and goal-kicker, Mick Burke, later this year. Burke, in Christchurch for the second test against New Zealand at the Show Grounds on Sunday, is to have his first gridiron trial at Bristol soon after his return to England next month. “Three clubs, the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants and Minnesota, have approached me, and I am certainly interested,” Burke said yesterday. The prolific-scoring Widnes full-back’s enthusiasm stems from the greater monetary rewards available in the United States. He now earns about £20,000 during a rugby league season, a return that hardly compares with the SUSI2O,OOO offered by the gridiron clubs. “They want me as a

specialist goal-kicker,” said Burke, who holds the Widnes records of most goals (140) and points (316) in a season. “A member of the New York Giants coaching staff and one of the club’s kickers

saw me before the Challenge Cup final at Wembley in May. We did some practice kicking together, learning how to handle the different types of football. Burke said that he had no problem kicking off the plastic gridiron tee. The major variation is in the size of the ball — American footballs are considerably smaller. The regular test full-back on tour in Australia and this country, Burke made his international debut in the third test against the Kiwis in England in 1980. Aged 25, and a sturdy physique, Burke is one of only three players to have won the Lance Todd Trophy as “man of the match” in a Cup final (1981) and the Harry Sunderland Trophy, for the “best player” in a British premiership final (1982).