Aussie livewire Ben Black, took 67% of the vote over fellow Aussie Gavin Clinch to secure the Number 7 shirt in the team of the decade. He first came to Fax in the Summer of 2004 as an unknown punt from Anthony Farrell. Staring into the relegation abyss, he made the decision to sign the vastly experienced Brad Davis. However when the aging Australian decided to answer his beloved Castleford's Super League SOS call, Farrell decided to take the advice of FaxFans.co.uk Centre of the Decade Greg Florimo and sign Ben Black.
The rest as they say, is history. Fax remarkably stayed up that year, very much thanks to Black's matchwinning performances, his 10 tries in 10 appearances, and a clever video referee decision. It was 2005 that cemented him in Fax folklore though, his half-back partnership with Pat Weisner, then Dean Lawford was the key to Fax's unlikely Play-Off success which saw them defeat Hull KR in their own backyard before coming within a Dave Larder fingertip away from beating Castleford to get to the Grand Final.
That was Black's final game for Fax, after a staggering 36 tries in 33 appearances, he ventured back down under to North Sydney Bears, then onto Burleigh Bears where he managed an NRL appearance for their Parent Club, West Tigers. There was constant speculation in the Northern Hemisphere of Black's return to Fax. Mainly just pub talk from over exuberant fans rather than concrete fact. They would have to wait over two years for the return of the prodical son, as in May 2008, following the mysterious departure of Aaron Heremaiia, Fax needed a half-back spark and Black was the only option, which he took, as per usual with both dancing feet.
However, if there was one criticism of Black in his first spell, it was that he went missing in the 'big' games and was too 'hot and cold' in too many games. Had Black matured his play while back Down Under? Would he still have the try scoring ability? The answer to these questions were Yes, and more. In his second spell, Black has turned into a more complete half-back, developing an astute kicking game ,a more logical half-back play, and at 29 today (Happy Birthday!) he has become a leader. The most important thing is, as the above picture illustrates, he hasn't lost his ability to spot a gap out of nowhere, to have the heel over most players over 20m. This was perfectly the case when he rescued Fax from certain defeat away to Batley in 2008 with a last gasp effort.
Games: 75
Tries: 59
Goals: 8
Add to that a man of the match performance in the 2009 Grand Final, these stats clearly mark out a special half-back, and it had to be a special player to beat Gavin Clinch in a poll. I don't think Fax fans have seen the last, or the best of Ben Black yet...
