I remember Alverthorpe having quite a good team, probably more the 50s than 60s. They either played at Balne Lane or Grasmere fields. The great Rocky Turner was a product of the Alverthorpe ARLFC. What about the great Redoubt club?

Starting up again are Westgate, attracted quite a few down to the training nights before the lockdown, playing in Thornes park if rugby ever gets played again

Sorry it was Wakefield Loco, I played for Brookhouse myself, the only doubt I may have is the score, Loco were nilled they might have scored 4 points but it could have been 5 as they scored a try. I know Smithy played for Brookhouse but it's possible he joined them when Loco disbanded.

Smith on one wing Stan Rodwell on other Bart lingard Fred's brother played stand off I played against him at number 6 having just moved up to open age a reight gentlemanshowed me plenty of respect knowing his reputation meant a lot to me another top stand off at Brookhouse one of the roughest and toughest players I played against was ex Donny half back Brian frost if you came off without a bust nose you were lucky facing Brian

That’s good to hear, it’s also good use of an under used facility.

Just checked on the Google " History of Doncaster RLFC, Project", dickie. According to their Yorkshire and Challenge Cup history on February 10th, 1962 Doncaster beat Brookhouse 7-4 at Wakefield.

Brookhouse also played Widnes at Widnes in the 1st. round of the1965/66 Challenge cup round, they lost 23 - 5, i seem to remember Widnes paying for Brookhouse an all new playing kit and new blazers with Brookhouse badges & formal grey trousers. probably to switch venue from Brookhouse to Widnes. Brookhouse had a great team during the 60s, i dont think they had been beaten at home for years until 69 / 70. i had just started playing for Eastmoor open age from Wakefield Trinity Intermediates and we beat them in a close game for their first home defeat in years. if i remember rightly, Brian Frost played his last game for Brookhouse that day along with a few other stalwarts of that great team.

Brian Lindop and Len Lindop, try scorer, two very good old mates of mine,along with all of the Lindop brothers off Eastmoor,they were all very good rugby league players. Fred was a great young player but got kidney damage in a rugby game , he had to have damaged kidney removed and packed in his playing and became a top referee.

That was done at the County Hospital on Park Lodge Lane, me and they're Baz were in at the same time having our tonsils out, Dennis was an Amateur international for GB.

Sorry lads a genuine honest mistake meant the lindops how I brought that other fine rugby family into it I don't know

Very interesting is this. I moved to Wakefield in 1976 and probably caught the tail end of the old Wakefield. Things seemed to change a lot after that, especially where RL was concerned.

When I first arrived Wakefield had a real identity to which Trinity was crucial, now I don't think it really does, it's now more of a commuter town for Leeds, Makes the BV and Trinity team rebuild even more vital if we are to reverse the trend.

Keep posting chaps, I feel a book forming here, what do you say Slugger? You write it, I'll get the images sorted and it ready for print? No pressure

Will it be like This Sporting Life where you are the updated Frank Machin Vasty?
They could make it into a musical and cast Zac Efron as you.

No, strictly backstage on this one for me. I'm a Wakefield legend I know but I'm strictly 80's onwards.



These guys came from a much tougher time and a much tougher city, I think it deserves recording for postterity.

All joking apart, I agree that it was a time we shouldn't forget and should be recorded somehow.
Trinity Heritage do a good job recording the Wakefield Trinity side of things and there are many sites on Facebook recording the changes to Wakefield through photographs and comment.
But I like reading the accounts of the rugby teams of the past as its a part never discussed.

I realise we've drifted away from Rob Burrow so I'll try and split this thread out later today.

Yes, Dennis not Len,getting them mixed up ,they were a big family 11 brothers and two sisters i think. great bloke Dennis,he played on wing for GB as an amatuer if i remember correctly,had many a pint with Den when i was younger, he sadly passed away at a relatively young age.

Here you are Kev just for you old pal

Ken, Arthur,[u Dennis, Fred, Len, Brian(Bart),[/u Eric,[u Harold(Pally)[/u Bob,[u Baz,[/u and Micky, and the 2 sisters were Muriel and Dorothy, those underlined as you've probably guessed were the rugby players.

Do you mean the Lingards from Sharlston?

You've missed Mick off as a rugby player dickie, a best mate of mine and he was a very good natural, athletic player, as you will well know Mick died from mesothelioma at the young age of 40, me and the wife went on holiday to Benidorm with Mick and his wife Teresa in November 1988, we came back and in December he was unwell, had tests done and in January told the devastating news he was terminally ill. he passed away in August 1989. all these years later, the night he told me the news that Friday in January in the Jockey on Northgate, is still seared in my memory.

That's where they came from dickie Ivor was the best known I should say but I honestly was thinking about the lindops don't know how the lingards happened old lad unless it's old age or the couple of tots of whiskey. I'd had to keep me going while I get my jab.

We used to call him Micky drip he was the youngest same age as you, which you probably know anyway, the reason I didn't include him was because he seemed less interested than their Baz and all the others had packed in playing, I went to the funeral myself with the Deeley twins, not sure if you know it but his lad Mat posts on here, went to a funeral myself the other year on Eastmoor and had the afters in the Albion, thought I might have seen you in there, sadly not.

It comes to us all mate, I'm still convinced to this day fifty odd years later that we bought Joe Bonner from Workington for £6K, but apparently it was from Whitehaven, good old Wikipedia, not to mention Wakefield Loco turning into Brookhouse when they lost to Donny in the Challenge cup, especially when I watched the game

Joe Bonnar, a great little scrum half who formed a long term half back partnership with the legendary Dave "Toppo" Topliss.
At the time of the Lofthouse pit disaster in March, 1973, Joe Bonnar did a full shift helping in the rescue attempts to recover the six lost miners and then turned out for Trinity in a night match of the same day. A real hero.

Jesus. Cut from a different cloth those boys. My dad was a miner at the prince of wales colliery, different breed

When was he at POW ? I was there from 91 till the 2002 shut down.

85 to about 95/96 I think.