Arthur Clues
Encyclopedia
Arthur Clues was an Australian professional rugby league
player for Wests
, New South Wales, and Australia. He primarily played in the second-row, i.e. number 11 or 12. He has been named amongst the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.
in the 1940s paid a record fee for Frank Whitcombe
. Frank was a hard player during an era when the game was at its toughest. His rivalry with Arthur Clues who played for Leeds
was legendary. Their confrontations on the field during the Bradford Northern
v Leeds local derby games are part of Rugby League Folklore
.
Trevor Foster
, MBE
, recalled an incident during one of these games in the late 1940s when Clues kicked out violently at Bradford Northern
scrum half Donald Ward. Immediately Frank stood up from the scrum and confronted his reckless action. He ran towards Arthur with both fists clenched Whitcombe drove the full force of his 18 stone frame in to Arthur Clues chest and pole axed him. Clues could not get his breath and for ten minutes received emergency medical attention in front of the 40,000 capacity Headingley
crowd. The referee sent Frank off for his actions while Arthur Clues was carried off on a stretcher and also sent off. In time honoured tradition the two men shook hands after the game to show their mutual respect for each other.
Frank Whitcombe and Arthur Clues became great friends when their playing days were over. They used to spend a lot of time in Whitcombe's Public House
"The Kings Head" in Bradford
. Needless to say there were no problems
for Parramatta at the age of seventeen before moving to rugby league and he was also a capable first-grade cricket
er. He has the distinction of scoring a try and a century
at both Headingley
and the Sydney Cricket Ground
.
Clues joined Wests in 1943 and quickly established himself as a constructive and creative second-rower. By 1946 he was representing at an international level for the Australians against the touring British Lions
. He played in all three Tests. Lured by the offer of a lucrative contract with Leeds
, Clues was the first Australian to join an English club after World War II. Clues played 238 first-class games for Leeds but a dispute with Leeds' management in 1954 ended his career at the club. Clues moved on to Hunslet where he played a further three seasons before retiring in 1957.
Unable to represent Australia while playing in England, Clues was selected to represent Other Nationalities on fourteen occasions between 1949 and 1955.
He played for the British Empire XIII
versus New Zealand
on Wednesday 23/1/1952 at Stamford Bridge
.
Clues did not return to Australia at the end of his playing career, instead he chose to stay in Leeds and open a sports store. He died in 1998.
and ARL
to
celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
player for Wests
Western Suburbs Magpies
The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia...
, New South Wales, and Australia. He primarily played in the second-row, i.e. number 11 or 12. He has been named amongst the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.
Leeds V Bradford Northern Rivalry
Harry Hornby, the Chairman, and financial power behind Bradford NorthernBradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls is a professional rugby league club based in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. They play in the European Super League and are currently joint 10th in the league....
in the 1940s paid a record fee for Frank Whitcombe
Frank Whitcombe
Frank William Whitcombe was a Welsh rugby union and professional rugby league footballer of the 1930s and '40s who played rugby union for Cardiff RFC, London Welsh RFC, and Army Rugby Union, playing at Prop, i.e...
. Frank was a hard player during an era when the game was at its toughest. His rivalry with Arthur Clues who played for Leeds
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
was legendary. Their confrontations on the field during the Bradford Northern
Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls is a professional rugby league club based in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. They play in the European Super League and are currently joint 10th in the league....
v Leeds local derby games are part of Rugby League Folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
.
Trevor Foster
Trevor Foster
Trevor J. F. Foster MBE , was a Welsh rugby footballer and coach. He played rugby union for Newport and rugby league for Bradford Northern...
, MBE
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
, recalled an incident during one of these games in the late 1940s when Clues kicked out violently at Bradford Northern
Bradford Bulls
Bradford Bulls is a professional rugby league club based in the city of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. They play in the European Super League and are currently joint 10th in the league....
scrum half Donald Ward. Immediately Frank stood up from the scrum and confronted his reckless action. He ran towards Arthur with both fists clenched Whitcombe drove the full force of his 18 stone frame in to Arthur Clues chest and pole axed him. Clues could not get his breath and for ten minutes received emergency medical attention in front of the 40,000 capacity Headingley
Headingley
Headingley is a suburb of Leeds in West Yorkshire, England. It is approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road...
crowd. The referee sent Frank off for his actions while Arthur Clues was carried off on a stretcher and also sent off. In time honoured tradition the two men shook hands after the game to show their mutual respect for each other.
Frank Whitcombe and Arthur Clues became great friends when their playing days were over. They used to spend a lot of time in Whitcombe's Public House
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
"The Kings Head" in Bradford
Bradford
Bradford lies at the heart of the City of Bradford, a metropolitan borough of West Yorkshire, in Northern England. It is situated in the foothills of the Pennines, west of Leeds, and northwest of Wakefield. Bradford became a municipal borough in 1847, and received its charter as a city in 1897...
. Needless to say there were no problems
Playing career
Clues played Rugby unionRugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
for Parramatta at the age of seventeen before moving to rugby league and he was also a capable first-grade cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er. He has the distinction of scoring a try and a century
Century (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a batsman reaches his century when he scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. The term is also included in "century partnership" which occurs when two batsmen add 100 runs to the team total when they are batting together. A century is regarded as a landmark score for...
at both Headingley
Headingley Stadium
Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley in West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie ....
and the Sydney Cricket Ground
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
.
Clues joined Wests in 1943 and quickly established himself as a constructive and creative second-rower. By 1946 he was representing at an international level for the Australians against the touring British Lions
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
. He played in all three Tests. Lured by the offer of a lucrative contract with Leeds
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
, Clues was the first Australian to join an English club after World War II. Clues played 238 first-class games for Leeds but a dispute with Leeds' management in 1954 ended his career at the club. Clues moved on to Hunslet where he played a further three seasons before retiring in 1957.
Unable to represent Australia while playing in England, Clues was selected to represent Other Nationalities on fourteen occasions between 1949 and 1955.
He played for the British Empire XIII
British Empire XIII rugby league team
The British Empire XIII rugby league team was a rugby league football team in Europe that represented the Empire of Britain at the time.-External sources:* Programme from game versus New Zealand 1952* British Pathe news footage...
versus New Zealand
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...
on Wednesday 23/1/1952 at Stamford Bridge
Stamford Bridge (stadium)
Stamford Bridge is a football stadium in Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, West London, and is the home of Chelsea Football Club. The stadium is located within the Moore Park Estate also known as Walham Green and is often referred to as simply The Bridge...
.
Clues did not return to Australia at the end of his playing career, instead he chose to stay in Leeds and open a sports store. He died in 1998.
Accolades
In September 2004 Clues was named in the second row of the Western Suburbs Magpies team of the century. In February 2008, he was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the NRLNational Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
and ARL
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
to
celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia.