Keith Holliday (6 April 1934 – 9 March 2017) was an English professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s, and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

ed in the 1960s. He played at representative level for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

and

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

(

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

), and at club level for Eastmoor ARLFC,

Wakefield Trinity Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. The club play their home fixtures at the DIY Kitchen Stadium, Belle Vue (Wakefield), Belle Vue and currently compete in the Super League, the top tier o ...

(

), and Bramley, as a , or , and coached at club level for Bramley.

Background

Keith Holliday's birth was registered in

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 109,766 in the 2021 census, up from 99,251 in the 2011 census. The city is the administrative centre of the wider Metropolit ...

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...

, England. He was a pupil at

Cathedral School Cathedral schools began in the Early Middle Ages as centers of advanced education, some of them ultimately evolving into medieval universities. Throughout the Middle Ages and beyond, they were complemented by the monastic schools. Some of these ...

, he worked as a

plumber A plumber is a tradesperson who specializes in installing and maintaining systems used for potable (drinking) water, hot-water production, sewage and drainage in plumbing systems.

at Wakefield Corporation , he died aged 82 in Wakefield,

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

, his funeral took place at

Crematorium,

Crigglestone Crigglestone is a village and civil parish in the City of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. It is recorded as "Crigeston" (along with neighbouring "Orberie") in the Domesday Book. The civil parish had a population of 9,271 at the 2011 Census ...

, Wakefield on 3 April 2017.

Playing career

Wakefield Trinity career

One of the most under-rated players in Wakefield Trinity’s history is three-time Wembley winner, Keith Holliday. The wily scrum half was one of the club’s great servants and ranks sixth on the club’s all-time appearance list, with ten winner's medals, as well as county and international recognition. Holliday's Trinity career spanned fourteen years (1952–66); he played 438 times. Only Neil Fox has played more post-war Trinity games. He was an outstanding local product and arrived at

via Cathedral School and Eastmoor ARLFC. He progressed through the intermediate and A-teams before making his début in the first match of the 1952–53 season, scoring a try in a 30–21 victory over Doncaster. Holliday made steady progress, starting out as a stand off and alternating in the centres and within four years of his début, he represented Great Britain, partnering

Don Fox Donald Fox (15 October 1935 – 21 August 2008), was an English rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and coached in the 1970s. He played at representative level for Great Britain, England and Yorkshire, and at club ...

, in an unofficial 18–10 victory over France at

Odsal Stadium Odsal Stadium (known as Bartercard Odsal Stadium for sponsorship reasons) is a multi-purpose stadium, multipurpose stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The stadium is currently the home of Bradford Bulls rugby league football club and ...

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

in 1956. He added to his representative honours a season later when he was stand off for Yorkshire, in defeat by Cumberland at

Recreation Ground (Whitehaven) The Recreation Ground (known locally as the 'Recre') and for sponsorship reasons the Ortus REC is a rugby league stadium in Whitehaven, Cumbria, England. It is the home of Whitehaven R.L.F.C. The ground has witnessed many other sports such a ...

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and civil parish in the Cumberland (unitary authority), Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. It is a port on the north-west coast, and lies outside the Lake District National parks of England and Wales, National Park. ...

. By the late 1950s, Trinity were coming out of the wilderness on the domestic front, reaching their first major final in five years. A 23–5 Yorkshire Cup Final victory over Hunslet gave Keith the first of his cup winner's medals in 1956. He had now formed a formidable half back partnership with Ken Rollin, and it was not until 1958 when he moved to scrum half when Harold Poynton became his half back partner. The try-maker turned try scorer with two scorching tries at Wembley in 1960, when Trinity defeated

Hull FC Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Hull play their home games at the MKM Stadium and compete in Super League, the t ...

, 38–5 to win the RL Challenge Cup. It was the first of three Challenge Cup winners medals for Keith as he was at scrum half, again, in 1962 and 1963 which went alongside four Yorkshire League Championship winners medals (1959, 1960, 1962 and 1966) and two further Yorkshire Cup winners medals (1961–62 and 1964–65). He was also one win away from the League Championship on two occasions after final losses in 1960 and 1962; Keith playing in nine major finals for Trinity, winning six. Keith remained the major tradesman at scrum half throughout the early 1960s, the club being one win away from winning ‘All Four Cups’ on 1961–62 and being rewarded with a testimonial season in 1962–63. He gained his second county cap in 1961, captaining Yorkshire in defeat by Lancashire at Hilton Park,

Leigh Leigh may refer to: Places In England Pronounced : * Leigh, Greater Manchester, Borough of Wigan ** Leigh (UK Parliament constituency) * Leigh-on-Sea, Essex Pronounced : * Leigh, Dorset * Leigh, Gloucestershire * Leigh, Kent * Leigh, Staffor ...

. He moved to loose forward in 1964 before playing his last game for Trinity, in defeat by Hull, in March 1966. He then moved to Bramley as player coach. He finished his career with 94 tries and was also club captain in the 1957–58 season, being voted the supporter’s player of the years two years running in 1961–62 and 1962–63 … a true club legend. He was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame in 2015.

International honours

Keith Holliday played for

while at Wakefield Trinity in the 18–10 victory over France (non-

Test Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film) ...

match) at

in 1956.Edgar, Harry (2007). ''Rugby League Journal Annual 2008 age-110'. Rugby League Journal Publishing. Along with Billy Banks, Ted Cahill, Gordon Haynes, Billy Ivison, Bob Kelly, John McKeown, George Parsons and

Ted Slevin Edward "Ted" Slevin (15 July 1927 – 7 November 1998) was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. He played at representative level for Great Britain, England and Lancashire (despite being born ...

, Keith Holliday's only

appearance came against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

prior to 1957, these matches were not considered as

Test matches Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Indoor cricket, Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (associa ...

by the

Rugby Football League The Rugby Football League (RFL) is the governing body for rugby league in England. Founded in 1895 as the Northern Rugby Football Union following 22 clubs resigning from the Rugby Football Union, it changed its name in 1922 to the Rugby Footb ...

, and consequently

caps Caps are flat headgear. Caps or CAPS may also refer to: Science and technology Computing * CESG Assisted Products Service, provided by the U.K. Government Communications Headquarters * Composite Application Platform Suite, by Java Caps, a Java ...

were not awarded.

County honours

Keith Holliday was selected for Yorkshire County XIII while at

during the 1956–57 season.

Championship final appearances

Keith Holliday played in

's 3–27 defeat by

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. It is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its ad ...

in the

Rugby Football League Championship The Rugby Football League Championship First Division was the top division of rugby league in Great Britain between 1895 and 1996, when it was replaced by the Super League. History 1895–1904: Foundations The first season of rugby leagu ...

Final during the 1959–60 season at

on Saturday 21 May 1960.

County League appearances

Keith Holliday played in

's victories in the

county league during the 1958–59 season (

), 1959–60 season, 1961–62 season and 1962–63 season.

Challenge Cup Final appearances

Keith Holliday played , and scored 2- tries in

's 38–5 victory over

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Hull play their home games at the MKM Stadium and compete in Super League, the ...

in the

1959–60 Challenge Cup The 1959–60 Challenge Cup was the 59th staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. First round Second round Quarterfinals Semifinals Final The 1959–60 Challenge Cup tournament ended in a final between Wa ...

Final during the 1959–60 season at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

on Saturday 14 May 1960, in front of a crowd of 79,773, played in the 12–6 victory over

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...

in the

1961–62 Challenge Cup The 1961–62 Challenge Cup was the 61st staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. First round Second round Quarterfinals Semifinals Final Wakefield Trinity beat Huddersfield 12-6 in the Challenge Cup Fina ...

Final during the 1961–62 season at

on Saturday 12 May 1962, in front of a crowd of 81,263, and played in the 25–10 victory over

in the

1962–63 Challenge Cup The 1962–63 Challenge Cup was the 62nd staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. The final was contested by Wakefield Trinity and Wigan at Wembley Stadium in London. The final was played on Saturday 11 May 1963 ...

Final during the 1962–63 season at

on Saturday 11 May 1963, in front of a crowd of 84,492.Hoole, Les (2004). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC – FIFTY GREAT GAMES''. Breedon Books.

County Cup Final appearances

Keith Holliday played in

's 23–5 victory over

Hunslet Hunslet () is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is southeast of the Leeds city centre, city centre and has an industrial past. It is situated in the Hunslet and Riverside (ward), Hunslet and Riverside ward of Lee ...

in the

1956–57 Yorkshire Cup The 1956 Yorkshire Cup was the forty-ninth occasion on which the rugby league competition known as the Yorkshire County Cup had been held. Featuring clubs from the 1956–57 Northern Rugby Football League season, matches were played over Septem ...

Final during the 1956–57 season at

Headingley Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingley ...

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

on Saturday 20 October 1956, played in the 20–24 defeat by

in the 1958–59 Yorkshire Cup Final during the 1958–59 season at

on Saturday 18 October 1958, played in the 19–9 victory over

in the

1961–62 Yorkshire Cup The 1961–62 Yorkshire Cup was the fifty-fourth occasion on which the Yorkshire Cup competition had been held. Wakefield Trinity winning the trophy by beating Leeds by the score of 19-9 The match was played at Odsal in the City of Bradford, n ...

Final during the 1961–62 season at

on Saturday 11 November 1961, and played in the 18–2 victory over

in the

1964–65 Yorkshire Cup The 1964–65 Yorkshire Cup was the fifty-seventh occasion on which the Yorkshire Cup competition had been held. Wakefield Trinity winning the trophy by beating Leeds by the score of 18-2. The match was played at Fartown, Fartown Ground, Hudde ...

Final during the 1964–65 season at Fartown,

on Saturday 31 October 1964.

Notable tour matches

Keith Holliday played at in

's 17–12 victory over

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

in the

1956–57 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France The 1956–57 Kangaroo tour was the ninth Kangaroo tour, in which the Australian national rugby league team travelled to Great Britain and France and played twenty-eight matches, including the Ashes series (rugby league), Ashes series of three Ru ...

match at Belle Vue,

on Monday 10 December 1956.

Testimonial match

Keith Holliday's

Testimonial match A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, particularly in association football in the United Kingdom and South America, where a club has a match to honour a player for servic ...

took place against

in 1962.

Contemporaneous article extract

''"Wakefield Trinity have a proud record in grooming local talent, and there is an illustrious line of players who have come, over the years, via Trinity's own Junior teams from Wakefield City Schools' football. Keith Holliday is one of them. His career started at the Cathedral School, then on to Eastmoor Juniors and Trinity's own "Nursery" before signing for the Club in 1952. Gained Yorkshire county honours and a Great Britain place against France at off-half, and had experience also at centre for his Club before changing to the scrum-half berth. Captain of Trinity in their Yorkshire League success of 1958–9"''.Lindley, John (1960). ''Dreadnoughts – A HISTORY OF Wakefield Trinity F. C. 1873 – 1960 age 98'. John Lindley Son & Co Ltd. ISBN n/a

Genealogical information

Keith Holliday's marriage to Betty (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Simpson, death circa 18 August 2019) was registered during first ¼ 1956 in Lower

Agbrigg Agbrigg is a suburb of the city of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. History The village of Agbrigg was historically within the parish of Sandal Magna and a large area of present-day Agbrigg was common land and can be seen on older maps as ...

district. They had 3 children; the future who played 8-matches during the 1980–81 season for

, Barry Holliday
birth registered
during second ¼ in

district), Lestrene Holliday
birth registered
21 July in

district), the mother of Luke Patel, a cricketer who played 7 first-class matches from 2010–13, and Kevin Holliday
birth registered
during third ¼ in

district). At the time of his death, Keith Holliday had six grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

References

External links

Video "Rugby League Cup Final 1960" at britishpathe.comVideo "Wakefield Win Cup 1962" at britishpathe.comVideo "Rugby League Final 1963" at britishpathe.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holliday, Keith 1934 births 2017 deaths Bramley R.L.F.C. coaches Bramley R.L.F.C. players English rugby league coaches English rugby league players Great Britain national rugby league team players Rugby league centres Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league halfbacks Rugby league players from Wakefield Wakefield Trinity captains Wakefield Trinity players Yorkshire rugby league team players 20th-century English sportsmen