{{Infobox rugby biography , name = Tony Neary , image = , caption = , birth_name = Anthony Neary , birth_date = {{birth date and age, 1948, 11, 25, df=y , birth_place =

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, England , death_date = , death_place = , height = , weight = , position = Flanker , amatyears1 = , amatyears2 = , amatyears3 = , amatyears4 = 1972 , amatyears5 = 1979 , amatteam1 = Broughton Park , amatteam2 =

Barbarian F.C. The Barbarian Football Club, known as the Barbarians, is a Great Britain, British-based invitational rugby union club. The Barbarians play in black and white hoops, though players wear socks from their own club strip. Membership is by invitatio ...

, amatteam3 =

, amatteam4 = North West Counties , amatteam5 =

North of England Northern England, or the North of England, refers to the northern part of England and mainly corresponds to the historic counties of Cheshire, Cumberland, Durham, Lancashire, Northumberland, Westmorland and Yorkshire. Officially, it is a gr ...

, ru_amclubcaps = , ru_amclubpoints = , ru_amupdate = , repteam1 =

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, repteam2 =

British Isles The British Isles are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Outer Hebr ...

, repyears1 = 1971–1980 , repyears2 = 1977 , repcaps1 = 43 , repcaps2 = 1 , reppoints1 = 19 , reppoints2 = 0 , ru_ntupdate = , coachteams1 = , coachyears1 = , ru_coachupdate = , school = De La Salle College, Salford , university = Liverpool University Anthony Neary (born 25 November 1948) is a former

international rugby union player. He represented England at U18s basketball as well as rugby. He attended De La Salle College in Pendleton,

Salford Salford ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Greater Manchester, England, on the western bank of the River Irwell which forms its boundary with Manchester city centre. Landmarks include the former Salford Town Hall, town hall, ...

and Liverpool University before qualifying as a solicitor.

Rugby career

Neary played club rugby for Broughton Park. An open-side wing-forward whose international career ran from 1971 to 1980, his 43 appearances for the England team were a record (subsequently beaten) at the time of his retirement. He captained England in seven international matches between March 1975 and March 1976, played for the Barbarians, and toured twice with the British and Irish Lions - to South Africa in 1974 and New Zealand in 1977, playing one international. He was a member of the famous

North North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

team which beat the All Blacks at Otley on 17 November 1979. He was one of four Broughton Park players in this side and was joined by teammates Kevin O’Brien at full back, Tony Bond in the centre and Jim Sydall in the second row.NOWIRUL(E) TIMES ISSUE NO. 1
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322032012/http://www.nowirul.org.uk/newsletters/files/50992744619.pdf , date=22 March 2012 Along with Broughton Park team mate Mike Leadbetter, he was also part of a famous North West Counties team which defeated the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...

, 16-14, in

Workington Workington is a coastal town and civil parish in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. The town is at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast, south-west of Carlisle and north-east of Whitehaven. At the 2021 census the ...

in 1972.

Conviction

Neary was jailed for five years for theft in February 1998 after admitting stealing money from a trust fund of millionaire friend John Gorna. After his release, he commented that "I don't follow rugby any more, I'm just looking to get on with my life."{{cite web , title=Sportsmen who went to jail - Sport - The Observer , website=The Guardian , date=February 10, 2011 , url=https://www.theguardian.com/observer/osm/story/0,,642508,00.html , access-date=March 25, 2021

References

{{reflist {{s-start {{s-sports {{s-bef, before= Fran Cotton {{s-ttl, title=English National Rugby Union Captain, years=1975 {{s-aft, after= John Pullin {{s-bef, before= John Pullin {{s-ttl, title=English National Rugby Union Captain, years=1976 {{s-aft, after= Roger Uttley {{end {{British and Irish Lions 1974 {{British and Irish Lions 1977 {{English national rugby union team captains {{DEFAULTSORT:Neary, Tony 1948 births Living people North of England Rugby Union team English rugby union players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from England England international rugby union players Rugby union flankers Barbarian F.C. players Lancashire County RFU players Alumni of the University of Liverpool Rugby union players from Manchester English fraudsters Prisoners and detainees of England and Wales 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-rugbyunion-bio-1940s-stub