Bob Mordell (born 2 July 1953) is an English former professional
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
and
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...
footballer, and also a manager. He played
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...
as a professional for
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham ...
(
Heritage № 837),
Kent Invicta
Kent Invicta is a defunct rugby league team that were based in Maidstone, Kent and later Southend in Essex.
History Kent Invicta RLFC and Southend Invicta RLFC
''Kent Invicta RLFC'' was formed by a local businessman, Paul Faires, and Jim Thompso ...
and
Fulham RLFC (
Heritage № 80). He played as a . He was the manager at
Kent Invicta
Kent Invicta is a defunct rugby league team that were based in Maidstone, Kent and later Southend in Essex.
History Kent Invicta RLFC and Southend Invicta RLFC
''Kent Invicta RLFC'' was formed by a local businessman, Paul Faires, and Jim Thompso ...
.
He represented
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
in
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
on one occasion.
At club level his played his rugby union for
Rosslyn Park, and represented
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...
at county level.
He played as a
flanker.
Rugby union
He played his early rugby for the Thamesians club.
Mordell played
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
for
Rosslyn Park during the 1970s, and was in the
Middlesex
Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a historic county in southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the ceremonial county of Greater London, with small sections in neighbour ...
team that won the
County Championship
The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It bec ...
in 1976.
He played international
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
for
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, with his sole appearance coming against
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
in the opening match of the
1978 Five Nations.
Mordell went on the
1979 tour of Japan with England but did not feature in the test matches.
Rugby league
Mordell signed professional terms with
Oldham
Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham ...
in 1979.
Whilst at Oldham he had his jaw broken by fellow rugby union convert
Paul Woods.
Mordell signed for Kent Invicta before their début season in 1983 for £13,500.
The well-respected attacking forward was named as captain of the fledgling
Kent
Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
outfit.
References
External links
Brendan Gallagher: The one cap wonders woefully short-changed
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mordell, Bob
1953 births
Living people
British rugby league administrators
England international rugby union players
English rugby league coaches
English rugby league players
English rugby union players
Kent Invicta captains
Kent Invicta coaches
Kent Invicta players
London Broncos players
Oldham R.L.F.C. players
Rosslyn Park F.C. players
Rugby league players from Greater London
Rugby league second-rows
Rugby union flankers