Harold Poynton (1 March 1936 – 4 June 2018) also known by the

nickname A nickname is a substitute for the proper name of a familiar person, place or thing. Commonly used to express affection, a form of endearment, and sometimes amusement, it can also be used to express defamation of character. As a concept, it is ...

s "Fishcake", "Poynton the Pippin", and "Prince of Bamboozlers",Waring, Eddie (1963). ''Eddie Waring - Rugby League - Annual 1963–64''. Stockport: Boon & Co. ISBN na was an English professional

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 112 ...

footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s. He played at representative level for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

and

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

, and at club level for

Wakefield Trinity Wakefield Trinity is a professional rugby league club in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England, that plays in the Super League. One of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in 1895, between 1999 and 2016 the c ...

( Heritage No. 643) (

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

), as a , or , i.e. number 6, or 7.

Background

Harold Poynton was born in Lupset,

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

, England. He was a pupil at St Michael's School, Flanshaw, Wakefield, and then Snapethorpe School, Lupset, Wakefield, and he would watch Wakefield Trinity play over-the-wall without paying. He joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

at age 18, whilst stationed in Germany, he played

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

, and for the first time he played

rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league. Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...

, and he left the army aged 21, and in 1957 he trialled for Wakefield Trinity's A-Team. He worked as a

warehouse A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the outskirts of cities ...

man , and he later worked as a

sales Sales are activities related to selling or the number of goods sold in a given targeted time period. The delivery of a service for a cost is also considered a sale. The seller, or the provider of the goods or services, completes a sale in r ...

man for a food company. His nickname of "

fishcake A fishcake (sometimes written as fish cake) is a culinary dish consisting of filleted fish or other seafood minced or ground, mixed with a starchy ingredient, and fried until golden. Asian-style fishcakes usually contain fish with salt, water, ...

" originated from his habitual fish and chip shop order following training sessions with Wakefield Trinity, and was given to him by

Derek Turner Derek Turner (13 November 1932 – 31 July 2015), also known by the nickname of "Rocky", was an English World Cup winning professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, and coached in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. ...

. He and his wife Kath ran

newsagent's shop A newsagent's shop or simply newsagent's or paper shop (British English), newsagency (Australian English) or newsstand (American and Canadian English Canadian English (CanE, CE, en-CA) encompasses the varieties of English native to Can ...

s for over 30 years, initially on Hesley Road, Kettlethorpe,

, and then on Dewsbury Road (opposite Ashleigh Avenue), Lupset,

. On 15 July 2007 Harold Poynton had the beer Poynton's Pride named after him. Harold Poynton's funeral service took place at Wakefield Cathedral at 11:00am on 21 June 2018, followed by cremation at

Wakefield Crematorium Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

at 1:00pm, and a reception at

Waterton House Waterton may refer to: Places * Waterton Lake, Waterton Lakes National Park, in Alberta, Canada * Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park in Canada and the USA **Waterton Park, Alberta, also known as Waterton, a town on the Canadian side of the I ...

Playing career

International honours

Harold Poynton played , alongside Wakefield Trinity teammate; left-; Jack Wilkinson, and against teammates left-; Neil Fox, and ;

, in

Rest of the League Rest or REST may refer to: Relief from activity * Sleep ** Bed rest * Kneeling * Lying (position) * Sitting * Squatting position Structural support * Structural support ** Rest (cue sports) ** Armrest ** Headrest ** Footrest Arts and entertain ...

's 16–21 defeat by

in pre-

1960 Rugby League World Cup The 1960 Rugby League World Cup was the third staging of the tournament and the first Rugby League World Cup to be held in Great Britain. The same format as used in 1957 was used, with a group stage leading to a final table. The 1960 World Cup ...

warm-up match, in aid of the

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...

's Jubilee Trust, at

Knowsley Road Knowsley Road in Eccleston, St Helens, Merseyside, was the home ground of St. Helens from 1890 until its closure in 2010. St Helens Town FC played their home fixtures at Knowsley Road from 2002 until 2010. For a period, the venue also hosted ...

, St. Helens on Monday 12 September 1960, he played in

's 17–10 victory over

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in the second 1962 Great Britain Lions tour

Ashes Ashes may refer to: *Ash, the solid remnants of fires. Media and entertainment Art * ''Ashes'' (Munch), an 1894 painting by Edvard Munch Film * ''The Ashes'' (film), a 1965 Polish film by director Andrzej Wajda * ''Ashes'' (1922 film), a ...

Test Match at

Lang Park Lang Park, also known as Brisbane Football Stadium, by the sponsored name Suncorp Stadium, and nicknamed: 'The Cauldron', is a multi-purpose stadium in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, located in the suburb of Milton. The current facility co ...

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

on Saturday 30 June 1962, and the 17–18 defeat by

in the third 1962 Great Britain Lions tour

Test Match at

Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) is a sports stadium in Sydney, Australia. It is used for Test cricket, Test, One Day International and Twenty20 cricket, as well as, Australian rules football and occasionally for rugby league, rugby union and as ...

on Saturday 14 July 1962, and played in the 8–27 defeat by

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

in the second Test Match at Carlaw Park,

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

on Saturday 11 August 1962. In addition to the above Test Matches, Harold Poynton also played in the following 1962 Great Britain Lions tour matches; the 24–10 victory over Western New South Wales at Bathurst, New South Wales on Sunday 27 May 1962, the 18–23 defeat by Newcastle at

Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...

on Monday 4 June 1962, the 36–12 victory over Toowoomba at Toowoomba on Sunday 17 June 1962, the 55–8 victory over Central Queensland at

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. The population of Rockhampton in June 2021 was 79,967, Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. making it the fourth-largest city in the state outside of the ...

on Wednesday 20 June 1962, the 33–31 victory over

Far North Queensland Far North Queensland (FNQ) is the northernmost part of the Australian state of Queensland. Its largest city is Cairns and it is dominated geographically by Cape York Peninsula, which stretches north to the Torres Strait, and west to the Gulf C ...

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

on Saturday 23 June 1962, the 20–5 victory over

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

on Saturday 7 July 1962, the 10–18 defeat by Northern New South Wales at Tamworth, New South Wales on Sunday 8 July 1962, the 81–14 victory over Bay of Plenty at

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompass ...

on Tuesday 7 August 1962, the 13–46 defeat by

on Monday 13 August 1962, the 49–30 victory over

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends ...

on Thursday 23 August 1962, the 39–33 victory over

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

on Saturday 25 August 1962, and the 45–23 victory over

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

on Friday 31 August 1962.

County honours

Harold Poynton won a cap for

while at Wakefield Trinity, he played , alongside Wakefield Trinity teammates; ;

Fred Smith Fred, Frederic, or Frederick Smith may refer to: In literature *Frederick Smith, 2nd Earl of Birkenhead (1907–1975), British peer and biographer *Frederick Smith, 3rd Earl of Birkenhead (1936–1985), British peer and author * Frederick E. Smith ...

, left-; Neil Fox, left-; Jack Wilkinson, and right-;

in the defeat by

Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...

, at Recreation Ground,

Whitehaven Whitehaven is a town and port on the English north west coast and near to the Lake District National Park in Cumbria, England. Historically in Cumberland, it lies by road south-west of Carlisle and to the north of Barrow-in-Furness. It is th ...

on Wednesday 14 September 1960.

Championship Final appearances

Harold Poynton played , and was

, and scored a

try Try or TRY may refer to: Music Albums * ''Try!'', an album by the John Mayer Trio * ''Try'' (Bebo Norman album) (2014) Songs * "Try" (Blue Rodeo song) (1987) * "Try" (Colbie Caillat song) (2014) * "Try" (Nelly Furtado song) (2004) * " Try (Ju ...

in Wakefield Trinity's 21–9 victory over St. Helens in the Championship Final

replay Replay may refer to: * Replay (sports), a replayed match between two sport teams Technology * Game replay, a recording of a game session. * Instant replay, in motion pictures and television, a showing again of part of a film * Replay Professional, ...

during the 1966–67 season at

Station Road, Swinton Station Road was a stadium in Pendlebury, near Manchester, England. It was the home of Swinton Rugby League Club between 1929 and 1992 and was widely recognised as one of the finest grounds in the Rugby League. Swinton moved to Station Road w ...

on Wednesday 10 May 1967, played , and was captain, and scored a goal the 17–10 victory over Hull Kingston Rovers in the Championship Final during the 1967–68 season at Headingley Rugby Stadium,

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

on Saturday 4 May 1968.Hoole, Les (2004). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC – FIFTY GREAT GAMES''. Breedon Books.

Challenge Cup Final appearances

Harold Poynton was injured in Wakefield Trinity's 11–2 victory over Featherstone Rovers in the

Challenge Cup The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involves am ...

semi-final A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

Odsal Stadium Odsal Stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, is the home of Bradford Bulls Rugby League team. It has also been used by the Bradford Dukes speedway team, BRISCA F1 and F2 stock cars, the football team Bradford City, following the Valley ...

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

on Saturday 9 April 1960, and so he missed the 38–5 victory over

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and were ...

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 Wak ...

Final, but he played in Wakefield Trinity's 12–6 victory over

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district 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 confluence into ...

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 Quarter Finals Semi Finals Final Wakefield Trinity beat Huddersfield 12-6 in the Challenge Cup Fi ...

Final at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on Saturday 12 May 1962, in front of a crowd of 81,263, played , scored a try, played , and was

man of the match In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...

winning the Lance Todd Trophy in the 25–10 victory over

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas, Lancashire, River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the nor ...

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 at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 11 May 1963, in front of a crowd of 84,492, and played , and was

in the 10–11 defeat by

in the

1967–68 Challenge Cup The 1967–68 Challenge Cup was the 67th staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. The final was contested by Leeds and Wakefield Trinity at Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" ofte ...

Final (the "Watersplash" final) at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 11 May 1968, in front of a crowd of 87,100.

County Cup Final appearances

Harold Poynton played in Wakefield Trinity's 16–10 victory over Huddersfield in the

1960–61 Yorkshire Cup 1960–61 Yorkshire Cup was the fifty-third occasion on which the Yorkshire Cup competition was held. Wakefield Trinity won the trophy by beating Huddersfield by the score of 16-10 in the final played at Headingley, Leeds, now in West Yorkshire ...

Final during the 1960–61 season at Headingley Rugby Stadium,

on Saturday 29 October 1960, 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 at

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

Final at Fartown,

on Saturday 31 October 1964.

Club career

Geoffrey Oakes, Reg Parker, and Harold Poynton made their début for Wakefield Trinity in the 17–12 victory over St. Helens at Belle Vue,

on Saturday 1 February 1958, in early 1963 he was the subject of a £8,000 transfer bid from St. Helens, (based on inflation, this would be ) (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately equivalent to £322,100.00 in 2017), and he played his last match for Wakefield Trinity against

at Belle Vue,

on Saturday 13 September 1969, after which he retired due to a recurring knee injury.

Testimonial match

Harold Poynton's Testimonial match for

was the 10–5 victory over the then league-leaders

, at Belle Vue,

on Monday 15 April 1968.

Honours

;Wakefield Trinity *

: 1961–62, 1962–63 *

Rugby Football League The Rugby Football League is the governing body for professional rugby league in England, and until 1995 for the whole British Isles. The name Rugby Football League previously also referred to the main league competition run by the organisati ...

: 1966–67, 1967–68

Family

Harold Poynton's married Kathleen (

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

Stanley) in 1965 in

. They had two children; David (born 1966) and Rachel (born 1971).

References

External links

Poynton - "Prince Of Bamboozlers"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Poynton, Harold 1936 births 2018 deaths 20th-century British Army personnel English rugby league players Great Britain national rugby league team players Lance Todd Trophy winners Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league halfbacks Rugby league players from Wakefield Wakefield Trinity captains Wakefield Trinity players Yorkshire rugby league team players