John Bentley (born 5 September 1966) is an English former dual-code 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 ...

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 who played in the 1980s and 1990s. Nicknamed 'Bentos', he played club rugby union as a

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is e ...

for

Otley Otley is a market town and civil parish at a bridging point on the River Wharfe, in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the population was 13,668 at the 20 ...

, Sale,

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

and

Rotherham Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...

. Internationally he won 4 caps 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 ...

and toured with the

British and Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...

in 1997, winning 2 test caps. In rugby league he played at club level for

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 popula ...

, Halifax (two spells),

Balmain Tigers The Balmain Tigers (also known as the Sydney Tigers from 1995–96) are a rugby league club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful i ...

and

Huddersfield Giants Huddersfield Giants are an English professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, the birthplace of rugby league, who play in the Super League competition. They play their home games at the John Smiths Stadium which is sha ...

as a . He won 5 international caps for

, and 2 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 i ...

Background

Bentley was born in Dewsbury,

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 currently lives in nearby

Mirfield Mirfield () is a town and civil parish in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the A644 road between Brighouse and Dewsbury. At the 2011 census it had a population of 19,563. Mirfield ...

with his wife Sandy and three children. He is currently involved with

Leeds Tykes Leeds Tykes (formerly Leeds RUFC, Leeds Carnegie and Yorkshire Carnegie) is an English rugby union club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the National League 1. The club was founded as Headingley FC, but renamed in 1991 when it j ...

community rugby programme and matchday entertainment. He is an Honorary President of the Yorkshire region of the rugby charity

Wooden Spoon Wooden Spoon may refer to: * Wooden spoon, implement * Wooden spoon (award) A wooden spoon is an award that is given to an individual or team that has come last in a competition. Examples range from the academic to sporting and more frivolous e ...

improving the lives of disadvantaged children and young people in Britain and Ireland, and hosts and coaches at rugby union camps across England with Sale Sharks, Newcastle Falcons, and Leeds Carnegie.

Career

Originally a rugby union player, he made his

début against

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in 1988 aged 21 and played on the summer tour against Australia. After training as a

policeman A police officer (also called a policeman and, less commonly, a policewoman) is a warranted law employee of a police force. In most countries, "police officer" is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. In some, the use of the ...

he switched codes from rugby union, which was then an amateur game, to rugby league, where he became a professional. He played for

, before moving on to Halifax, as well as enjoying a short spell in Australia with

. He played for

, and for England in the 1995 Rugby League World Cup When rugby union became openly professional in 1995, Bentley returned to the code, signing for

Newcastle Falcons Newcastle Falcons is a rugby union team that play in Premiership Rugby, England's highest division of rugby union. The club was established in 1877 as the Gosforth Football Club. Around 1882 the club merged with the Northumberland Football Cl ...

in 1996. He made 3 appearances as they won their first and so far only Premiership title in 1998. He was selected for the 1997 British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa, where he played in the second and third Tests. After the tour he played twice more for England at rugby union before switching back to rugby league with

References

External links

Sporting Heroes profileAfter Dinner Speaker profileSoccer Speaker profileBentley proves his true worthLeeds profileCleckheaton RUFC
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bentley, John 1966 births Living people Balmain Tigers players British & Irish Lions rugby union players from England Dual-code rugby internationals England international rugby union players England national rugby league team players English rugby league players English rugby union players Great Britain national rugby league team players Halifax R.L.F.C. players Huddersfield Giants players Leeds Rhinos players Newcastle Falcons players Rotherham Titans players Rugby league players from Dewsbury Rugby league wingers Rugby union players from Dewsbury Rugby union wings Sale Sharks players Yorkshire County RFU players