Keith Alan Bell (third ¼ 1953) is an English former 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 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, 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 * Co ...

ed. He played at representative level for

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 the Featherstone Rovers ( Heritage № 509) (

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 ...

), and

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 ...

, as an occasional goal-kicking , or , i.e. number 9, 11 or 12, or 13, during the era of contested

scrum Scrum may refer to: Sport * Scrum (rugby), a method of restarting play in rugby union and rugby league ** Scrum (rugby union), scrum in rugby union * Scrum, an offensive melee formation in Japanese game Bo-taoshi Media and popular culture * M ...

s, and coached at club level for the Featherstone Lions.

Background

Keith Bell'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 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

district,

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.

Playing career

County honours

Keith Bell won 4- caps for

while at the Featherstone Rovers; during the 1977–78 season against

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

and

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

, during the 1979–80 season against

, and during the 1981–82 season against

Challenge Cup Final appearances

Keith Bell played in the Featherstone Rovers' 9–24 defeat by

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

in the

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

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 ...

Final during the 1973–74 season 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 11 May 1974, in front of a crowd of 77,400.

County Cup Final appearances

Keith Bell played (replaced by interchange/ substitute Johnny Spells) in the Featherstone Rovers' 12–16 defeat by

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 ...

in the

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

County Cup The county football associations are the local governing bodies of association football in England and the Crown dependencies. County FAs exist to govern all aspects of football in England. They are responsible for administering club and player ...

Final during the 1976–77 season, at Headingley Rugby Stadium,

on Saturday 16 October 1976, and played in the 7–17 defeat by

Castleford Castleford is a town within the City of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England. It had a population of 45,106 at a 2021 population estimate. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, to the north of the town centre the River Calder joins the ...

in the

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

Final during the 1977–78 season, at Headingley Rugby Stadium,

on Saturday 15 October 1977.

Club career

Keith Bell made his début for the Featherstone Rovers on Sunday 28 November 1971, during his time at the Featherstone Rovers he scored forty-four 3-point tries, and thirteen 4-point tries, and he played his last match for the Featherstone Rovers during the 1989–90 season.Bailey, Ron (20 September 2001). ''Images of Sport – Featherstone Rovers Rugby League Football Club''. The History Press.

Testimonial match

Keith Bell's benefit

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

/ testimonial match at the Featherstone Rovers took place during the 1984–85 season.

Honoured at Featherstone Rovers

Keith Bell is a Featherstone Rovers Hall of Fame Inductee.

Genealogical information

Keith Bell is the son of the rugby league for the Featherstone Rovers ( Heritage № 152); Jimmy Bell, and Caroline (

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 ...

Townend), and is the youngest brother of the rugby league for the Featherstone Rovers ( Heritage № 387); Roy Bell, the rugby league for the Featherstone Rovers ( Heritage № 438); Peter Bell, Carol A. Bell
birth registered
during second ¼ in

Pontefract Pontefract is a historic market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, east of Wakefield and south of Castleford. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is one of the towns in the City of Wake ...

district), and the rugby league for the Featherstone Rovers ( Heritage № 463); John Bell.

References

External links

Jimmy Bell, Roy Bell, Peter Bell, John Bell and Keith Bell
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Keith 1953 births Living people English rugby league coaches English rugby league players Featherstone Rovers captains Featherstone Rovers players Hunslet R.L.F.C. players Rugby league locks Rugby league props Rugby league second-rows Rugby league players from Wakefield Yorkshire rugby league team players