Kenneth Traill (7 September 1926 – 25 March 2002) 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 11 ...

footballer who played in the 1940s and 1950s, 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 in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. 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 i ...

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

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

, and at club level for

Hunslet Hunslet () is an inner-city area in south Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is southeast of the city centre and has an industrial past. It is situated in the Hunslet and Riverside ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds Central parliamentar ...

Bradford Northern The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is pre ...

( Heritage №), Halifax ( Heritage № 670) and

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 ...

( Heritage № 639), as a , and coached at club level for Wakefield Trinity.

Background

Traill was born in West Wylam,

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

, England, he was the son of the former

and

Keighley Keighley ( ) is a market town and a civil parish in the City of Bradford Borough of West Yorkshire, England. It is the second largest settlement in the borough, after Bradford. Keighley is north-west of Bradford city centre, north-west of ...

rugby league footballer; Jim Traill. Traill attended Hunslet Carr School, he and his wife Joan were the landlord and lady of the Prospect Inn, 93 Moor Road,

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 ...

, and he died aged 75 in

Guiseley Guiseley ( ) is a town in metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is situated south of Otley and Menston and is now a north-western suburb of Leeds. It sits in th ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

, England.

Playing career

Traill made his debut for

against

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 ...

at Parkside,

on Saturday 26 February 1944. His career at

was interrupted by

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

national service.

Bradford Northern

He joined

in May 1947, making his début against

. Traill played in Bradford Northern's 3–8 defeat by

Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the 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 north-east and Warrington t ...

in the

1947–48 Challenge Cup The 1947–48 Challenge Cup was the 47th staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. The final was contested by Wigan and Bradford Northern at Wembley Stadium, and was the first ever rugby league match to be televise ...

Final during 1947–48 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 original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, 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 dow ...

on Saturday 1 May 1948, in front of a crowd of 91,465, and played in the 12–0 victory over Halifax in the

1948–49 Challenge Cup The 1948–49 Challenge Cup was the 48th staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. The 29 clubs of the rugby league were joined in the competition by three junior clubs, one each from Yorkshire, Lancashire and Cumb ...

Final during the 1948–49 season on Saturday 7 May 1949, in front of a crowd of 95,050. He was first selected for

in 1949, playing against

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. He also played in Bradford Northern's 11–4 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

1949–50 Yorkshire Cup 1949–50 was the forty-second occasion on which the Yorkshire Cup competition had been held. Bradford Northern won the trophy by beating Huddersfield by the score of 11-4. The match was played at Headingley, Leeds, now in West Yorkshire. The at ...

Final during the 1949–50 season at

Headingley Rugby Stadium Headingley Rugby Stadium shares the same site as Headingley Cricket Ground and is home to Leeds Rhinos. Headingley is the 5th largest rugby league stadium in England. History 1889-1980s: Construction and development Leeds St Johns, who ...

on Saturday 29 October 1949. He was selected for

in 1950, however officials withdrew him from the side when they learned he was born in

, England. He was selected to represent

in 1950, playing in two matches against

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 ...

, and in 1951, again against New Zealand. Traill played in Bradford Northern's 6–13 defeat by Wigan in the

Rugby Football League Championship The Rugby Football League Championship First Division was the top division of rugby league in England between 1895 and 1996, when it was replaced by the Super League. History 1895–1904: Foundations The first season of rugby league (189 ...

Final during the 1951–52 season at

Leeds Road Leeds Road was a football stadium in Huddersfield, England. It operated from its construction in 1908 until the Kirklees Stadium was opened nearby for the 1994–95 season. It was the home of Huddersfield Town A.F.C. from 1908 to 1994 and was ...

on Saturday 10 May 1952. He played in three matches for Great Britain in 1952, against Australia. Traill was again selected for England in 1953, playing 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 ...

and

Other Nationalities The Other Nationalities rugby league team are a rugby league representative team that usually consists of non-English players. They have also played under the name The Exiles and more recently Combined Nations All Stars. They competed in the first ...

, and again in 1955, playing against Other Nationalities. In 1954 he played for Great Britain against both New Zealand and Australia. He also played in one game against France for Great Britain. He left Bradford Northern having played 315 matches for the Bradford Northern in ten seasons, scoring 37 tries and kicking three goals.

Halifax

He joined Halifax for the 1955-56 season. His last match was against Wakefield Trinity.

Wakefield Trinity

In 1957 Triall moved again, joining

. He was appointed as the

player-coach A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

the following year.Lindley, John (02/12/1961). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC Official Programme: Batley''. John Lindley Son & Co Ltd. ISBN n/a He was selected for Yorkshire County XIII during the 1958-59 season. That year he was the

during Wakefield Trinity's 20–24 defeat by

in the

1958–59 Yorkshire Cup The 1958 Yorkshire Cup was the fifty-first occasion on which the competition had been held. Leeds won the trophy by beating Wakefield Trinity by the score of 24-20. Background This season there were no junior/amateur clubs taking part, no new ...

Final during the 1958–59 season at Odsal Stadium, Bradford on Saturday 18 October 1958.

Coaching career

After retiring as a player, Traill continued to coach Wakefield Trinity. Wakefield Trinity defeated

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 ...

38–5 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 W ...

Final during the 1959–60 season at

on Saturday 14 May 1960, in front of a crowd of 79,773. The following week, on 21 May, the team lost the Championship final to Wigan 3-27. He was coach in the 16–10 victory over

in the 1960–61 Yorkshire Cup Final during the 1960–61 season at

, Leeds on Saturday 29 October 1960. He also coached Wakefield Trinity in the 19–9 victory over

in the 1961–62 Yorkshire Cup Final during the 1961–62 season at Odsal Stadium, Bradford on Saturday 11 November 1961. Later that season, he was the coach during the 12–6 victory over

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 ...

final at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 12 May 1962, in front of a crowd of 81,263. The following week they played Huddersfield again, this time losing 5-14 in the 1961–62 season championship final at Odsal Stadium, Bradford on Saturday 19 May 1962. He was the coach in the 25–10 victory over Wigan in the 1962–63 Challenge Cup Final during the 1962–63 season at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 11 May 1963, in front of a crowd of 84,492. He was coach in the 18–2 victory over

in the 1964–65 Yorkshire Cup Final during the 1964–65 season at

Fartown Ground The Fartown Ground or just simply Fartown is a sports ground located in the Huddersfield suburb of Fartown in West Yorkshire, England and is predominantly famous for being the home ground of Huddersfield Rugby League Club from 1878 to 1992. T ...

on Saturday 31 October 1964. He was the coach in the 21-9 victory over St. Helens in the Championship final replay during the 1966–67 season at Station Road, Swinton on Wednesday 10 May 1967. Traill coached Wakefield Trinity to a 17-10 victory over

Hull Kingston Rovers Hull Kingston Rovers are a professional rugby league club based in Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, England, that competes in the Super League, the top tier of British rugby league. The club has won five league championships, and one Challen ...

in the Championship final during the 1967–68 season at Headingley Rugby Stadium, Leeds on Saturday 4 May 1968.Hoole, Les (2004). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC - FIFTY GREAT GAMES''. Breedon Books. The following week, he was the coach in the 10-11 defeat by

in the 1967–68 Challenge Cup "Watersplash" final at Wembley Stadium, London on Saturday 11 May 1968, in front of a crowd of 87,100.Hoole, Les (2004). ''Wakefield Trinity RLFC – FIFTY GREAT GAMES''. Breedon Books. He retired in 1970. During this time, Wakefield Trinity had also won the

RFL Yorkshire League The Yorkshire League and the Lancashire League formed two sections of the Rugby Football League Championship for much of its history. Initially, the 22 clubs that broke away in 1895 played in one combined league; however, the following season saw ...

in 1958-59, 1959–60, 1961–62 and 1962-63.

Honours

In August 2007 he was named

Team of the Century In team sport, team of the century and team of the decade are hypothetical best teams over a given time period. For the century team, it can be either 100 years, or for a century (always the 20th). Similarly the team of the decade can be for 10 ...

Background

Playing career

Bradford Northern

Halifax

Wakefield Trinity

Coaching career

Honours

References

External links