Bradley Clyde
| Personal information | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Bradley Clyde | |||||
| Born | 27 January 1970 | |||||
| Playing information | ||||||
| Height | 186 cm (6 ft 1 in) | |||||
| Weight | 99 kg (15 st 8 lb) | |||||
| Position | lock, second-row | |||||
| Club | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| 1988–98 | Canberra Raiders | 178 | 38 | 0 | 0 | 156 |
| 1999–00 | Bulldogs | 36 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 |
| 2001 | Leeds Rhinos | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Total | 227 | 47 | 0 | 0 | 192 | |
| Representative | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| 1989–90 | NSW City | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1989–94 | New South Wales | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 1992–94 | NSW Country | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1997 | New South Wales (SL) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1989–94 | Australia | 19 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| 1997 | Australia (SL) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Source: NRL Stats & RLP | ||||||
Bradley Clyde (born 27 January 1970) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer of the 1980s, 90s and 2000s who, at the peak of his playing career was widely acknowledged as the best lock forward in the game. He represented both New South Wales and played for the Australian national side, and played his club football in Australia for the Canberra Raiders and Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, and in England for Leeds Rhinos.
As of the 2015 NRL Grand Final, Clyde is the only player to have twice won the Clive Churchill Medal as the best player in the Grand Final.
Club career
He began his football career playing in the local ACT competition for the Belconnen United Sharks and was an Australian Schoolboy Representative in 1985,1986 and 1987. While attending Hawker College, Clyde played for the Australian Schoolboys team in 1986 and 1987.[1]
In 1988 Clyde was graded by the Canberra Raiders, winning the club's rookie of the year award, and soon established himself as an indispensable player for the club. He played in three Grand finals (1989, 1991 and 1994) and was the recipient of the prestigious Clive Churchill Medal for the Best and Fairest Player in the Grand Final twice (1989 and 1991) – the only player in history to do so. Along with Brad Mackay (St George in 1993) and Daly Cherry-Evans (Manly in 2013), he is also one of only three players to win the Churchill Medal whilst on a losing Grand Final side.
He was also a member of Canberra's premiership winning sides of 1989 (also winning the club's player of the year award that year). In the 1989 post season he travelled with the Raiders to England for the 1989 World Club Challenge which was lost 30-18 to the 1988–89 Rugby Football League champions Widnes at the famous Old Trafford stadium in Manchester, England.
Clyde's 1990 season ended when he tore his Anterior cruciate ligament in a Round 20 match against the Eastern Suburbs Roosters at Henson Park. This caused him to miss Canberra's 18-14 win over the Penrith Panthers in the Grand Final.
Clyde returned to the field in Round 7 of the 1991 season and his form quickly returned. He went on to play in the Raiders 19-12 loss to Penrith the Grand Final. He then started for Canberra in their 36-12 win over Canterbury-Bankstown in the 1994 Grand Final. At the end of the 1994 NSWRL season, he was selected for the 1994 Kangaroo tour. In a career spanning eleven seasons with the Raiders, Clyde scored 39 tries in a total of 178 games.
Clyde moved from the Raiders to the Bulldogs in 1999, playing with the Belmore (Sydney) based club and scoring 8 tries in 36 games.
English Super League club Leeds Rhinos signed Clyde on a two-year deal starting in 2001.[2] He moved to the club alongside fellow Australians Brett Mullins and Tonie Carroll, finishing his playing career there.
Representative career
He made 12 appearances for New South Wales in State of Origin games between 1989 and 1994 at lock forward.
He represented the Kangaroos in eighteen Tests over five years scoring six tries. He was named Man-of-the Series in 1989 with his debut tour v New Zealand. Injury in 1990 would prevent him from playing in the mid-season test against France in Parkes, while his ACL injury would prevent his selection in the test against New Zealand and the 1990 Kangaroo tour.
Clyde returned to the Australian team for the 1991 Trans-Tasman Test series against New Zealand where he was one of Australia's best in the 2-1 series win. After starring in the 1991 Grand Final loss, Clyde was named as vice-captain of the Australian team for the Tour of Papua New Guinea at the end of the year and was named Man of the Series also.
During the 1992 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand, he helped Australia retain The Ashes and was awarded with the Harry Sunderland Medal for the Player of the Series.[3] He was also selected to play at lock for Australia in the 1992 Rugby League World Cup Final at London's famous Wembley Stadium following the 1992 NSWRL season. Although Australia retained its World Champions crown with a 10-6 win over Great Britain, Clyde had an unhappy game after dislocating his shoulder midway through the second half.[4]
After injury kept him out of the 1993 State of Origin series, Clyde was selected at lock for Australia in the mid-season Trans-Tasman series against New Zealand, won 2-0 by Australia.
Injury would again prevent his selection in the 1994 mid-season test against France, though after playing in Canberra's 1994 Grand Final win he would gain selection on the 1994 Kangaroo Tour of Great Britain and France. He would play in all four tests on tour and help the Kangaroos retain The Ashes. Clyde had a strong tour, scoring a try in the second test win at Old Trafford, but again his Wembley experience was soured. Clyde was concussed and had to leave the field during the first half of the opening test after a high tackle by Shaun Edwards saw the Great Britain captain sent off.
He played two Super League Tests for Australia in 1997, including the third and deciding match of the Super League Test series against Great Britain along with three Super League Tri-series matches for New South Wales that year.
Post-playing
Clyde is an inductee into the ACT Sport Hall of Fame. He was recognised by the Australian Government for his contribution to Rugby League by being awarded the Australian Sports Medal.
In 2002 Clyde was named in a 90s Team of the Decade. In 2005 on the 25th anniversary of State of Origin he was named by Rugby League Week as one of NSW's 25 greatest players.
Clyde also made a cameo appearance in the 2006 film, Footy Legends.[5]
In February 2008, Clyde was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the NRL and ARL to celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia.[6]
Also following retirement Clyde served on the NRL judiciary.[7]
Clyde is currently the Football Manager at the Bulldogs Rugby League Club. Within this role he manages the Football Department of the Club consisting of recruitment, operations, development, medical, contractual arrangements plus education and welfare.
References
- ↑ "SportingPulse Homepage for Australian Secondary Schools Rugby League". SportingPulse. Retrieved 2008-10-10.
- ↑ news.bbc.co.uk (2000-07-08). "Rhinos sign Test star Clyde". BBC Sport Online. BBC. Retrieved 2009-10-07.
- ↑ "ACT Sport Hall of Fame Inductees". actsport.com.au. ACT Sport. Retrieved 2 April 2011.
- ↑ 1992 World Cup Final at Rugby League Project
- ↑ Maddox, Gary (2007-07-26). "Lights, camera, scrum feed: league hits the big screen". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Digital. Retrieved 2009-10-07.
- ↑ "Centenary of Rugby League – The Players". NRL & ARL. 2008-02-23. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
- ↑ Dean Ritchie and Christian Nicolussi (2010-06-04). "Johnathan Thurston let-off backfires on NRL". The Daily Telegraph (Australia: Herald and Weekly Times.). Retrieved 2010-06-03.
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