Mark Hopley
Encyclopedia
Mark Hopley is a rugby union
player for Northampton Saints
in the Guinness Premiership
. He plays as a flanker
and started his playing career at Whitchurch Rugby Club
in Shropshire
. Like his fellow Northampton team mate Ben Foden
, he was educated at Bishop Heber High School
in Malpas, Cheshire.
He is 6 ft 3in tall and weighs 16 stone.
He made his debut for Northampton Saints in 2005 against Newcastle Falcons
but really started to shine in the 2007/8 season where he dominated the number 8 shirt. He made 21 appearances and scored 3 tries
.
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player for Northampton Saints
Northampton Saints
Northampton Saints are a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. The Northampton Saints were formed in 1880. They play in green, black and gold colours. They play their home games at Franklin's Gardens, which has a capacity of 13,591....
in the Guinness Premiership
Guinness Premiership
The English Premiership, also currently known as the Aviva Premiership because of the league's sponsorship by Aviva, is a professional league competition for rugby union football clubs in the top division of the English rugby system. There are twelve clubs in the Premiership...
. He plays as a flanker
Flanker (rugby union)
A flanker is a position in the sport of rugby union. Flankers play in the forwards, and are generally classified as either blindside, or openside flankers; numbers six and seven respectively. The name comes from their position in a scrum in which they flank each set of forwards...
and started his playing career at Whitchurch Rugby Club
Whitchurch Rugby Club
Whitchurch RUFC is an amateur rugby union club in Whitchurch, Shropshire. The club was formed in 1936 and until the early 1970s relied mainly on the facilities at the local Grammar School.-Club history:...
in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
. Like his fellow Northampton team mate Ben Foden
Ben Foden
Benjamin Foden is a rugby union footballer who plays for Northampton Saints and England. He plays at fullback or scrum-half, but can also operate on the wing...
, he was educated at Bishop Heber High School
Bishop Heber High School
Bishop Heber High School is a comprehensive secondary school and specialist languages college in Malpas, Cheshire. The school itself is named after Reginald Heber who was an English bishop born in Malpas, Cheshire and is now remembered chiefly as a hymn-writer.-Notable alumni:*Ben Foden, Rugby...
in Malpas, Cheshire.
He is 6 ft 3in tall and weighs 16 stone.
He made his debut for Northampton Saints in 2005 against Newcastle Falcons
Newcastle Falcons
The Newcastle Falcons is an English rugby union team currently playing in the Aviva Premiership. The club was established in 1877 and played under the name of Gosforth Football Club until 1990. The name was then changed to Newcastle Gosforth and the club began to play at Kingston Park stadium in...
but really started to shine in the 2007/8 season where he dominated the number 8 shirt. He made 21 appearances and scored 3 tries
Try
A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...
.