Sean Long
Encyclopedia
Sean Long is an English
former professional rugby league
and current rugby union
footballer with Preston Grasshoppers. He has played for Wigan
, Widnes
and Hull but is best known for playing for St Helens in the Super League
. Internationally he has represented England
and Great Britain
at /. Although primarily a / he has also played many games at /.
. After Wigan Warriors released him from his contract, Long moved to Widnes Vikings
, where he attracted the attention of several of the Super League
's top clubs. He was signed by St Helens in 1997 to replace the departing Bobbie Goulding
.
In the 1997 post season, Long was selected to play for Great Britain
from the interchange bench in two matches of the Super League Test series
against Australia.
Long twice set the St. Helens record for the number of points scored in a Super League season, gaining 284 points in 1999 and 352 points in 2000.
In the 2002 Tetley's Super League Grand Final, Long kicked a last-gasp field goal which gave St. Helens the Championship.
Long has gained many club honours and has won three Lance Todd Trophies
for man-of-the-match performances in the Challenge Cup
final after St. Helens won the trophy in the 2001, 2004 and 2006 finals. By 2005, Long had scored 2000 points for St Helens. During the 2005 season, he sustained a broken cheek bone in a challenge by Wigan's Terry Newton
.
Long scored his 1000th goal for St. Helens on 22 February 2009 in a game against Huddersfield
.
During 2006, St Helens won both the Challenge Cup
and Super League
. following the season, he travelled to Australia with Great Britain for the 2006 Tri-nations and put in a man-of-the-match performance in the Lions' first win in Australia since 1992.
St. Helens in 2007 took all honours apart from the Super League title when they were beaten by Leeds at Old Trafford in the Grand Final. In 2007 Long played his testimonial match for St. Helens playing against Leigh
. Former St. Helens players returned for the game, including Chris Joynt
, Tommy Martyn
and Paul Newlove
. St. Helens won the game 40-10.
Long officially retired from International football
on 16 April 2007, wishing to concentrate on his club career. He has stated that it is a "big possibility" that he will play football in the NRL
in the future. Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks and Kangaroos coach Ricky Stuart
expressed some interest in employing in the Shire
in 2008 but the arrangement was cancelled.
He played in the 2008 Super League Grand Final defeat to the Leeds Rhinos
.
On 1 June 2009 it was announced that Sean had signed a two year contract with Hull for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Also in 2009 an Autobiography, Longy: Booze, Brawls, Sex and Scandal was published.
Sean Long announced his retirement from playing rugby league on the morning of the 10th of August 2011. He now has a assistant coaching job with the Salford City Reds
. On 1 November it was announced he had signed a playing contract with Rugby Union side Preston Grasshoppers in SSE National League 2 North
.
in the Tri nations
. Long played in the first game between Great Britain and Australia, which resulted in Great Britain's first victory in Sydney
in 18 years, with a score of 23-12. However, on 13 November 2006, Long returned home from the Tri-Nations
tour, with 'personal reasons' cited as the reason by Great Britain coach Brian Noble
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former professional rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
and current rugby union
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...
footballer with Preston Grasshoppers. He has played for Wigan
Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
, Widnes
Widnes Vikings
Widnes Vikings RLFC are an English professional rugby league club based in Widnes, Cheshire. They currently play in the Engage Super League, the top tier of European rugby league, after being awarded a license to compete in the top-flight Super League from 2012 onward...
and Hull but is best known for playing for St Helens in the Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
. Internationally he has represented England
England national rugby league team
The England national rugby league team represent England in international rugby league football tournaments. The team has now seen a revival, having largely formed from the Great Britain team, who also represented Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The team is run under the auspices of the Rugby Football...
and Great Britain
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
at /. Although primarily a / he has also played many games at /.
Playing career
After signing from local amateur side, Wigan St. Judes, Long started his career at Wigan WarriorsWigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
. After Wigan Warriors released him from his contract, Long moved to Widnes Vikings
Widnes Vikings
Widnes Vikings RLFC are an English professional rugby league club based in Widnes, Cheshire. They currently play in the Engage Super League, the top tier of European rugby league, after being awarded a license to compete in the top-flight Super League from 2012 onward...
, where he attracted the attention of several of the Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
's top clubs. He was signed by St Helens in 1997 to replace the departing Bobbie Goulding
Bobbie Goulding
Bobbie Goulding is an English rugby league football coach and former player. He is currently the French national team's head coach....
.
In the 1997 post season, Long was selected to play for Great Britain
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
from the interchange bench in two matches of the Super League Test series
Super League Test series
The Super League Test series was a three-Test match series between the Great Britain national rugby league team and Super League's Australian national team held during November 1997 in England...
against Australia.
Long twice set the St. Helens record for the number of points scored in a Super League season, gaining 284 points in 1999 and 352 points in 2000.
In the 2002 Tetley's Super League Grand Final, Long kicked a last-gasp field goal which gave St. Helens the Championship.
Long has gained many club honours and has won three Lance Todd Trophies
Lance Todd Trophy
The Lance Todd Trophy is awarded to the Man-of-the-Match in rugby league football's Challenge Cup Final.The trophy was introduced in 1946, in memory of Lance Todd, the New Zealand-born player and administrator, who was killed in a road accident during the Second World War...
for man-of-the-match performances in the Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout cup competition for rugby league clubs organised by the Rugby Football League. Originally it was contested only by British teams but in recent years has been expanded to allow teams from France and Russia to take part....
final after St. Helens won the trophy in the 2001, 2004 and 2006 finals. By 2005, Long had scored 2000 points for St Helens. During the 2005 season, he sustained a broken cheek bone in a challenge by Wigan's Terry Newton
Terry Newton
Terry Newton was an English international rugby league player. He played for Leeds Rhinos, Wigan Warriors, Bradford Bulls and Wakefield Trinity Wildcats, and was one of a handful of players to feature in each of the first 15 seasons of Super League...
.
Long scored his 1000th goal for St. Helens on 22 February 2009 in a game against Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
.
During 2006, St Helens won both the Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout cup competition for rugby league clubs organised by the Rugby Football League. Originally it was contested only by British teams but in recent years has been expanded to allow teams from France and Russia to take part....
and Super League
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
. following the season, he travelled to Australia with Great Britain for the 2006 Tri-nations and put in a man-of-the-match performance in the Lions' first win in Australia since 1992.
St. Helens in 2007 took all honours apart from the Super League title when they were beaten by Leeds at Old Trafford in the Grand Final. In 2007 Long played his testimonial match for St. Helens playing against Leigh
Leigh Centurions
Leigh Centurions is an English professional rugby league club based in Leigh, Greater Manchester who play in the Co-operative Championship.The club was founded in 1878 as Leigh Rugby Football Club and is one of the original twenty-two clubs that formed the Northern Rugby Football Union in...
. Former St. Helens players returned for the game, including Chris Joynt
Chris Joynt
Chris M. Joynt is an English former professional rugby league footballer of the 1990s and 2000s. A Great Britain international representative , and /, he played his club football with St...
, Tommy Martyn
Tommy Martyn
Tommy Martyn played for St Helens in the Rugby League Premiership and, subsequently, Super League. He also played for Oldham and Leigh Centurions.Martyn teamed up with Bobbie Goulding in the halves for the 1997 Challenge Cup final at Wembley. His two tries and try-saving ankle-tap on Danny Peacock...
and Paul Newlove
Paul Newlove
Paul Newlove is an English former rugby league footballer of the 1980s, 90s and 2000s. A Great Britain and England international representative, he competed in the Super League competition, featuring as a . He played for the St...
. St. Helens won the game 40-10.
Long officially retired from International football
Rugby League International Federation
The Rugby League International Federation is the world governing body of rugby league football. It was formed in 1998 in Sydney, Australia. Its purpose is to, "foster, develop, extend, govern and administer the game of Rugby League throughout the world". Its headquarters are in Sydney, Australia,...
on 16 April 2007, wishing to concentrate on his club career. He has stated that it is a "big possibility" that he will play football in the NRL
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
in the future. Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks and Kangaroos coach Ricky Stuart
Ricky Stuart
Ricky Stuart is an Australian rugby league football coach and former player of the 1980s and 90s. He is currently the head coach of the New South Wales State of Origin team, having replaced Craig Bellamy following a fifth consecutive failure in the 2010 series...
expressed some interest in employing in the Shire
Sutherland Shire
The Sutherland Shire is a Local Government Area in the Southern Sydney region of Sydney, Australia. Geographically, it is the area to the south of Botany Bay and the Georges River...
in 2008 but the arrangement was cancelled.
He played in the 2008 Super League Grand Final defeat to the Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
.
On 1 June 2009 it was announced that Sean had signed a two year contract with Hull for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Also in 2009 an Autobiography, Longy: Booze, Brawls, Sex and Scandal was published.
Sean Long announced his retirement from playing rugby league on the morning of the 10th of August 2011. He now has a assistant coaching job with the Salford City Reds
Salford City Reds
Salford City Reds are an English rugby league club based in Salford, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1873, they currently play in the Super League. They have won six Rugby Football League Championships and one Challenge Cup...
. On 1 November it was announced he had signed a playing contract with Rugby Union side Preston Grasshoppers in SSE National League 2 North
National League 2 North
National League 2 North, is the 4th tier of the English rugby union system and provides mostly amateur competition for teams in the Northern half of England....
.
International career
In 2006, Long was selected for Great BritainGreat Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
in the Tri nations
Rugby League Tri-Nations
The Rugby League Tri-Nations was a rugby league tournament involving the top three nations in the sport: Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand...
. Long played in the first game between Great Britain and Australia, which resulted in Great Britain's first victory in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in 18 years, with a score of 23-12. However, on 13 November 2006, Long returned home from the Tri-Nations
Rugby League Tri-Nations
The Rugby League Tri-Nations was a rugby league tournament involving the top three nations in the sport: Australia, Great Britain and New Zealand...
tour, with 'personal reasons' cited as the reason by Great Britain coach Brian Noble
Brian Noble (rugby league)
Brian 'Nobby' D. Noble is an English former rugby league footballer. Noble is also the former coach of the Great Britain National Rugby League team. He was also the captain of the 1984 Great Britain touring team to Australia...
.
External links
- Sean Long St Helens Career Page on the Saints Heritage Society Website.
- Sean Long Wigan Career Page on the Wigan RL Fansite.
- International Statistics at englandrl.co.uk
- Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org