Staff Mark Graham

[Trugoy]

Mark Graham

Just saw on NRL 360 that the great Mark Graham has been inducted into the Rugby League Hall of Fame.
Well deserved and awesome recognition for arguably (and in my opinion) NZ’s greatest player.
Congrats to the legend!

 

[Defence]

Well deserved that.
The earliest test series I can remember was 86 (I think) and mark graham was unbelievable against a gun Aussie side.
For u younger folk it was like lebron v gsw.

 

[playdaball]

He was great. He was unlucky that he played at Norrhs ( my favourite team at that time). If he’d been at one of the top sides he would have been an immortal.

 

[Sup42]

Legend.

Certainly one of my childhood heroes, Ali, Bruce Lee, Mark Graham.

Well done Aussies

Lasting memory of him cutting loose at Eden Park, busting the Aussies open....looking left and right to pass.....I looked on in Awe and thought...that's footballer....looking for his mates

 

[dean]

When he played for Otahuhu the forwards included Hugh Mc Gahan, Owen Wright, Terry Whittle and a few others I can't remember. NRL standard at suburban Auckland grounds. Our best player.

 

[Sup42]

Mark Graham had a few good yarns on Radio sport this morning.

Jason Pine the host asked him about what it was like playing for the Bears when you had Commentators saying rude things about them.

Graham recounted how before playing Manly they were sat in the dressing Room when legendary Commentator Rex Mossop walked in and said to their coach in front of all of them....

" this game is going to be on TV...can you make sure these guys at least have a go...they are hopeless....can you do something about it ? "

The players couldn't believe it was being said right in front of them...." we went out there an beat them by forty, they were coming first at the time "

Other interesting insights on how the game has changed ' now days you have blokes running two hundred meters a game and playing the ball...in my time the coach would have said "that's all very good and every thing...and would have sent you back to Reserve grade to learn to pass "

" That's what I like about the Warriors now...the seniors...Bully...Blair....Blake....and ah......the number Seven (LOL) those guys are playing football...passing the ball "

" The Bears were like the Warriors, our top side was very good....but as soon as we had injuries there was a big gap "

" When you got hurt if you didn't get up your mates would start having a go at you " don't show them you are injured"

" Now days you stay down to help your team win a penalty or get two points"

When asked why he never accepted a contract from other clubs " I was from Otahuhu....if you lived in Otahuhu you played for Otahuhu....no one came in from the outside and if they did they wouldn't fit in....My mates were from North Sydney ......"


Ended the interview asking if he could say to Rubin and Stacey that I am sure your time is coming soon too "

 

[wrighty]

Our Greatest player. Much Respect.

 

[Sup42]

 

[Stone]

A long overdue honor & about bloody time IMO

Otablu / Kiwis / Rugby League Legend & a genuinely humble top notch bloke as well

I've had the honor of meeting the great man on a few occasions both as a kid & an adult & it's something I'll truly never forget

Back in the day when the Kiwis played the Roos Mark Graham was the only player we had that they genuinely feared, so much so that it was actually part of the Roos gameplan to take Graham out of the game by any means necessary if he was playing

In Graham Lowe's book ... Lowe & Behold ... Lowe does not hold back on his praise for the great man & considered Graham not only an integral part of any team he played for, but quite simply The Greatest Rugby League Player Of His Generation

That's extremely high praise when you also consider Graham played in the same era as men such as Lewis, Sterling, Kenny, Price, Meninga, Pearce, Hanley, Schofield, McGahan, Bell, The Sorenson Brothers ... just to name a few off the top of my head

Mark Graham = A True Rugby League Immortal in my book

Captain Indestructible in the famous blue strip of Otahuhu sitting front row to the left of Coach Lowe ...

Graham in ball playing mode for the North Sydney Bears ...

Graham breaking the line for The Kiwis against The Roos ...

Mark Kerry Graham Born 29 September 1955 (age 62)

Height: 191 cm (6ft 3in) Weight: 90kgs Position: Second Row

Teams: Otahuhu mid-late 1970's, Brisbane Norths 1979-80, North Sydney 1981-88 - 145 games 29 Tries 1 Goal 105 Points
Wakefield Trinity 1988 Representative: Auckland mid-late 70's, New Zealand 1977-88 - 28 games 7 tries 28 points (wiki says 24 points ???)
Head Coach: Auckland Warriors 1999-00 Games 50 Won 18 Draw 2 Lost 30 Win% 36 (ouch ... almost didn't put that in there lol)

 

[mt.wellington]

Had the pleasure of sinking a few beers with the man himself and he is just a really nice guy. Sat there for a few hours listening to his awesome war stories with Otahuhu, Kiwis and the Bears. Favourite time was with him, Olsen Filipaina and Kurt Sorensen recounting the early days at a function at The Strand Tavern.

Awesome achievement by him but being named the NZRL Player of the Century is better one...

 

[Trugoy]

Had to pull this out for a fresh read!

Coming from a staunch rugby union family, Mark Graham was one of the biggest reasons I fell in love with League as a little kid..and then became the black sheep of the family! Haha
He’s also why I supprted North Sydney as a youngster.
So stoked for the great man!

 

[fizurg]

Was he really only 90kg?

 

[eric]

Posted this ages ago but can’t rmemebr what thread. He was the manager/handyman of the unit complex I lived in when I moved to the gold coast with my family. I wasn’t born in his era but dad told me all about him.

I used to ask him questions about his playing days and stuff while he did the gardening around the place lol... such a nice guy.

 

[mt.wellington]

Posted this ages ago but can’t rmemebr what thread. He was the manager/handyman of the unit complex I lived in when I moved to the gold coast with my family. I wasn’t born in his era but dad told me all about him.

I used to ask him questions about his playing days and stuff while he did the gardening around the place lol... such a nice guy.

Think he's a wharfie now???

 

[eric]

Think he's a wharfie now???

Not sure. He was only at my complex for 8-12 months. This was sometime between 2003-05. After that I heard he went further up north qld. Doing what though, I couldn’t tell you.

 

[Sup42]

Think he's a wharfie now???

He was at the ports.

Now drives a Dozer doing coal...retires in two and a bit years.

 

[Stone]

Was he really only 90kg?

Players were generally not as large & muscular back then as they are now

As far as the 90kgs goes ... Graham is tall, broad shouldered & was completely ripped with very little fat in his playing days

But he wasn't a particularly large man, even by the standards of yesteryear

He had a more slender athletic build like a thoroughbred race horse built for endurance as opposed to a built for power bodybuilder type

 

[Sup42]

Players were generally not as large & muscular back then as they are now

As far as the 90kgs goes ... Graham is tall, broad shouldered & was completely ripped with very little fat in his playing days

But he wasn't a particularly large man, even by the standards of yesteryear

He had a more slender athletic build like a thoroughbred race horse built for endurance as opposed to a built for power bodybuilder type

All true....Although there were still some monsters of course.

The game was a lot more violent. The wrestle took that away...you would remember the days when NZ could win by smashing players senseless.

Remember when a spot tackle was a standard League hit ?

There was much worse of course....legal pole axe tackles ( for our younger veiwers that's when u tip a man upside down and drive his head into the ground...we used to cheer that stuff on as good defence).

The game probably peaked for collision speeds in the 80's dudes used to get Knocked out from legal tackles.

Harrigan and Mark Caroll had some good ones....there were worse than that too....

Mark Graham in todays game would still be the man....he was that skilled....tough....a real athlete.

 

[Samo]

He was at the ports.

Now drives a Dozer doing coal...retires in two and a bit years.

This is what is so sad about Rugby League. It is the hardest, most physical sport on this planet, yet legends like this are still having to do gardening/handyman/dozers etc after retirement.

I genuinely hope the international game grows over the next 20 years as they are trying to do with the US etc so that we can get some real money into this sport and let these greats go off and enjoy their retirement and rest their battered bodies in luxury.

My father in law is English and when I talk to him about what a big deal Shaun Johnson or JT getting a mil a year or luring Tomkins over for "big money" he just laughs at me and says how the local no-name juniors in the Premier League wouldn't be far from getting that sort of coin...

 

[Stone]

For sure Sup42 bro

Back then League was a genuine combat sport & quite a few players were essentially nothing but thugs in a football jersey ... especially in the forwards

That for me is what sets Mark Graham apart, he was as tough as they come & wasn't shy to throw a punch if he felt it was warranted, but he generally played the game in a clean & fair manner

When you also consider his athleticism, his excellent ball playing ability, his rock solid defense & his innate ability to read the game ... he was essentially the prototype for the modern day footballer athlete

That's why I totally agree that he would still stand out & excel in today's game

In fact I would even go so far as to say that with the game being a lot cleaner now & all the advances made in sports science etc ... Graham in his prime could quite possibly be even better now than he was back then