Should Keith Holman be the next immortal?

M

madunit

New member
In my latest article, i say Yappy should definitely be an immortal.

http://commentaryboxsports.com/australian/nrl/holman-should-enter-immortals-debate.html
 
@GoldXR50Leroy said:
Does he fit RLW's criteria?, when did Keith retire?, what happened to the Holman Junior RLFC?.
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Great article unit
Not many have done as much as he has in the game.
Holman Juniors folded some time in the 80s I think, I had a few years there…the only trophy I ever got was presented to me by Yappy
 
That would've been a truly awesome honour ink.

I would have loved to speak with him. Such a sad childhood but he never let it hold him back.

Amazing athlete, unbelievable human.
 
I was too young to appreciate him…knew he was some old Wests player the club was named after
My old man reckons I wasnt paying attention, was looking at the sky or something while my coach was talking before the award presentation...I was quite surprised

The Holman Jnrs logo was a Kangaroo with a footy surrounded by the Lion, Kiwi and Coq...something like that
 
Unfortunately, I get the feeling there will never be another "old-timer" immortal. Every ten years the discussion will come around, and it will be a vote between whichever Thurston/Cronk/Slater-level players have retired in the last decade.
 
I agree, which is why I feel compelled to make people aware of players whose careers ended before most of the current fans were born.

Every Dragons player will probably get the nod before Yappy and that too shits me.
 
My Dad took me to watch the Wests Magpies from 1948\. In those days, there were three grades played on the Saturday afternoon. We would arrive at Pratten Park, Ashfield before the Third Grade started at 12 noon and we always sat on the back row of seats on the western side right on half way. A few years after, my first rugby league hero, Keith Holman, and his wife and (if my memory is correct) his two daughters would sit in the row of seats in front of us. At my age, being close to my hero cemented the hero status for many years.
I must have had a half-back fetish, because my favourite players have been Keith, Tommy Raudonikis, Joey Johns and, now, Jonathon Thurston.
The article on Keith Holman brought back many memories. While he was an immortal in my eyes, that award will probably not come about at this late date.
 
Many thanks for the great article MU. I went to see the Magpies play with my father from the late 1950s, and saw him in his final match in that GF against Saints. He was the outstanding half-back over the decade of the 50s.

Modern fans may not appreciate what an accolade it was to star against the Poms in those days. They dominated international RL up until the 60s, and a player who succeeded against them was regarded as a player of true quality.

Thanks for keeping his memory alive.
 
@MightyMaggy said:
I must have had a half-back fetish, because my favourite players have been Keith, Tommy Raudonikis, Joey Johns and, now, Jonathon Thurston.
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Actually the Magpies had some pretty useful halves over a 30 year period, say 1948 - 1978.

Holman and five-eighth Frank Stanmore played for Australia during the 50s and played together in some tests; Arthur Summons captained Australia during the 60s; while Tommy was the dominant half during the 70s.

Let's hope Luke Brooks and Mitch Moses can be reach those heights also.
 
Loved Yappy as a player and a man - do not see him as the next Immortal I am afraid. Not saying he doesn't deserve to be there, just that there are more players that deserve to be there earlier. I am still talking of players from years ago as well.
I am sure Thurston will one day make the list, however we need to not forget the superstars of a bygone era that made our game great when naming Immortals.

Immortal is a term very loosely used in my opinion and this award should be used very sparingly.
 
Who?

Joke, but 95% of all current league fans wouldn't have heard of him. Not forgetting past heroes isn't really the place for the immortals. They were the elite of the elite that had a massive impact on the game in their generation.

A few of the other old champions have more of a profile than he does and most new immortals will have played in the last 30 years.
 
Thanks for that , haven't seen many highlights of him playing

Never saw him play , but he is highly rated by many pundits I have spoken to about him ,anyone who has Captained Coached get a special rating , must be so hard to do , in any era

MU , you mentioned in the article about Holman being told he wasn't big enough , he must have had a bit of a late growth spurt , he looked about similar height to many in the footage

You would hope that he isn't forgotten because he isn't of the current era or remembered by the people voting
 
Holman was a good player and gave a lot back to the game but in my opinion Norm Provan should get the nod (and should already have been named previously).
 
@cktiger said:
Holman was a good player and gave a lot back to the game but in my opinion Norm Provan should get the nod (and should already have been named previously).
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Strongly disagree re Provan ck. He is no better than a lot of very good backrowers to have played over the years. The only thing that distinguishes him from the other is that he captained one of the great glamour teams.
 
Not sure but I think this "Immortal" thing is a popularity contest at best.

Ps - I don't like the Immortal Tag.

Hall of Fame is much better
 
@Spartan117 said:
Not sure but I think this "Immortal" thing is a popularity contest at best.

Ps - I don't like the Immortal Tag.

Hall of Fame is much better
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I love how the NFL do their Hall of Fame and would like to see something similar in league. There's some excitement every year as the players are debated. And they make sure there is an allotment of older players that must be chosen, plus a variety of positions.

Plus I just like the pointless discussions. Does Renouf deserve a spot more than Matt Bowen? Vatuvei? Does Nathan Merritt get considered with 150 odd tries? Do Benji's good years outweigh his poor? Perfect chinwag for the fifth schooner.
 
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