The Black & Whites will celebrate club legend Johnny Whiteley’s 90th birthday with a three-part extended interview across this coming weekend.
Rugby League Hall of Fame member Whiteley, who is considered by many to be the greatest player to ever pull on a Black & White jersey, turns 90-years old on Friday 20th November.
Whiteley made 417 appearances for the Airlie Birds between 1950 and 1965, scoring 156 tries before later going on to coach the club and being named club captain in 1956.
The loose-forward earned several club honours in the late 1950s, including two Championship Final successes in 1956 & 1958, winning the European Championship in 1957, and having the distinction of being the first Hull FC captain to lead a side out at Wembley Stadium in the 1956 and 1960 Challenge Cup Finals – in all, Whiteley was involved in 15 finals during his club career.
Whiteley also saw success at an international level, being a member of the 1954 World Cup winning squad with Great Britain, despite not playing in the tournament, before featuring in both the 1957 and 1960 competitions too; the latter of which Great Britain were crowned champions in.
He then went on to coach the side to their last Ashes win over Australia in 1970, with the 50th anniversary of that historic series victory being celebrated earlier this year.
Off-field honours since retirement including receiving an MBE for ‘Services To Rugby League & Community’ in 2006, becoming a Freeman of the City of Kingston Upon Hull, and being named in both the Hull FC & Rugby League Halls of Fame.
The club’s Media & Marketing Executive Lewis Scott sat down with Whiteley over Zoom earlier this week to discuss growing up in the city in the midst of the Second World War, some of the highlights of his illustrious career, and his post-playing days.
All three parts of the extended interview will be available for free at hullfclive.tv released across the weekend.
The full schedule can be found below:
- Friday 20th November (12pm) – Part One: Childhood & Living Through WW2
- Saturday 21st November (12pm) – Part Two: Playing Career
- Sunday 22nd November (12pm) – Part Three: Coaching & Post- Retirement
The interview forms part of the club’s National Lottery Heritage Fund project, aiming to preserve the heritage of one of the club’s all-time greats.
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