Keith Holliday
Keith Holliday was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s, and coached in the 1960s. He played at representative level for Great Britain and Yorkshire, and at club level for Eastmoor ARLFC, Wakefield Trinity, and Bramley, as a, or, and coached at club level for Bramley.
Background
Keith Holliday's birth was registered in Wakefield, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. He was a pupil at Cathedral School, Wakefield, he worked as a plumber at Wakefield Corporation, he died aged 82 in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, his funeral took place at Wakefield Crematorium, Crigglestone, Wakefield on 3 April 2017.Playing career
Wakefield Trinity career
One of the most under-rated players in Wakefield Trinity’s history is three-time Wembley winner, Keith Holliday. The wily scrum half was one of the club’s great servants and ranks sixth on the club’s all-time appearance list, with ten winner's medals, as well as county and international recognition.Holliday's Trinity career spanned fourteen years ; he played 438 times. Only Neil Fox has played more post-war Trinity games. He was an outstanding local product and arrived at Wakefield Trinity via Cathedral School and Eastmoor ARLFC. He progressed through the intermediate and A-teams before making his début in the first match of the 1952–53 season, scoring a try in a 30–21 victory over Doncaster.
Holliday made steady progress, starting out as a stand off and alternating in the centres and within four years of his début, he represented Great Britain, partnering Don Fox, in an unofficial 18–10 victory over France at Odsal Stadium, Bradford in 1956. He added to his representative honours a season later when he was stand off for Yorkshire, in defeat by Cumberland at Recreation Ground, Whitehaven.
By the late 1950s, Trinity were coming out of the wilderness on the domestic front, reaching their first major final in five years. A 23–5 Yorkshire Cup Final victory over Hunslet gave Keith the first of his cup winner's medals in 1956. He had now formed a formidable half back partnership with Ken Rollin, and it was not until 1958 when he moved to scrum half when Harold Poynton became his half back partner.
The try-maker turned try scorer with two scorching tries at Wembley in 1960, when Trinity defeated Hull FC, 38–5 to win the RL Challenge Cup. It was the first of three Challenge Cup winners medals for Keith as he was at scrum half, again, in 1962 and 1963 which went alongside four Yorkshire League Championship winners medals and two further Yorkshire Cup winners medals. He was also one win away from the League Championship on two occasions after final losses in 1960 and 1962; Keith playing in nine major finals for Trinity, winning six.
Keith remained the major tradesman at scrum half throughout the early 1960s, the club being one win away from winning ‘All Four Cups’ on 1961–62 and being rewarded with a testimonial season in 1962–63. He gained his second county cap in 1961, captaining Yorkshire in defeat by Lancashire at Hilton Park, Leigh. He moved to loose forward in 1964 before playing his last game for Trinity, in defeat by Hull, in March 1966. He then moved to Bramley as player coach.
He finished his career with 94 tries and was also club captain in the 1957–58 season, being voted the supporter’s player of the years two years running in 1961–62 and 1962–63 … a true club legend. He was inducted into the club's Hall of Fame in 2015.
International honours
Keith Holliday played for Great Britain while at Wakefield Trinity in the 18–10 victory over France at Odsal Stadium, Bradford in 1956.Along with Billy Banks, Ted Cahill, Gordon Haynes, Billy Ivison, Bob Kelly, John McKeown, George Parsons and Ted Slevin, Keith Holliday's only Great Britain appearance came against France prior to 1957, these matches were not considered as Test matches by the Rugby Football League, and consequently caps were not awarded.