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| Full name | Iestyn Rhys Harris | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (1976-06-25)25 June 1976 (age 49) Oldham,Greater Manchester, England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 14 st 6 lb (92 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Rugby league | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Stand-off, Fullback | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rugby union | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Outside-half,Inside centre | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Education | North Chadderton School | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relatives | Norman Harris (grandfather) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Iestyn Rhys Harris (born 25 June 1976) is a formerdual-code international professionalrugby league andrugby union footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s, andcoach in rugby league in the 2000s and 2010s. He played representative rugby league forGreat Britain andWales, and at club level for theWarrington Wolves, theLeeds Rhinos (captain) where he won the 1998Man of Steel Award, theBradford Bulls (captain), andFeatherstone Rovers, and representative rugby union forWales, and at club level forCardiff RFC andCardiff Blues, and has coached representative rugby league forWales, and at club level forFeatherstone Rovers (assistant coach), theCrusaders Rugby League (initially as assistant coach underBrian Noble, and then head coach), theWigan Warriors (assistant coach), andSalford Red Devils (head coach).
Harris was born inOldham,Greater Manchester, England. HisAbercarn-born grandfatherNorman Harris played rugby union forAbercarn RFC,Ebbw Vale RFC,Pontypool RFC andNewbridge RFC before heading north to win eight Wales caps in rugby league.[4]
Harris' professional career began with league clubWarrington at age 17 in 1993[5] before a record-breaking £350,000 transfer toLeeds in 1997.
Iestyn Harris played atcentre in Warrington's 10–40 defeat byWigan in the1994–95 Regal Trophy Final during the1994–95 season atAlfred McAlpine Stadium,Huddersfield on Saturday 28 January 1995.[6]
Harris was made captain of Leeds Rhinos in his first full season at the club at the age of twenty-one, and became the first Leedscaptain in a decade to lift silverware when Leeds Rhinos claimed the 1999 Challenge Cup.
Harris initially played atfullback before being switched tostand-off. In 1998, despite having played most of his games at fullback, he was named in thehalf backs in 1998'sSuper League Dream Team[7] and also collected the annualMan of Steel trophy as the best player in theSuper League. He captained Leeds Rhinos fromfullback in their1998 Super League Grand Final defeat by theWigan Warriors.
A superb goal-kicker, Harris broke the club record for goals in a season in 1999 with 168, he was named at stand-off in 1999'sSuper League IVDream Team, and broke the 2,000 career points total two years later.
Harris matched the record for scoring the most points in aChallenge Cup Final when he scored 20 points (1try, and 8conversions) inLeeds' 52–16 victory overLondon Broncos in the1999 Challenge Cup Final duringSuper League IV atWembley Stadium,London on 1 May 1999. This equalled the record set byNeil Fox (2 tries and 7 goals) inWakefield Trinity's victory overHull F.C. in the 1960 Challenge Cup Final.
In 2001, Harris made a £1.5 million switch toCardiff RFC andWales.
Harris made his debut for the Welsh side on 10 November 2001, playing againstArgentina in Cardiff; Wales lost 16–30. Having played only 200 minutes of rugby union before his international debut, Harris struggled, particularly with his tactical kicking. This led to a move fromfly-half toinside centre, where he could be creative with less pressure.
Harris played in the2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia, where Wales lost in the quarter-finals to eventual winners,England, despite leading the game for 60 minutes. Harris won 25 Wales caps as a union player but made it clear that he wanted to return to League.[8]
In 2004, Harris returned to rugby league, citing "family reasons". He joinedBradford Bulls after a contractual fight with former club Leeds. His salary was reputed to be £1 million over four seasons.[9] Harris played for theBradford Bulls atstand-off in their2004 Super League Grand Final loss against theLeeds Rhinos. Harris was selected in theGreat Britain team to compete in the end of season2004 Rugby League Tri-Nations tournament. In the final againstAustralia he played atstand-off in the Lions' 44–4 loss.
Harris wrote a book, published in October 2005, detailing his moves between codes, calledIestyn Harris: There and Back – My Journey from League to Union and Back Again.[10] Harris was part of the 2005 Bradford Bulls squad that became the first side in the history of Super League to win the Grand Final when finishing third in the final league ladder. He played for the Bradford Bulls atstand-off, kicking a goal in their2005 Super League Grand Final victory againstLeeds Rhinos.
Harris was Bradford Bulls' captain for one year in 2006, taking over from Leeds-boundJamie Peacock. AsSuper League champions Bradford Bulls facedNational Rugby League premiersWests Tigers in the2006 World Club Challenge. Harris captained the Bradford Bulls fromstand-off, kicking five goals from six attempts in their 30–10 victory. On 10 May 2006, Harris announced he would be retiring from playing international rugby league withGreat Britain, just a week after being named in a 36-strong training squad for a June 2006 Test against New Zealand.[11] Harris, who won the last of his 15 Great Britain caps against Australia in November 2005, said he wanted to concentrate on his club career. On 26 September 2006, he confirmed that he would continue to play forWales, and was scheduled to return to the side against Scotland at theBrewery Field,Bridgend in the2008 Rugby League World Cup qualifying match on Sunday 29 October 2006. He was forced to pull out through injury hours before kick-off. Harris kicked a club record 15 goals againstToulouse Olympique in a record 98–6 win on 19 April 2008. Harris had been linked to aplayer-coach role withCrusaders, but he decided to sign forNational League One clubFeatherstone Rovers instead.
Harris signed a 2-year deal atFeatherstone Rovers, as well as playing, he also took his first steps into coaching and working in the marketing department of the club, he made his debut forFeatherstone Rovers on Sunday 15 February 2009, he also ultimately made a lot of debt for Bradford Bulls, and he played his last match for Featherstone Rovers during the 2009 season. On announcement of his tenure as assistant coach toBrian Noble at Celtic Crusaders, he agreed termination of his contract at Featherstone Rovers and an immediate end to his playing career.[12]
While still playing for Bradford, Harris was appointedWales Assistant Coach on 18 June 2008. On 22 September 2009, Harris was appointed Wales's rugby league head coach, succeedingJohn Dixon. Appointed alongside Harris were the more experiencedKevin Ellis andClive Griffiths, and the trio's first match was against England on 17 October, which they lost 48–12.[13]
Wales qualified for the2011 Rugby League Four Nations, and therefore won the Tournament's co-hosting rights with England. Unfortunately, as expected, Wales lost all of games, but they put up great fights. They lost by 42–4 againstEngland, but they played well against theKiwis atWembley Stadium inLondon. Wales lost by 36–0, but New Zealand were frustrated by not being able to play their attacking football full of flair, and this was due to Harris' team's good defence. Then surprisingly, in Wales' (and Welsh legendLee Briers last game of his international career) final game of the Tournament, Wales shocked all odds, as they had an early 8–0 lead, against world heavyweightsAustralia, after 14 minutes. It took Australia until just before half-time to take the lead. Harris' men would then go on to lose the game 56–14, but he still gave Lee Briers a fitting farewell.
Iestyn coached Wales in the2013 Rugby League World Cup held in their own country and fellow British nation England. Unfortunately Iestyn's side didn't get a single win at the event, and they gave history to each of the teams that defeated them.Italy won their first World Cup match in their first appearance,USA in their annual tournament advanced to the quarter-final, and theCook Islands won their first ever World Cup match.
On 9 April 2014, Harris resigned from the Wales post, after taking up the head coaching role at theSuper League club, theSalford Red Devils.[14]
On 14 October 2009, Harris was announced as assistant coach toBrian Noble at Wales-basedCrusaders Rugby League, alongsideJon Sharp.[12] After a year as assistant it was announced in November 2010 that Harris would take over as head coach ofCrusaders following the resignation ofBrian Noble. His first official game in charge was againstSalford on Sunday 13 February 2011 in the opening round of theSuper League. The game was played at theMillennium Stadium as part of theMagic Weekend.
In 2011, Harris became the assistant coach at former club Wigan.[15]
In 2014, it was announced byMarwan Koukash that Harris would take over from Brian Noble as head coach atSalford Red Devils.[16][17] The appointment was described as a "huge gamble".[18] In Harris' first match in charge, Salford played away from home and defeatedBradford Bulls by 38–24.[19]
In September 2015, after being absent from the club for two months, Salford mutually sacked Harris from his post as head coach of the club.[20]
Iestyn regularly provides expert TV and radio analysis including BBC'sSuper League Show, and contributes to BBC Radio Five Live's rugby league coverage.[citation needed]
Harris released his autobiographyIestyn Harris: There and Back - My Journey from League to Union and Back Again in 2005.
Harris lives inCheshire, England, he is married to Becky Harris with whom he has a daughter; Catrin, and a younger son; Cameron, he also has a sister; Rhiain.
| Year | Club | Apps | Pts | T | G | FG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993–94 | Warrington | 10 | 54 | 4 | 19 | – |
| 1994–95 | Warrington | 39 | 148 | 18 | 38 | – |
| 1995–96 | Warrington | 23 | 156 | 11 | 55 | 2 |
| 1996 | Warrington | 18 | 152 | 4 | 67 | 2 |
| 1997 | Warrington | 2 | 6 | - | 3 | – |
| 1997 | Leeds | 25 | 183 | 7 | 77 | 1 |
| 1998 | Leeds | 26 | 275 | 13 | 110 | 3 |
| 1999 | Leeds | 31 | 343 | 18 | 135 | 1 |
| 2000 | Leeds | 23 | 252 | 11 | 106 | – |
| 2001 | Leeds | 18 | 185 | 8 | 76 | 1 |
| 2004 | Bradford Bulls | 13 | 30 | 6 | 3 | - |
| 2005 | Bradford Bulls | 32 | 104 | 17 | 17 | 2 |
| 2006 | Bradford Bulls | 30 | 42 | 5 | 11 | – |
| 2007 | Bradford Bulls | 22 | 72 | 5 | 26 | – |
| 2008 | Bradford Bulls | 11 | 8 | - | 4 | - |
| 2009 | Featherstone Rovers | 24 | 101 | 8 | 34 | 1 |
| Year | Team | Matches | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 |  Wales | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| 1999 |  Great Britain | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| 2000 | Wales | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2004 | Great Britain | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| 2005 | Great Britain | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 16 |
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