Castleford
hooker Bob Spurr (587) had played 323 games over fifteen years during a long career
at Wheldon Road before he decided to take up Rovers’ offer of a new challenge
aged 32. What Featherstone got was a dependable and likeable team player who
won his fair share of ball from the scrum, worked hard on defence and had perfected the
art of the ten yard scoot, those dashes from acting halfback which win valuable
ground. Bob was a fitness fanatic and it told in his contribution to the team.
In his first season he was an ever-present and didn’t miss a match until November
1984. At the end of his first season he won the club’s Player of the Season
award.
Spurr was our
first hooker after the introduction of the sixth tackle ‘handover’ rule in 1983
which was the beginning of a radical change in the role of the hooker. With
many less scrums and against-the-head heels becoming increasingly uncommon,
hookers had to adapt to survive. Spurr’s work-rate in the loose guaranteed his
value to the team. Over the next three seasons he was challenged for his spot
by Tony Staniforth (607) who came to Featherstone from Hunslet Parkside and
then by Kiwi import Mark Roiall (611). Neither player could dislodge the
evergreen Spurr.
As Bob came
to the end of his career in the 1986/7 Rovers had a hooking crisis. It seemed
that almost every week the number nine changed. Bob himself played six games
that season, A team hooker Tony O’Toole (572) was given the occasional run, wily
veteran Keith Bell (509) played a few games too, future club chairman Mark Campbell
(618) converted from the second-row for some games, Martin Slater (631) was
signed from Castleford but was not the answer and another local youngster Mark Hinchcliffe
(639) got a chance. Unsurprisingly, this affected the team’s performance and at
the end of the year, Rovers were relegated.
Bob Spurr had
a short loan spell at Bradford, and then decided to retire, having played 108
games for Rovers and scoring 14 tries. He had proved to be a dependable and
loyal servant, who then did some coaching with the Academy side before seeing
both his sons make the grade professionally, Chris Spurr (784) playing 47 games
for Rovers.
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