I was privaliged to see Ken Irvine and Johnny King play all 3 were all class and all served Australia well. In recent years my favourite winger was Kerry Boustead.
@user-gu4tv4hp6s ... So what's your point? Are you criticizing me? Why would you say this in a tribute to a rugby league legend? Got nothing to do with soccer...
I loved watching Grothe play when I was a kid back in the 80's, he was in a class of his own and the perfect finisher at the end of one of the greatest backlines in Rugby League history.
Awesome skill and talent allied with immense power and great positional sense. Certainly, one of the best I've been privileged to see in real life on the pitch ...... and I'm a Pom.
I've forgotten how good the guru was.This guy was a powerhouse, unlike any other winger I have ever seen.He carried so much speed,power, and agility for such a big man,and he was a great defensive player.A real rugby league winger.Thanks for the upload.👍🏽
I was fortunate to watch him play for my club Leeds when he came over to England in 1984. He was a physical freak in a Jonah Lomu sense of the word, a unique blend of unstoppable power and sheer speed. A privilege to have seen him smashing the opposition!
........then you would have loved following Parramatta when the Guru and his peers emerged and became a dominant force in league in OZ for 10 years or so. Grothe was one of the best balanced men when running at speed that I can remember in league. It's a great game, more brilliant with the emergence of men like Eric Grothe. If I ever get to the north of England, I'll make sure to include a game in my itinerary. So glad that he could demonstrate his wares in England when he was in his prime. Peace...........
I was a Manly supporter, so this guy was always a nightmare, but even through the hatred you had to respect him. David Campese wasn't the only goose-stepping winger!
He just has well practised pushes to their head out the way of anyone who tries knocking him down whenever they try grabbing his legs they just couldnt catch him
Probably. His defensive game was stellar, which not every great winger can claim as an attribute. Ken Irvine was also a try-scoring machine, but he didn't tackle like Grothe.
Agree..and 1 thing he didnt get a lot of mention for was that he had the presence of mind and vision to swap the ball from side to side depending on which direction the defender was coming from..could play both sides of the field...most players in the backlines cant even do that today...
@@freedomofchoicelover3734 You're absolutely right. It winds me right up when I see left wingers going down the touchline with the ball in their right hands.
An absolute beast. The speed; the power; the defence; the positioning. He had it all. One of my favourite players, although as a Manly supporter I get a little tired of watching replays of him running over the top of Manly defenders!
Tim Edison Great comment Tim. I'm a Roosters fan and Eric Grothe would terrorise and tear my side to pieces through out his career. He seemed to have a blunder every time. Probably one of the most beautiful combinations of great hands great defense perfect positional play and incredible speed and power any player has had. I hated him wrecking my team but it was AMAZING.
@@waynegilder8596 Parramatta great backline Taylor f-b Eric Goth wing Neville Glover wing Steve Ella centre Mick Cronin Centre Brett Kenny 5/8 Peter Sterling Half.
He was an exceptional winger. He had a very long stride which made him a bit harder tackle, He also had this habit of moving his body away from tacklers when he was running close to the sideline. I'm not sure then current wingers do that to the same degree. Kenny Irvine was a truly extraordinary winger. Slight guy but fast (he ran 9.3 for 100 yards in the early 60s) and had he been with a team like St George in the 60s he would have got even more tries than he did. Two completely different wingers, both wonderful to watch.
