Death of a legend

WARRINGTON Rugby League legend Harry Bath, one of the club’s greatest ever players and a former World Cup-winning coach, has died in his native Australia at the age of 83 after a long battle with illness.
Bath was recognised as one of the two greatest players never to have played for Australia – another Warrington favourite, Brian Bevan, being the other.
Bath and his wife Gwen kept in touch with Warrington, where they spent nearly 10 “very happy” years.
Just two years ago, Harry donated his treasured Championship medal to help raise funds for another club Captian Mike Gregory, who was suffering from a muscle wasting disease.
Harry and Gwen decided to donate the medal after hearing of Mike’s plight via warrington-worldwide.
The medal now sits proudly in a display case at the Halliwell Jones Stadium after a charity game orgaised by the club, help raise thousands of pounds for the Mike Gregory Trust Fund.
Bath won Premierships with Brisbane Souths and Balmain before switching to an English competition in 1947, which at the time, was regarded as the strongest in the world.
Bath started out at Barrow before going on to enjoy tremendous success with Warrington, with whom he won the Challenge Cup in 1950 and 1954.
He was also a vital component of the Warrington team that completed the impressive League and Cup double in 1953/54, contributing more than 300 points to the cause and kicking goals in all the important matches.
By the time he returned home to Australia in 1957, he was the most prolific try-scoring forward, most prolific points scorer and second greatest goalkicker in the club’s history.
Even now, almost half a century later, he still holds one club record, for scoring 363 points in the 1952/53 season.
The former goalkicking forward captained Warrington to Challenge Cup glory in 1954 before a then world record crowd of 102,569 at Bradford’s famed Odsal Stadium.
He is the only man to top the pointscoring table in both England and Australia.
He returned to Australia in 1957, finishing off his career with the Dragons.Aged 32, he helped St George to three Premierships in a row before enjoying similar success with Balmain and Newtown and also coached Australia to success in the 1968 and 1972 World Cups.
Bath passed away after a long illness and is certain to be honoured by the NRL. Tributes to Bath can be left below this story or on the warrington-worldwide discussion forum.
http://www.warrington-worldwide.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?t=12988