Paul Sykes (rugby league)
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| Personal information | ||
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Paul Sykes | |
| Date of birth | August 11, 1981 | |
| Place of birth | Dewsbury, Yorkshire,  England |
|
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | |
| Weight | 14 st 6 lb (92 kg) | |
| Nickname(s) | Sykesy, Syko | |
| Club information | ||
| Position(s) | Centre | |
| Current club |  Bradford Bulls |
|
| Number | 24 | |
| Youth clubs | ||
| Years | Club | |
| Thornhill | ||
| Senior clubs* | ||
| Years | Club | Apps (points) |
| 1999 ‐ 02 2002 ‐ 07 2008 ‐ |
Bradford Bulls Harlequins RLBradford Bulls |
19 (66) 129 (696) 12 (24) |
| Representative teams** | ||
| 2002 ‐ 2007 ‐ |
England Great Britain |
1 (4) |
|
* Professional club appearances and points |
||
Paul Sykes, born 11 August 1981 in Dewsbury, Yorkshire is an English rugby league player.
Paul Sykes plays for Bradford Bulls, in the European Super League.
Sykes' position of choice is at right centre. He has for most of his career operated at full-back. He has also played some games in the stand-off role.
Contents |
[edit] Bradford
Paul Sykes is a product of Bradford Bulls academy, making his breakthrough in 1999 in Super League IV. However opportunities at Odsal were limited and so Sykes went on loan spells at London in both the 2001 and 2002 seasons.
In his first spell at Bradford Bulls, he was loaned out to Wakefield RFC for which he played one game of Rugby Union.
[edit] Move to London
With the promise of more regular first XIII rugby Sykes moved south to join the London Broncos in a permanent deal in August 2002.
Sykes soon settled back to life in the Capital and representative honours were gained with an appearance for England "A" against New Zealand in October, followed by a place on the successful "A" team tour to Fiji and Tonga.
Sykes has further earned England caps against Russia and Wales in 2003 and France and New Zealand in 2005.
Sykes originally came to the club as full-back, but the arrival of club captain Mark McLinden has seen Sykes operate largely in the centres in Super League X and XI.
Paul successfully converted during 2005 to the centre position where his powerful running and strong tackling are seen to their best advantage.
Super League XI saw Paul Sykes ruled out for much of the season after damaging his kidneys in February. However he made a comeback towards the end of the season after initially being ruled out for the entire campaign
2005 was a record breaking year for Sykes. On 27 February against Wakefield Trinity Wildcats, Sykes kicked 12 goals from 12 attempts to break a 17 year old London club record.
Further records for most goals and most points followed at the seasons end and in recognition of these achievements Paul was voted Supporters Player of the Year for 2005. Harlequins centre Paul Sykes has confirmed his expected move to Bradford for next season on a two-year contract.
Paul Sykes, who made his Great Britain debut earlier this season, left the Bulls on loan in 2002 to find first-team rugby.
The Bulls paid an undisclosed fee for Sykes, who will be a replacement for NRL-bound Ben Harris.
Quins coach Brian McDermott also paid tribute to Sykes's contribution at The Stoop.
[edit] Bradford Bulls
Paul Sykes signed for Bradford Bulls in September 2007 he is a replacement for the departing Ben Harris. Sykes had a contract with Harlequins that would have ended in 2009. Bradford paid an undisclosed fee for his services. This has yet to be confirmed by the Bradford Bulls. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
On rejoining the Bulls he said: "A lot's changed at Bradford since the first time around and I think there's only Paul Deacon and Jamie Langley still there. "But I'm ready for a fresh challenge and I'm hoping to move back north to win some silverware. Bulls are always challenging and I'm glad I'm going to be a part of that. "Also, my girlfriend has just given birth to our first child as well and we want to be closer to our family." Boss Steve McNamara reckons he has picked up a rare talent. And added "I'm absolutely delighted to have secured an outstanding English centre and thank the board for making the deal possible,".
[edit] Great Britain
In June 2007 Sykes was called up to the Great Britain squad [10] [11] and will play in the centres in the Test match against France. [12]
Sykes is joined in the Great Britain Test side by Quins teammate Chris Melling. [13]
Paul Sykes made his Great Britain debut in the 42-14 victory over the French on June 22nd 2007, scoring one try. [14] [15]
[edit] Statistics
[edit] Club Career
| Year | Club | Apps | Pts | T | G | FG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Bradford Bulls |
4 | - | - | - | - |
| 2000 | Bradford Bulls |
2 | 8 | 2 | - | - |
| 2001 | Bradford Bulls |
1 | - | - | - | - |
| 2001 | Harlequins RL |
9 | 51 | 1 | 23 | 1 |
| 2002 | Bradford Bulls |
3 | 6 | - | 3 | - |
| 2002 | Harlequins RL |
16 | 36 | 2 | 14 | - |
| 2003 | Harlequins RL |
17 | 26 | 6 | 1 | - |
| 2004 | Harlequins RL |
25 | 146 | 5 | 63 | - |
| 2005 | Harlequins RL |
29 | 284 | 11 | 119 | 2 |
| 2006 | Harlequins RL |
8 | 24 | 2 | 8 | - |
| 2007 | Harlequins RL |
25 | 129 | 13 | 38 | 1 |
| 2008 | Bradford Bulls |
12 | 28 | 7 | - | - |
[edit] Representative Career
| Year | Team | Matches | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | England 'A' |
3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2003 | England 'A' |
2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2007 | Great Britain |
1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
[edit] References
- ^ Sykes completes Bulls switch. engage Super League (2007-09-04). Retrieved on 2007-09-04.
- ^ Bulls are set to snap up Sykes. Telegraph & Argus (2007-08-17). Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
- ^ Bradford entice Sykes to return after six years. Times Online (2007-08-17). Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
- ^ Bulls linked with Sykes. Times Online (2007-08-17). Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
- ^ Sykes aims for Harlequins sign-off with final flourish. Independent (2007-08-18). Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
- ^ Saints fail to see the funny side of French farce. Guardian (2007-08-15). Retrieved on 2007-08-25.
- ^ Centre Sykes returns to Bradford. BBC (2007-09-04). Retrieved on 2007-09-04.
- ^ Sykes Heading Back to Bulls. SportingLife (2007-09-04). Retrieved on 2007-09-04.
- ^ Paul Sykes to leave The Stoop. Quins RL (2007-09-04). Retrieved on 2007-09-04.
- ^ Eight new faces in Lions squad. BBC (2007-06-12). Retrieved on 2007-06-12.
- ^ Melling and Sykes named in GB squad. Quins RL (2007-06-13). Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
- ^ New-look GB select five new caps. BBC (2007-06-20). Retrieved on 2007-06-20.
- ^ Melling and Sykes to play at Headingley. Quins (2007-06-20). Retrieved on 2007-06-20.
- ^ Great Britain 42-14 France. BBC (2007-06-22). Retrieved on 2007-06-24.
- ^ Hungry Lions Please Smith. SportingLife (2007-06-22). Retrieved on 2007-06-24.
[edit] External links
- Bradford Bulls profile
- Sykes in Bulls Return
- Sykes: I'm still not properly fit
- Sykes joins Broncos
- Harlequins' Sykes out for season
- Injured Sykes extends Quins stay
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| Bradford Bulls |
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| The Club Representatives • History • Statistics • Honours • Players |
| Seasons 1996 • 1997 •1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002• 2003 2004• 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 •2011 |
| Stadiums Greenfield Athletic Ground • Birth Lane • Grattan Stadium • Valley Parade |
| Captains Robbie Paul (1996-2004) • Jamie Peacock (2005) Iestyn Harris (2006) • Paul Deacon (2007 -present) |
| Coaches David Hobbs (1990 - 1993) • Peter Fox (1993-1995) Brian Smith (1995-1996) • Matthew Elliott (1996-2000) Brian Noble (2001-2006) • Steve McNamara (2006 - present) |
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