Francis Cummins
Encyclopedia
Francis Cummins is a former English
rugby league
footballer. His position of choice was fullback though he also regularly played at centre and winger.
, West Yorkshire
and was the captain of both St. John Fisher's school team (1988–93) which were regular finalists in the Yorkshire Cup and St. John Fisher's ARLFC. St. John Fisher's school team has produced some notable English rugby league talents over the years including Francis Maloney, Ryan Sheridan, Matt Diskin
, Adrian Flynn and Tommy Gallagher. When playing at St. John Fisher, his preferred position was stand-off and he was also the designated goal-kicker. Francis represented England schoolboys when he was 15 years old. In 2000 Francis Cummins married Katy and has three children.
His sporting heroes growing up were former Leeds star Garry Schofield
and ex-Manchester United and England football captain, Bryan Robson
.
throughout his whole career between 1993-2005. Cummins has also played on several occasions for Great Britain
and also Ireland
at international level. He is the youngest player ever to appear in a Rugby League Challenge Cup
at Wembley
. He was aged just 17 years and 200 days when Leeds
lost to Wigan
in 1994, although Francis did score a memorable length-of-the-field try during the game.
Following his retirement from playing in 2005 after playing for Leeds Rhinos for 12 years, Cummins has now been appointed as assistant coach at Leeds Rhinos.
at Leeds
took place in 2004.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
footballer. His position of choice was fullback though he also regularly played at centre and winger.
Early Honours
Francis grew up in DewsburyDewsbury
Dewsbury is a minster town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. It is to the west of Wakefield, east of Huddersfield and south of Leeds...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
and was the captain of both St. John Fisher's school team (1988–93) which were regular finalists in the Yorkshire Cup and St. John Fisher's ARLFC. St. John Fisher's school team has produced some notable English rugby league talents over the years including Francis Maloney, Ryan Sheridan, Matt Diskin
Matt Diskin
Matt Diskin is an English professional rugby league footballer for the Bradford Bulls of Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative hooker, he played ten years with Leeds Rhinos, having won four Super League championships with the club, before moving to the Bulls for the...
, Adrian Flynn and Tommy Gallagher. When playing at St. John Fisher, his preferred position was stand-off and he was also the designated goal-kicker. Francis represented England schoolboys when he was 15 years old. In 2000 Francis Cummins married Katy and has three children.
His sporting heroes growing up were former Leeds star Garry Schofield
Garry Schofield
Garry E. Schofield OBE is an English retired professional rugby league footballer of the 1980s and 1990s. At the time of his retirement he was the most-capped Great Britain player of all time along with Mick Sullivan, with 46 appearances. He also won three England caps, making him the highest...
and ex-Manchester United and England football captain, Bryan Robson
Bryan Robson
Bryan Robson OBE is an English football manager and a former player. He is best known for playing in midfield for Manchester United, where he was the longest serving captain in club history. He was the manager of Sheffield United, being relieved of his first team duties at the club in February 2008...
.
Rugby career
He played for LeedsLeeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
throughout his whole career between 1993-2005. Cummins has also played on several occasions for Great Britain
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
and also Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
at international level. He is the youngest player ever to appear in a Rugby League Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout cup competition for rugby league clubs organised by the Rugby Football League. Originally it was contested only by British teams but in recent years has been expanded to allow teams from France and Russia to take part....
at Wembley
Wembley
Wembley is an area of northwest London, England, and part of the London Borough of Brent. It is home to the famous Wembley Stadium and Wembley Arena...
. He was aged just 17 years and 200 days when Leeds
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
lost to Wigan
Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
in 1994, although Francis did score a memorable length-of-the-field try during the game.
International Duty
Francis made his debut for England in 1995 against France at Gateshead when he scored a hat-trick on his debut and then played for Emerging England in 1998 against Wales. He made his Great Britain debut later that year playing in the last two Tests against New Zealand. In 1999 he gained two more caps for Great Britain in the Tri-Series against Australia and New Zealand. Unfortunately, injury struck in 2000 and Francis made the tough decision to pull out of that year's World Cup. He was later to rate this as the worst moment of his career. 2001 saw Francis revert to playing for Ireland, making his debut in France. He continued this in 2003 when he played at full back in both games for Ireland in the European Nations Cup.Leeds Rhinos' Records
Francis set a new club record for consecutive appearances for Leeds at the end of the 2003 season with a total of 178 appearances. He is the seventh highest try scorer in the history of the club with total of 188 tries at the end of 2004, making him the most prolific try scorer in the past twenty years of the club.Following his retirement from playing in 2005 after playing for Leeds Rhinos for 12 years, Cummins has now been appointed as assistant coach at Leeds Rhinos.
Bradford Bulls
In 2010 Francis decided to leave Leeds and take the opportunity as the assistant coach at West Yorkshire rivals, Bradford Bulls for the upcoming season. In October 2010 with the very short absence of head coach Mick Potter, Francis has started training with the early stages of the 2011 team at BradfordTestimonial match
Francis Cummins' Testimonial matchTestimonial match
A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, notably football and especially in the United Kingdom, where a club puts on a match in honour of a player for service to the club....
at Leeds
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
took place in 2004.