Clive Sullivan: The man who broke rugby’s racial barrier

It is 45 years since Clive Sullivan led the nation to Rugby League World Cup victory. On the day the 2017 tournament kicks off, BBC News looks at how the first black player to captain a national British sporting team helped break down barriers.

When the 18-year-old Welsh winger joined Hull FC in 1961, there were very few black men in prominent sporting positions.

But scoring a hat-trick in a trial game with the team certainly put Sullivan on the map and he signed a contract the following day.

So began a career that 11 years later, in 1972, would see him raise the Rugby League World Cup trophy as Great Britain captain – the last occasion the trophy was won by any nation other than Australia or New Zealand.  More

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