T'Other Side: York Knights

       

Head Coach: Mark Applegarth

York started the season with Andrew Henderson as their head coach but in June he moved into a new role as ‘Head of Rugby Operations and Development' and Mark Applegarth was appointed as the new head coach. 

He had been the head coach at Wakefield Trinity in 2023.

As a player he was a forward and was used at prop, second row and loose forward. He started out with Wakefield in 2004. In 2008 he moved to York and in 2010 he went to play for Temora Dragons in New South Wales and then Central Queensland Comets. Returning to England in 2012 he joined Batley and then re-joined York in 2014 and was there until he retired from playing at the end of 2016.

 

Captain: Liam Harris

 

Liam Harris (halfback) made his first-grade début playing for York (on loan from Hull KR in 2017). In 2018 he signed for Doncaster but was transferred to Hull FC in May although he played further games for Doncaster on dual registration. He played one season at Halifax in 2021 and then joined York in 2022.

 

 

Loan signings and dual registration

 

York have a dual reg agreement with Newcastle Thunder which has seen Oli Field, Taylor Pemberton, Harvey Reynolds, AJ Towse and Brad Ward playing for Newcastle.

York currently have Jacob Gannon (second row/loose forward) on loan from Leigh and Joe Law (centre) on loan from Wakefield.

 

 

The Fev connection         

 

 

Fev signed Sep Aspinall from Huddersfield for the 1938/39 season. He played 20 games for Fev, primarily at loose forward, and scored 3 tries. He was a native of York and started his playing career there. He then went on to play for Leeds before he joined Huddersfield.

 

Ross Divorty was born in Wales but spent most of his early years in Yorkshire with his father, Gary, playing for Hull FC, Leeds, Halifax and Wakefield. Ross made his professional début with York in 2008.

The following season he joined Doncaster but in June he was transferred to Fev. He had been a second rower but at Rovers he played mostly as a ball-handling prop, usually coming on off the bench. In two and a half seasons at Fev he played 63 times and scored 14 tries. While he was at Fev he played for Wales. In 2012 he joined Halifax and during his time there played for Wales in the 2013 World Cup. In June of 2016 he returned to play a few more games for York. Altogether he played 33 times for York and scored 10 tries.

 

At the beginning of the 1985/86 season the Fev squad had four overseas players one of whom was Australian centre Rod Pethybridge who had previously played for Penrith and Balmain. In November all four of the overseas players were released after a change of Fev’s head coach from Allan Agar to George Pieniazek. Pethybridge then joined York before heading back home to play for the Western Suburbs. At Rovers he played 7 times and scored 1 try and at York he made 10 appearances, scoring 3 tries and kicking 4 goals.