Title: ... p78 - Peter Sterling Memories of his Hull Days - by Rich Harrison, Parramatta Sydney

I was 8 years old when I first saw Peter Sterling.

He was was playing for the 82' Aussie Tourist "invincibles" at the Boulevard against Hull.

The Aussies that day paid Hull the ultimate compliment and played their full test team against us.

We should have won, in fact but for a disallowed try we would've.

Sterling that day was majestic....with that blond mullet flowing in the chill North Sea breeze he looked like a greek god to me.

He was everywhere, crunching tackles, darting runs and his kicking game was flawless.

I recall the day Hull signed him 2 years later.

I got home from school and my Dad just smiled at me and held up the back page of the Hull Daily Mail and said "Son, he's coming".

His first Game for Hull was against the old enemy Hull KR.

Sterlo had literally stepped off the plane 3 hours earlier, warmed up with his new teammates and got the man of the match award in a 29-12 victory.

I still have that Yorkshire Cup final game on tape.
He played only 8 games that season as he was on a short term contract as was the fashion in those days, but he came back in '85 and played the full season.

We finished 3rd in the League and got to the final of the Challenge Cup.

Sterling was unbelievable that year. The cup run itself was a fantastic rollercoaster for us. We had an easy first couple of rounds, then played Widnes at home in round 3 We drew 6-6 and Sterlo missed the game with a thigh injury, he returned for the replay in Widnes and we won easily.

The Semi final was another draw this time against CAstleford, and Sterlo was the difference and the replay once more.

This is despite a real going over from Mal Reiily in one of his last ever matches for Cas.

Reilly punched, raked, gouged and spat at Sterling, but he never took a backward step.

We won the game 29-16 and went to the Final against Wigan.

We fielded 6 overseas players that day, a record at the time. Sterling, his brother-in-law John Muggleton, and 4 Kiwis Leuluai,O'Hara,Kemble and Ah Kuoi.

We lost the game 28-24 and it was the last game Sterlo ever played for us.

He was just shaded by Brett Kenny but he never stopped.

Hull recently included him as Scrum Half in our Team of the Century despite playing only 30 odd matches for the club.

I recently went to the footy show and met him and he spoke to me for 5 minutes...it felt like 5 seconds to me, my wife couldn't understand why i was smiling for days.

I just kept saying "but Darling, it PETER STERLING!!!!". She will never understand, she just knows him as the bald funny bloke from the TV, I know him as the man who shaped my Rugby League Education.

Every player to play at 7 for Hull FC since has his boots to fill, and most have had no chance at all.

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