Eric Clay

Eric Clay (19 May 1922 – 3 October 2007 - aged 85) was a British rugby league referee popularly known as "Sergeant Major" for his style during games.

Born in Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, Clay was married with two daughters. During the Second World War, Clay was a Warrant Officer in the RAF.

A leading referee, Albert Dobson, suggested that Clay try refereeing. Aged 25, he began in the Leeds and District League in 1947.

It was while refereeing a reserve match as a curtain-raiser to the 1952 Challenge Cup semi-final that Clay's "authoritative presence" was noted. After that he was elevated quickly from Grade 5 to Grade 2, and took charge of his first senior games in 1953–54.

Clay had a distinctive style. He was a "big, even heavy man, he did not race around the field like his modern successors, but he had a knack of being in the right place at the right time to defuse trouble, in a game that was much more violent then than it is now".

Clay became widely recognised due to his regular Saturday afternoon appearances on Grandstand during the 1960s, although he is often better remembered as the Sergeant Major. This nickname, conferred by broadcaster Eddie Waring, "captured the way he controlled a game, like a battle-hardened veteran showing the raw recruits who was in charge".

Two of the major games refereed by Clay were Challenge Cup finals at Wembley, between Wakefield Trinity and Hull in 1960 and Featherstone Rovers and Barrow in 1967. These are the only two Challenge Cup finals to have been attended by the Queen.

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