Doug Laughton, rugby league giant and one of the last survivors from Great Britain’s 1970s Ashes triumph
Doug Laughton, who has died aged 80, was one of the four surviving players from the last time Great Britain’s rugby league side triumphed against Australia in the Ashes, in 1970; he also had an illustrious club playing career with St Helens, Wigan and his home town side Widnes, whom he later coached to World Club Challenge glory against Canberra Raiders in 1989.
Laughton, who was always convivial company, was renowned for his self-confidence, his impish sense of humour and his enviable man-management skills. Apart from his supreme skills as a ball-handling forward, he had a persuasive tongue as a coach, enticing rugby union stars such as Jonathan Davies, Alan Tait, John Devereux and Martin Offiah to relinquish their amateur status and join Widnes.
His most memorable achievement as a player was helping Great Britain beat Australia 21-17 in the third Test in Sydney in 1970 before a crowd of 61,000 to take the Ashes series 2-1. Alan Smith, Jimmy Thompson and Malcolm Reilly are now the only survivors from that starting line-up; Laughton was second-row forward in a side captained by his fellow Widnesian, Frank Myler.
Later, one of the very best cross-code converts was Jonathan Davies, who turned professional from Llanelli for a then-record fee of £230,000 in 1989, recruited by Laughton and the Widnes director Jim Mills. “Doug convinced me to go to League and had the faith I’d succeed and I will always be grateful,” Davies recalled. “He could spot a player, from Martin Offiah to Emosi Koloto, and we had some great times.”
Mills, a former team-mate of Laughton’s at Widnes, added: “Doug was a brilliant player and coach and a real character. I was a Widnes director when we drove to South Wales to sign Jonathan and stopped in a local pub before driving home. We didn’t know the landlord was the former Welsh hooker Norman Gale, who was also the Llanelli chairman.
“Norman said: ‘I hope you’ve not come down here to try and sign one of our players.’
“We told him we’d just come down to visit a friend, but I don’t think Norman was convinced. Doug had a quick drag on his cigarette, we supped our pints fast and left the pub as quickly as we could.”
Laughton’s shrewd eye for talent led to the signing of Joe Lydon and Andy Gregory from amateur rugby league, and he also noticed a relatively unknown Martin Offiah playing in a rugby union sevens tournament for Rosslyn Park. Offiah, who scored more than 500 tries in his professional career, said: “I owe Doug so much for the opportunity to switch from union and create a legacy in rugby league.”
On the pitch, Laughton was a tough and uncompromising forward, and in 1979 he was named Man of Steel, the sport’s best player.
Charles Douglas Laughton was born in Widnes on 13 May 1944 to Frank and Margaret, one of five children. Rugby league was in his blood: his uncle John Laughton and another relative, Paddy Douglas, were the half-backs when Widnes beat St Helens in the Challenge Cup final at Wembley in 1930.
He attended Saints Fisher and More High School in the town and played for a local amateur side, St Paul’s, before signing for St Helens aged 18 for a fee of £500, with a further £500 after six senior games.
He made 79 appearances for St Helens before a £4,000 transfer to Wigan in 1967. His 185 matches for Wigan included his first Wembley appearance, in the 1970 Challenge Cup final defeat to Castleford.
Laughton’s childhood hero was Vince Karalius, who was the Widnes coach when the club paid a then record £6,000 in 1973 to persuade Wigan to part with their influential playmaker at the age of 28.
Laughton immediately helped Widnes beat Warrington 14-7 in the 1975 Challenge Cup final. They returned to Wembley in 1976 and 1977 but lost to St Helens and Leeds.
There was a return to Wembley in 1979 with victory against Wakefield, a year after Laughton had captained Widnes to a rare defeat of the touring Australians.
Laughton scored 38 tries in 185 appearances for Widnes and earned 15 Great Britain caps, captaining the 1979 Lions squad to Australia aged 35. But his appearances were limited by a persistent knee injury which prompted his retirement. He had also had a brief spell with the Australian club Canterbury-Bankstown in 1974.
Laughton took over from his former teammate Frank Myler as Widnes coach in 1978, leading them to Challenge Cup successes over Wakefield in 1979 and Hull KR in 1981, and they also lost the 1982 final against Hull at Elland Road, following a draw at Wembley.
Laughton unexpectedly resigned in 1983 but returned in 1986 to lead Widnes into a golden era, boosted by the arrival of Davies, Offiah, Tait, Devereux and Paul Moriarty.
Laughton moulded the former union players into a dynamic unit alongside the Widnesians Tony Myler, and the brothers David and Paul Hulme, as well as the inspirational Kiwi captain Kurt Sorensen. Widnes won league championships in 1988 and 1989, with three successive Premiership Trophy victories from 1988-90.
In 1991 Laughton was lured to Leeds and continued his love affair with Wembley with Challenge Cup final appearances in 1994 and 1995, though both were defeats at the hands of Wigan. He returned to Widnes for a third time in 1996 but the club ran into financial difficulties, struggling to end Wigan’s near-total dominance, and in 1997 he retired.
He combined his rugby commitments with running a successful plumbing and central heating business in St Helens.
Doug Laughton was married three times; each of his wives predeceased him, and he is survived by five children.
Doug Laughton, born 12 May 1944, died 16 March 2025
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