Sean Long facts for kids
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Personal information
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| Full name | Sean Bernard Long | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 24 September 1976 Wigan, Greater Manchester, England |
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| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 13 st 5 lb (85 kg) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Playing information
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Rugby league
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| Position | Scrum-half, Stand-off | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Rugby union
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Coaching information
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As of 1 Sep 2024
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Sean Bernard Long (born 24 September 1976), often called "Longy", is a famous English former professional rugby league player. He is now the head coach for Oldham RLFC in the RFL Championship. Sean played rugby league in the 1990s and 2000s.
He played for the England and Great Britain international teams. Many people think Sean Long is one of the best British players of his time. He started his career with the Wigan Warriors. He also played for the Widnes Vikings and Hull FC.
Sean is most famous for his time with St Helens in the Super League. With St Helens, he won four Super League championships and five Challenge Cups. He also won many personal awards, like the Man of Steel award and three Lance Todd Trophies.
After his playing days, he became a coach. He has coached Featherstone Rovers and is now with Oldham RLFC.
Contents
Sean Long's Early Life
Sean Long went to St Joseph's Catholic Comprehensive School in Horwich from age eleven to thirteen. He then moved to the Deanery High School in Wigan. He changed schools because St Joseph's only played football, not rugby.
Sean Long's Rugby League Playing Career
Playing for Clubs
Starting Out in Rugby League
Sean Long began his career at Wigan after joining from a local amateur team, Wigan St Judes. He made his first senior appearance in 1994. However, a serious knee injury kept him from playing for 18 months.
Sean wanted more chances to play in the first team at Wigan. In April 1997, he moved to Widnes, a club in the First Division. He played nine games for Widnes in two months. Even though Widnes was struggling, Sean's great playing caught the eye of other clubs. In June 1997, St Helens signed him for £80,000.
Becoming a Star at St Helens
Sean Long made his debut for St Helens against Cronulla Sharks in the 1997 World Club Championship. Later that year, he played in the 1997 Premiership final for St Helens. They lost to his old club, Wigan.
In 1999, Sean played for St Helens when they won the 1999 Super League Grand Final against Bradford Bulls. He came off the bench and kicked two goals. Sean set a St Helens record for points scored in a Super League season twice. He scored 284 points in 1999 and 352 points in 2000.
After winning the 1999 Championship, St Helens played in the 2000 World Club Challenge. They faced the National Rugby League champions, the Melbourne Storm. Sean played as scrum half and kicked a goal, but St Helens lost. Sean played scrum half for St Helens in their 2000 Super League Grand Final win against Wigan Warriors. He was named Man of Steel in 2000, a big award for the best player.
As champions of Super League V, St Helens played the 2000 NRL champions Brisbane Broncos in the 2001 World Club Challenge. Sean played scrum half, scoring a try, three goals, and a field goal in St Helens' victory. Sean also played scrum half for St Helens in their 2002 Super League Grand Final win against the Bradford Bulls. He scored a try, a goal, and the winning drop goal.
After winning Super League VI, St Helens played in the 2003 World Club Challenge against the 2002 NRL champions Sydney Roosters. Sean played at stand-off in St Helens' 38–0 loss. By 2005, Sean had scored over 2,000 points for St Helens. During the 2005 Super League X season, he broke his cheekbone.
Sean played scrum half for St Helens and scored a try in their 2006 Challenge Cup Final win over Huddersfield Giants. He won the Lance Todd Trophy for the third time, a record for man-of-the-match in a Challenge Cup final. St Helens reached the 2006 Super League Grand final against Hull FC. Sean played scrum half in St Helens' 26–4 victory.
As 2006 Super League champions, St Helens faced the 2006 NRL champions Brisbane Broncos in the 2007 World Club Challenge. Sean was the captain and played scrum half in St Helens' 18–14 win. In 2007, St Helens won almost all honors except the Super League title. They lost to Leeds in the Grand Final at Old Trafford. Sean had a special game called a testimonial match for St Helens against Leigh in 2007. Many former St Helens players came back to play. St Helens won the game 40–10.
He played in the Super League XIII Grand Final where St Helens lost to Leeds. He also played in the 2009 Super League Grand Final where St Helens lost to the Leeds Rhinos at Old Trafford.
Time with Hull FC
On 1 June 2009, it was announced that Sean had signed a two-year contract with Hull F.C. for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. He left St Helens after 12 seasons. Sean kicked his 1,000th goal for St Helens on 22 February 2009 in a game against Huddersfield.
Sean Long announced that he was retiring from playing rugby league on 10 August 2011.
Playing for His Country
In 1997, Sean was chosen to play for Great Britain. He played in two matches against Australia.
After the 2006 season, Sean was selected for Great Britain in the Tri Nations tournament. He played in the first game against Australia, which Great Britain won 23–12. This was Great Britain's first win in Sydney in 18 years. However, Sean returned home from the tour early for personal reasons.
Sean officially retired from playing for his country in April 2007. He wanted to focus on his club career with St Helens.
Sean Long's Rugby Union Playing Career
On 1 November 2011, it was announced that Sean had signed a contract to play rugby union. He joined Preston Grasshoppers in SSE National League 2 North. In 2017, he also played for the rugby union team Orrell RUFC.
Sean Long's Coaching Career
After retiring as a player, Sean Long started a coaching career.
Coaching for Clubs
He began as an assistant coach with Salford. In November 2014, Sean left Salford. He became the assistant coach at St. Helens when his former teammate Keiron Cunningham became head coach. He was also an assistant coach for Harlequin FC in rugby union after leaving St Helens. On 26 October 2020, Sean became the Assistant Coach at Leeds, returning to rugby league.
On 5 October 2022, Sean was appointed as the new head coach of Featherstone Rovers in the RFL Championship. On 7 August 2023, he left Featherstone as head coach. The team was leading the league by eight points when this decision was made. On 25 October 2023, he was appointed head coach of Oldham RLFC on a 3-year deal. Longy won his first league title as a coach for Oldham in the 2024 RFL League One Season.
Coaching for Countries
In 2013, Sean Long was appointed assistant coach for Samoa for their 2013 Rugby League World Cup campaign. He continued this role for Samoa in the 2014 Rugby League Four Nations and the 2017 Rugby League World Cup. On 29 March 2021, Sean was also named as assistant coach for France. He helped them prepare for the 2021 Rugby League World Cup, while also working with Leeds Rhinos.
Images for kids
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Sean Long in 2007
