Wigan Warriors icon Sean O’Loughlin shares glowing admiration for Sir Billy Boston as ‘legend’ comment made
Wigan Warriors icon and current assistant coach Sean O’Loughlin has sung the praises of the legendary Sir Billy Boston, who has become rugby league’s first knight.
Rugby league’s 130-year wait for a knighthood is over after Sir Billy, who was born in Wales and became an adopted Wiganer, was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire on Tuesday, becoming Sir William John Boston KBE.
The now 90-year-old is one of the all-time greats in rugby league, in both hemispheres, having scored 478 tries in 488 appearances for Wigan.
In an exclusive interview with The Wigan Post, club icon O’Loughlin, who played 458 games for the Warriors and himself received an OBE for his services to rugby league in 2022, paid tribute to Sir Billy following his knighthood.
“It’s one for his legacy as a player and as a person, but I think for the sport, it’s a huge honour and a huge occasion for everyone involved,” O’Loughlin said.
“Billy is that personality where as soon as everyone heard about it, it put a smile on people’s faces. It was good to hear, and he definitely deserves it.
“The only times I’ve seen him play are through TV, video clips and things like that. A kid growing up now will probably hear the exact same things about him as I did when I was a kid.
“He is a legend of a bloke and a legend of a personality. I think what he’s done in the game, his numbers and figures, speak volumes.
“But for people who watched him in that generation, they speak so highly of him and always say how exciting he was to watch.
“He was probably ahead of his time in the fact that he was an entertainer in the way he played the game, and, by all accounts, he was unbelievable to watch.
“Growing up in Wigan and coming from the town, you hear people talking about him as a person as well. The older generation talks about what he was like in his pomp and not just about how good of a player he was, but how good of a bloke he was as well.
“His playing career was obviously unbelievable, but I think more so in the Wigan area, I think people value him as a character as well, which puts him right up there.”
Welshman Boston, who is a Hawkley Hall resident and revealed in 2016 he was living with vascular dementia, broke down barriers in sport, becoming the first non-white player to be selected for the Great Britain Lions tour in 1954, overcoming discrimination and paving the way for future players.
Sir Billy received the freedom of Wigan in 2000 and is immortalised in three statues, in Wigan, Wales and at Wembley.