Henry Paul signs for Harlequins RL

Henry Paul has agreed a two and a half year deal with Harlequins RL after after being released from his contract with Gloucester RU.

Paul, who left rugby league to pursue his ambitions in rugby union after winning the 2001 Super League Grand Final with Bradford Bulls, will ironically return to one of the world?s oldest rugby clubs on Saturday when it stages its first ever ?double header?.

Paul?s first game for Harlequins will also see him lined up against his younger brother Robbie, of Huddersfield Giants.

NEC Harlequins play Plymouth Albion on Saturday followed by Paul?s debut for Harlequins RL against Huddersfield Giants in the engage Super League.

Harlequins coach Tony Rea said: ?Henry is a player of immense talent and he has nothing to prove to anyone. He is here to play because that?s what he does best.?

Henry Paul added: ?It?s a big opportunity for me and I can?t wait to get out there and play.

?Quins have shown that they are a really professional outfit and I think the club has a very bright future.

?I?ve met twice with Ian Lenagan (Harlequins RL Chairman) and he outlined some impressive plans for Harlequins and I want to be a big part of that.

?Super League continues to break new ground as a sport and to be back involved is brilliant.

?To be lined up against Robbie is just how the cards have fallen but what a way for me to start at Quins."

- - - - -

Robbie Paul has welcomed older brother Henry back into rugby league and tipped him to make an impact on his return.

The 32-year-old dual-code international today joined Harlequins RL after securing a release from Gloucester and signed a two-and-a-half year contract.

He will make his Harlequins debut against younger brother Robbie in Saturday?s engage Super League clash against Huddersfield at the Twickenham Stoop, just over four years since they played their last match together.

The brothers were the half-back pairing as Bradford beat Wigan 37-6 to win the 2001 Grand Final at Old Trafford, where Henry kicked give goals and a drop goal on what was meant to be his league swansong.

?It?s awesome,? said Robbie, who left Bradford for Huddersfield at the end of last season.

?Obviously, that Grand Final was supposed to be his last game in rugby league.

?It will be great to play against the old man again and hopefully I?ll run circles around him.

?He?s so stubborn, even if he doesn?t have his fitness he will tell himself he has. He is built for this game of rugby league.

?That?s why he has done so well on the Sevens circuit. There is a lot of space unlike the normal rugby union game where you lie so flat. It?s in your face.

?It never leaves you but hopefully it won?t come back for him in time for this weekend.?

Henry, who claimed six England caps in rugby union to add to his 23 for the Kiwis, was released by Gloucester with just over a year to run on a contract that was jointly funded by the Rugby Football Union.

?It?s a big opportunity for me and I can?t wait to get out there and play,? he said.

?Quins have shown that they are a really professional outfit and I think the club has a very bright future.

?I?ve met twice with (Harlequins RL chairman) Ian Lenagan and he outlined some impressive plans for Harlequins and I want to be a big part of that.

?Super League continues to break new ground as a sport and to be back involved is brilliant.

To be lined up against Robbie is just how the cards have fallen but what a way for me to start at Quins.?

Paul will train with his new team-mates for the first time tomorrow and go straight into the Quins team for the second part of Saturday?s double-header at the Stoop.

Paul arrived in the northern hemisphere in 1993 when he captained the Junior Kiwis on their tour of Britain and France, and stayed on to play for Wakefield, for whom he made 19 appearances and scored 111 points.

He joined Wigan a year later and made his Test debut for New Zealand at the age of 21 in 1995, the year Wigan won the Challenge Cup, Premiership and Regal Trophy.

His career at Central Park lasted for four years and he scored 550 points from 147 appearances before teaming up with Robbie at Bradford in 1998.

In 2000 he became the first player to hold both the Harry Sunderland and Lance Todd Trophies after being named man of the match in the Bulls? first Challenge Cup final triumph for 51 years. He played for the Kiwis in the 2000 World Cup final against Australia at Old Trafford and broke the Bradford club?s scoring records in his last season with 404 points and 179 goals.

He signed an initial four-year contract with Gloucester thought to be worth ?1million in July 2001 and made 95 appearances in all competitions, scoring 702 points.

He made seven appearances for England A, in addition to winning six England caps, but his biggest impact came on the Sevens circuit in which he helped England win back-to-back Hong Kong titles.

?I would like to wish Henry Paul every success for his future and thank him for the contribution he has made to the team,? said Gloucester head coach Dean Ryan.

?He always gave his utmost and I am sure he will be a great success at Harlequins Rugby League.?

Paul is the second high-profile player to make the return from union to league, following in the footsteps of Iestyn Harris.

But his union days may not be completely over after Harlequins chief executive Mark Evans raised the possibility of him playing for the club?s sister club following their promotion back to the Premiership.

?I suppose he could but I don?t think that is part of the deal, certainly not until the end of the Super League season - but you never know,? Evans told Sky Sports News.

?It would be very difficult but you never rule anything out. At the moment it is very much a rugby league signing.

?And what a terrific signing! He is a terrific player in both codes and was a legend in rugby league before he moved across.

?I don?t think anyone will doubt he has been a quality player in both codes.?

Harris left Leeds for Cardiff a month after Paul?s switch of codes but lasted less than three seasons before resuming his league career with Bradford.

- - - - -

Henry Paul will train with his new Harlequins team-mates for the first time on his return to rugby league on Friday before being thrown back in at the deep end against his younger brother Robbie.

Fresh from helping England to victory in the Hong Kong Sevens, Paul will have little time to re-adjust to the 13-man game before making his Quins debut against Huddersfield in the engage Super League at the Twickenham Stoop on Saturday evening.

The 32-year-old Kiwi, virtually frozen out by Gloucester after his relations with the Premiership club soured, has joined the old London Broncos outfit on a two-and-a-half-year contract.

?We?ve been talking to him for a while,? revealed Harlequins RL chief executive Nic Cartwright. ?We always wanted him to come to us but he didn?t get back from Hong Kong until a week ago. ?He will start training with the team on Friday and go straight in at the deep end.?

Paul left rugby union on the day fellow league products Joe Lydon and Phil Larder became casualties of the England clear-out at neighbouring Twickenham.

He still had more than a year left on his contract with Gloucester but he had been on a final written warning since early in the season following breaches of club discipline and the West Country club readily agreed to his release.

Four and a half years on from his emotional farewell from Bradford, Paul will come face to face with 30-year-old Robbie, who was a team-mate in his last league match, the 2001 Super League Grand Final.

The brothers were the half-back pairing as the Bulls beat Wigan 37-6 at Old Trafford, where Henry kicked five goals and a drop-goal on what was meant to be his league swansong.

?To be lined up against Robbie is just how the cards have fallen but what a way for me to start at Quins,? he said.

Robbie, who moved from Bradford to Huddersfield in the close season, is confident big brother will easily make the re-adjustment.

In a glorious career which began at Wakefield as a teenager, Paul won every honour in the game in his seven seasons at Wigan and Bradford and in 2000 became the first player to hold both the Harry Sunderland and Lance Todd Trophies after being named man of the match in the Bulls? first Challenge Cup final triumph for 51 years.

?It never leaves you,? said Robbie. ?But hopefully it won?t come back as quickly as this evening.?