John Atkinson: Rugby player who became a legendary winger for Leeds Rhinos and Great Britain

There are few more stirring sights in sport than that of a winger, in either rugby code, breaking free deep in his own team’s territory and setting off for the try line. One hand gripping the ball and the other handing off would-be tacklers, their dash for glory prompts euphoria in the most curmudgeonly spectator. No one executed the long-distance touchdown better than John Atkinson.

Atkinson, whose rugby league career brought him a World Cup winner’s medal and the second highest number of tries in Leeds’s history, died at the age of 71 after being cruelly diminished by Alzheimer’s in the final years of his life. He will be remembered as one of the finest wingers the 13-a-side game has known, part of a pantheon which includes Billy Boston, Brian Bevan, Tom Van Vollenhoven, Clive Sullivan and Martin Offiah.

Before he had touched an oval ball in earnest Atkinson represented Yorkshire at running, swimming, gymnastics, cricket and boxing. Roundhay, a rugby union club in his native Leeds, exploited his athleticism on their left flank, where his try-scoring feats attracted the interest of their professional neighbours, Leeds, for whom he signed in 1966.

With his blend of individual flair and strong teamwork ethic, Atkinson swiftly established himself as a favourite with the Headingley crowd. A penchant for scoring on big occasions cemented his standing. There was the decisive try in Leeds’s 16-14 defeat of Castleford in the 1969 Championship final, and another in the 1972 final win over St Helens.

Atkinson represented Leeds in five Challenge Cup finals at Wembley between 1968 and 1978, touching down in each of the three they won. His pace, balance and single-minded, often flamboyant finishing also helped him earn winner’s medals in the Yorkshire Cup (no fewer than seven), the BBC2 Floodlit Trophy and Player’s No 6 Trophy.

His prized memento, however, was the medal he received after an attritional World Cup final against Australia at Lyon in 1972. The match ended in a draw after extra time but Great Britain were declared champions by virtue of having defeated their opponents earlier in the tournament.

Atkinson, who played in three other World Cups and had been a key player in 1970 when Britain last won a Test series in Australia, was one of the Lyon squad’s characters. His colleague Mike Stephenson said: “Atky needed 17 stitches in a head wound, but he still brought one of the nurses back to the team’s celebratory party.”

His Leeds sojourn ended in 1982 after 548 games and 340 tries. After a season as player-coach with Carlisle he served as a detective sergeant with the regional crime squad in Leeds and as a security manager, a job he lost following a drink-driving conviction.

Atkinson’s wife, Carol Butterfield, cared for him during the five years he suffered from dementia.

Remembering him after his death last month, Leeds Rhinos chief executive Gary Hetherington said: “He was one of those special players, a match winner.”

John Atkinson, rugby league player, born 3 October 1946, died 23 December 2017.