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Wrestling fans with memories going back to the 1950s remember a turbulent wrestling family from Yorkshire, Hooker Alf Rawlings and his two talented sons, Bill and Jim.
HOOKER ALF
The father of the family.
Alf Rawlings was born on 5th September, 1909 in Dewsbury but was a long time resident of Stockton on Tees. Alf was a crafty ring general of the post war years. In the 1920s Alf played in the reserve team for Leeds Rugby league Team, earning him the nickname Hooker Rawlings.
Our earliest record of Alf wrestling is in December, 1941, at Belle Vue, Manchester, in the main event against Farmer’s Boy.
Alf’s bald head and rugged features made him look a formidable opponent, and looks were not deceiving. His rough-house style prevented him from ever becoming a crowd’s favourite, and how could he be with a broken nose and cauliflower ears?
Fellow wrestler Eddie Rose remembered “Alf Rawlings was a craggy, gnarled veteran when I met him (socially, I might add). He was a rugged heavyweight with a bald head, broken nose and cauliflower ears and was matched against all the top heavies of the time: Mike Marino, Tony Mancelli, Dennis Mitchell, Francis Sullivan, etc. The most entertaining match I witnessed was Alf Rawlings verus Robert Duranton. Duranton was the possessor of a Mr Universe build, tanned, long hair and rather camp. What a contrast but the crowd loved it.”
Wrestling fan Grizzled Veteran recalled Alf and his sons:
“In April 1959 it was announced that the Rawlings family were in town with a Tag Team Challenge with a side stake of £50 (a lot of money then!) to be given away at ringside if they lost! The Team that answered the challenge was Alan Garfield, Gori Ed Mongotich, and Tibor Szakacs. An interesting combination two heels with what we now know was the fairly newly arrived Tibor. Although revolutionary at the time the rules were much as we would now expect. Three individual contests followed by a three man tag match. However bear in mind that at this time I had never seen or heard of a tag match! In the individual contests; Alf pinned Mangotich, and Alan and Tibor pinned Jim and Bill respectively. So the Rawlings trailed 2 to 1. Going into the tag Alan extracted submissions from both Bill and Jim in fairly quick succession. So the Rawlings now trailed 4 to 1! Some of the audience were probably already mentally counting the money. Then Alf entered the fray and k.o.’d both Mangotich and Tibor, I seem to recall his favourite finisher was the piledriver. So it was now 4 to 3! It was now Alf and Alan and after a flurry of action Alf gained a submission. So; 4 to 4 the next score must be the winner. But to everyone’s disappointment Alan refused to continue on his own and the Rawlings were declared the winners.”
Bernard Hughes is another who remembers Alf Rawlings, a regular visitor to the St James’s Hall in Newcastle during the 1950s.
“Alf Rawlings was a big, hard man not prone to fat. He normally was around fifteen and a half to sixteen and a half stone. Rough in the ring with a presence and a bit of humour if the opportunity arose. Like many big men, out of the ring Alf was a mild ,quietly spoken gentleman.”
One match Bernard recalled was against the Billy Two Rivers:
“Alf wrestled quite nicely until Billy Two Rivers got the fall, then he started the rough stuff. We then had the Indian war dance, followed by the throw to the ropes and the chop. Alf shot up, did his own version of the Stockton on Tees war dance, which wasn’t pretty. Two Rivers pretended to be mad, threw Alf at the ropes, Alf threw a punch, and caught Billy Two Rivers a beauty behind the ear sending him through the ropes and into the crowd. We then had the disqualification and the rumpus that followed.”
Fans were shocked when Alf suddenly disappeared from their rings, and even more so when they were told why he had retired. Alf quit the ring to become Deputy Superintendent of an eighty place children’s home in Pontefract, Yorkshire.
Alf Rawlings died in 1988.
Memories of Alf
I have just come across this website and I would like to mention Alf Rawlings, not for his wrestling but as someone working in the care profession. I was a resident in a working boys children’s home in the early seventies called Moorville in Bradford West Yorkshire. Alf and his wife were in charge of the home and lived in. Bill and Jim both worked there on a part time basis. Alf was getting on a bit but he could still handle himself and nobody took any liberties! I got on well with all three of them.
Steven J Williamson
13047
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