THIS column's plaintive cry for the city 0 Cardiff to recognise Jim Sullivan has prompted admirers to delve into a treasure-trove of stories about rugby's greatest goalkicker.
One of the more intriguing reveals how the pre-eminent football manager of the Roaring Twenties, Herbert Chapman, tried to sign Wigan's new full-back for Huddersfield Town, then on their way to winning successive League titles.
Wigan signed the 18-yearold Sullivan in 1921. Chapman made his move before leaving Yorkshire for London where he made Arsenal the most successful club in the land.
By then Chapman had tried to make the young Welshman switch codes again, from League to soccer not long after he had switched from Union to League.
Sullivan confirmed it some years later in a column for a national newspaper. “There was a time when I nearly became a soccer player,'' he said. “Herbert Chapman thought he saw in me the makings of a decent soccer player and he made strong efforts to persuade me to sign for Huddersfield.''
