Dean Lance

Narrabri centre/five-eighth came from Wests Newcastle to join Newtown in 1982 but when the foundation club folded in 1983, signed with Canberra. Lance, who was a Newcastle rep in the 29-0 thrashing of France in 1977, earned a reputation as a rock-solid defender after moving to lock forward. He was made club captain in 1986 and gained the honour of leading the Raiders into their first grand final in 1987 before stepping aside in favour of Mal Meninga the following year. Lance's role in Canberra's back-to-back premierships in 1989-90 was an important part of the club's success and he retired on a high note after the 1990 grand final win over Penrith. His career as a coach has been a study in bad timing. He took over from Peter Mulholland as W’Reds coach in 1997 but was left without a club when the Perth team folded. A similar fate occurred with the demise of the Adelaide Rams in 1998 after he had stepped into the coaching role following the dismissal of Rod Reddy mid-year. However, after three seasons as coach of Leeds in the English Super League, he was sacked after the club’s poor 2001 season.