Former Hull FC and Castleford Tigers head coach Lee Radford has been awarded an honorary degree.
Radford has been given the award by the University of Hull, situated in his home town, for his contribution to sport and community development.
The 46-year-old is currently working in the 15-man code after agreeing to join rugby union Premiership outfit Northampton Saints back in 2023. He remains with the Saints but has also taken on a role within the Scotland national team as a defence coach and finds himself preparing for what will be his first Six Nations.
Radford won everything there was to win as a rugby league player, racking up two Super League Grand Final wins, a Challenge Cup and a World Club Challenge during his time at Bradford Bulls, where he spent seven years as a player before heading back to Hull FC in 2006.
However, despite leading the Black and Whites to the Grand Final in his first season, he is remembered most for his time as head coach of the club. Radford spent just over six years in the hotseat at the MKM Stadium and the Challenge Cup victories he secured in 2016 and 2017 have cemented him into club folklore.
He left Hull in 2020, just before the pandemic, before eventually taking up the head coach role at Castleford, but he couldn’t replicate the success he had in East Yorkshire.
And, as one of Hull’s most famous and successful sporting sons, he has been recognised and honoured by the university.
“It’s not something I ever expected, but it is something I’m really proud of,” Radford said, per BBC. “Being here today is really quite humbling.”
The award comes a month after current Hull KR boss Willie Peters received an honorary degree from the same university. Peters led the Robins to an historic treble in 2025 and the local university has duly honoured the head coach.
Check out the latest episode of The Serious About Rugby League Show on our YouTube channel here.
