Many Harlequins players have also made their mark away from the club. The list of Quins players who have represented their countries is impressive and includes captains of England, Scotland, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa amongst others. There have been world cup winners and record holders. Some have also had achievements of note outside of Rugby.

Let's have a look at the lives of some of the biggest names from the club's past. Hopefully, over the coming months I will return to this subject and look at some others. We start with four players who all captained their countries and have played a big part in the history of Rugby Union. All four, whilst perhaps best known for their international careers, had long associations with Quins and we should be proud of their achievements.

In researching these profiles, I have used two books, Harlequin Story by H Wakelam and The Harlequins – 125 Years of Rugby Football by Philip Warner. I have also been assisted by Nick Cross (AKA RleQuin) who provided me with the statistics and has proof read the article for me.

Adrian Stoop

Perhaps the name most associated with the club, it is Adrian Stoop who the Stoop Memorial Ground is named after. His association with Harlequins lasted from his debut against Oxford University in November 1901 until 1950 when he ended his 30 year stint as president of the club. He played his last game in Quins colours in 1939, at the age of 56. He made 182 appearances in total, captained the side 143 times and scored 86 tries, being club captain for 8 consecutive seasons from 1906/07 to 1913/14.

Stoop was born on 27th March 1883 in Cromwell Road, London. His father was Dutch and his mother was half Scottish/half Irish.. He went to Rugby School, where he played for the school team and then to Oxford University, where he was captain of the rugby team in 1904.

It was whilst he was still at Rugby school that he was asked to join Harlequins. He had also been approached by Blackheath, who at the time were a bigger name than Quins, but he decided to accept the offer from Quins. How different things may have been if he had chosen differently.

He made his debut, against Oxford University whilst he was at the university, and as mentioned earlier, he went on to play for the university as well.

In 1905, Stoop made his debut for England against Scotland and it was also against Scotland that he earned the last of his 15 caps in 1912. During this time he captained the national side twice, including the first ever international played at Twickenham in 1910. Had it not been for a broken collarbone in 1907 he would have added to his international appearances.

Stoop is widely credited with revolutionising back play. Previously, the two half backs were designated as “left and right”, but Stoop incorporated ideas already being used in Wales and New Zealand to introduce the concept of the Scrum Half and Outside Half. He used these ideas to great success for both Harlequins and England.

Stoop was recognised as a great leader and captain. He was responsible for a number of positional changes amongst the Harlequins players which invariably were to the benefit of the player and the team.

As well as being club captain from 1906-1914, Stoop was secretary from 1905-14 and from 1920-38 as well as president from 1920-1950. He was also president of the RFU in 1932 and was a member of the selection committee. In addition to Quins and England he also represented Surrey and The Barbarians. He died on 27th November 1957, aged 74.

It is appropriate that Stoop's name should live on with the Stoop Memorial Ground. His lifelong association with the club was of great benefit to Harlequins and the success that the club had in the early part of the season was very much down to him. He was the first of the great names to be associated with the club.

Wavell Wakefield

William Wavell Wakefield, later Baron Wakefield of Kendal was born on 10th March 1898 in Beckenham, Kent. He went to Sedbergh school in Cumbria, where he proved to be a good all round sportsman.

He left school during the First World War and joined the Royal Naval Air Service. After the War he became the captain of the RAF rugby team and also joined Quins.

Wakefield was a flanker, but he could play in any of the back five positions in the scrum. If Stoop was credited with changing back play, Wakefield did the same for the forwards. Beforehand they used to concentrate on set pieces and were fairly static, but Wakefield developed loose forward play. He also created the tactic of using flankers to put pressure on the opposition fly-half.

On October 11th 1919, Wakefield made his debut for Quins against Richmond and he continued to play for the club for the next 10 years, although there were periods of absence when his work took him to other parts of the country. He did occasionally turn out for other clubs during this time (on one occasion he played for the RAF against Harlequins), but his main allegiance was always with Quins.

During his career with Quins, he appeared a total of 136 times (82 as captain) and he made his final appearance on the 25th January 1930 against Cambridge University. He scored 51 tries for the club, along with 1 penalty and 14 conversions. He was club captain in the following seasons: 1920/21, 1924/25 and 1927/28 to 1929/30.

The Middlesex Sevens competition was first held in April 1926, and was won by a Harlequins team which featured six internationals, including Wakefield.

In 1920, Wakefield made his England debut against Wales and in 1921 he was sent to Cambridge by the RAF on a two year course. He captained the university team in 1922. He was also the universities 440 yard champion.

In total, Wakefield appeared for England 31 times and was captain on 13 occasions. Both of these were records, and he was not overtaken as captain until the 1980's by Bill Beaumont. He led England to back to back Five Nations Grand Slams, the only captain to achieve the feat until Will Carling in the 1990's. His final appearance for England was against France in April 1927.

In addition to captaining Quins, England, The RAF and Cambridge University, Wakefield had also captained his school, Middlesex and The Barbarians during his playing days.

Outside of Rugby, Wakefield was an all round sportsman who also played cricket and squash. He was an excellent swimmer and runner. Had he dedicated his time to it, would probably have become an Olympic standard runner over quarter of a mile. In addition, he was a skier, both on snow and water and became the president of the Ski Club of Great Britain, the British Sub Aqua Club and the British Water Ski Federation.

In 1935, Wakefield moved into politics, becoming MP for Swindon and then later St. Marylebone. He was knighted in 1944 and later became the first Baron Wakefield of Kendal. He was also still involved in Rugby and was the RFU president in 1950. From 1950 to 1980 he was president of Harlequins.

Wakefield died on 12th August 1983 at the age of 85, but his name will live on forever in Rugby. In 1999 he was inducted as the first (and until this year, only) English member of the International Rugby Hall of Fame. There is also the Wavell Wakefield Rugby Union Youth Trust, a trust which is dedicated to “the provision of facilities to enable and encourage pupils of schools and universities to play rugby union football”. Finally, he is honoured by Wakefields, a restaurant in the East Stand at Twickenham.

Will Carling

Whilst the other three players featured here are widely respected both within and outside of the club, Will Carling remains a rather controversial figure. Until England's World Cup triumph this year, he was recognised as the most successful England Captain in history, but still his playing and leadership abilities are questioned and he couldn't claim to be amongst the most popular of ex-players.

This is a very good example of how mistakes made at the end of a career can overshadow successes earlier on. During his time as England Captain Carling was one of the most recognisable sportsmen in the country and was runner up in the BBC sports personality of the year award in 1991. He was also awarded an OBE, but high profile scandals in his private life, and an unsuccessful comeback for Quins in 1999 took the edge off these achievements.

Born on 12th December 1965 at Bradford-on-Avon, Carling went to Sedbergh school (as had Wavell Wakefield) and then attended Durham University. He was still at the university when he made his debut for Harlequins (against the Metropolitan Police in February 1987) and also when he won his first England cap against France in January 1988. He scored two tries in Harlequins 28-22 JPS cup final win over Bristol the same year..

After only a handful of caps, Carling was controversially handed the captaincy by Geoff Cooke at the age of 22. His first game in charge was against Australia at Twickenham in November 1988 which resulted in an unexpected England win by 28 points to 19.

In 1989, Carling was selected for the British Lions tour to Australia, but had to withdraw from the squad due to injury, and the following year there was further disappointment as Scotland beat England in the grand slam decider in Edinburgh.

The following years were more successful internationally, as England won back to back grand slams (Carling sharing the record with Wavell Wakefield of achieving this feat as captain). In between these successes, England reached the World Cup final at Twickenham in 1991, losing to Australia in a disappointing final. Carling was criticised in some areas for the change in England's tactics for the final which many felt had cost the match.

Meanwhile, at Harlequins, Carling was involved in the successful Pilkington Cup final of 1991 where Northampton were beaten 25-13 after extra time and also in the Middlesex Sevens successes.

In 1993, Carling was selected for the Lions tour to New Zealand, but only featured in the first test, Scott Gibbs being preferred for the rest of the series.

There was another grand slam in 1995, followed by the World Cup in South Africa. Before the world cup though, Carling was sacked as captain after describing the RFU committee as “57 old farts” in a TV documentary. He was re-instated soon afterwards due to public and press criticism of the decision and the fact that no other member of the squad was prepared to take on the captaincy.

In the world cup, England gained revenge on Australia in the quarter final, but were famously beaten in the semi final by Jonah Lomu and the All Blacks. It was to Carling's credit that England fought back in the second half to give the scoreline some respectability. Lomu was later quoted as saying that Carling was one of the only England players who performed in the game.

The following spring, Carling stepped down as England Captain but continued to be in the team for a further year, gaining the last of his 72 caps (59 as captain) against Wales in the 1997 five nations. He retired from rugby in 1997, but returned to The Stoop for the 1999/2000 season, when he was club captain (he had not held the position during his England days). The season was a disappointment, with injury striking and questions over his form. A planned testimonial game had to be abandoned after support decreased following revelations regarding his private life. He made his final appearance for Quins against Bristol in February 2000. He played a total of 177 times for Quins, scoring 33 tries, 11 penalties and 35 conversions.

When Carling announced his retirement in 2000, he made the first of his public criticisms of the England set-up. This was just following the six nations disappointment against Scotland, and Carling questioned Clive Woodward's ability to make England a true force in World Rugby. “We don't seem to have the ability, when Plan A is not working, to switch to Plan B or Plan C”, he was quoted as saying.

He spoke up once again after England had been defeated by France in the 2002 competition. However, he publicly changed this view before this years World Cup saying he had been wrong to call for Woodward's sacking.

Outside of Rugby, Carling founded Insights Ltd, a company which presents motivational seminars. He also regularly appears as a television pundit. He filled plenty of newspaper space towards the end of his playing days, especially after he was romantically linked with Princess Diana.

So was Will Carling an inspirational player and leader who dragged England from the grim days of the 1980's to become one of the best teams in the world, or was he just lucky to have been given the captaincy at a time when England were blessed with players such as Richards, Leonard, Underwood and Guscott. Well, I'm not sure, and there are people who will argue either case. Tell us what you think on the message board

Keith Wood

During the video of the British Lions 2001 tour to Australia, the team doctor James Robson takes us through the injury list following the second test. After a while, he gets to the final name on the list.

“Keith Wood has just got everything, because he just tries so hard and lays his body on the line and he needs total body therapy today”.

That perhaps sums up Keith Wood better than any of the tributes which followed his retirement from rugby after Ireland's loss to France in the World Cup quarter final.

Woody in 02/03 (kwin)

Wood was born in Limerick on 27 January 1972. His father was Gordon Wood who played 29 times for Ireland and toured with the Lions in 1959. He attended St Munchin's College, Limerick and The University of Limerick. His first club was Garryowen and he made his debut for Ireland in June 1994 against Australia and played in the 1995 World Cup. However, the World cup was a big disappointment, as he seriously injured his shoulder early in the tournament, resulting in his being out of the national team for a long period.

In 1996, he was made Irish Captain and also joined Harlequins, his first game for the club being against Gloucester in August. The following year he was selected for the British Lions tour to South Africa. He played in the first two tests and was one of the standout players on the tour. The video of the tour also showed him to be a key member of the squad off the field.

Wood was club captain for Harlequins in the 1997/98 season and he led the side in the same way that he did with Ireland, from the front.

In 1999, Wood led Ireland in the World Cup, scoring four tries in their opening game against the USA. However, the tournament was ultimately disappointing as they were beaten by Argentina in a quarter final playoff, meaning that they had to go through the qualifying competition for the 2003 tournament.

For the 1999/2000 season, he had a year away from Quins and helped Munster reach the final of the European Cup, losing to Northampton in a very close final. On his return to Quins in 2000, he stood in as captain until David Wilson arrived from Australia. He played in the Parker Pen Shield final against Narbonne and collected the trophy after Wilson had been injured during the game. In a post match interview, when asked what he thought the victory meant for English Rugby he replied “I don't care about English Rugby, I just care about Harlequins”

Wood's name must have been one of the first on the squad list for the 2001 British Lions tour to Australia and captained the team on a number of occasions. He was also named man of the match after the victorious first test in Brisbane.

Later in the same year, Wood scored Ireland's try against England in the delayed Six Nations game to once again rob England of the grand slam. He also won the inaugural IRB Player of the year award in 2001.

2001/02 was a disappointing season for Harlequins, and Wood missed a number of games with injury, but he starred in the relegation decider against Leeds, scoring two tries, the second a trademark score after ploughing through a number of defenders.

In 2002, Wood suffered the loss of both his brother and mother in the space of a couple of months. He also became a father, the child born just days after his brothers death.

Unfortunately, the final years of Woods career were blighted by injury. As a result, his final game for Quins, against Leeds in December 2002 passed without comment and he faced an uphill struggle to make the World Cup. Had it not been for these injury problems then he would have gained many more caps for his country. He made his re-appearance during the warm up games and was named captain for the World Cup.

This decision wasn't unanimously supported in the press and amongst the Irish supporters, some of whom felt that he hadn't had a proper preparation, but it was vindicated by his performances during the competition. He pulled Ireland through their crunch game against Argentina and displayed his never say die approach on his final ever game against France in the quarter final. At the conclusion of the tournament he was named as the standout Hooker by a large number of pundits.

Following the loss to France, Wood confirmed his retirement stating that “the head is willing, the heart is willing, and the body has had enough”. He was described by manager Eddie O'Sullivan as “the identikit of a professional rugby player” and the respect that he has was demonstrated by the standing ovation given to him by the press when he entered the press-conference after the game.

In total, Wood played 58 times for Ireland, being captain 33 times and scoring 15 tries. For Quins he appeared 113 times, was captain on 39 occasions and scored 21 tries and one drop goal.

Outside of Rugby, Wood has laid the foundations of a career as a television pundit, co-presenting the Rugby program on BBC during 2002. He also has his own PR company, Touch Wood, and has stated his wish to be involved with Quins in some way, although he has ruled out a coaching career. Whatever he does in the future, we all wish him the greatest success.

Maybe the best way to finish this article would be to quote Keith Wood in an interview which appeared in Duncan McRae's excellent book “Winter Colours”. It's difficult for someone like myself who has never played the game to imagine what it is like to play such a physical game against people who you like and respect. Perhaps this is as close as I'll ever get to understanding.

“Well, it's never a case of trying to do any real damage to each other. It's strange but this kind of thing always seems to happen most often between me and some of my best friends in rugby. When Ireland played England in the Five Nations, I was up against my old pal, Jason Leonard, the guy I pack down with for both Quins and the Lions. In the first two minutes, Jason kicked me in the head. I fell down but I didn't mind in the slightest. It meant me and Jason were going to give each other a shake all through the match. Near the end, I kicked him in the head. I had no hesitation. He was in the way. Afterwards, we were laughing and hugging each other. We found it very amusing”

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