Paul Ackford [SEP] position played on team / speciality
Paul Ackford
Paul Ackford (born 26 February 1958) is a former English rugby union international who played lock forward. He was formerly an inspector in the Metropolitan Police, and is now a columnist for The Telegraph.
Ackford was born in Hanover, West Germany. Educated at Plymouth College and Cambridge University, he played lock for England B aged 21 and represented Cambridge in the 1979 Varsity Match, but did not make an impact until joining Harlequins and the Police in 1988. After impressing for the London Division against the
from one club (8) in a Rugby World Cup final. In the second ever RWC final at Twickenham in November 1991, seven Harlequin players appeared for England (Will Carling, Simon Halliday, Jason Leonard, Brian Moore, Paul Ackford, Mickey Skinner, Peter Winterbottom) and Troy Coker played in the Australian pack.
They are also affiliated with an amateur team, Harlequin Amateurs.
Harlequins became the first British team to win the European Shield in 2001, defeating Narbonne 42–33 in the final. They then became the