Congratulations to Ray French on his award, it is always nice to see rugby league get a mention, it doesn't seem to happen very often.

well deserved ,congratulations Ray

I don't particularly like his delivery on t.v or radio, but think it's well deserved honour for his time and support of Rugby (both codes)
I remember going to St. Helens Rugby Union at moss Lane to watch an academy RL game and French was there helping to steward the car park.

Ray French is one of the good guys - when all around are falling to the evils of wendyball Ray stood up and kept Rugby alive at Cowley - well done Ray couldnt happen to a nicer bloke

Got his book for Christmas and have already read a good few pages. As has been already posted, one of the good people in televised sport.

Very decent guy Ray.

Probably overdue but well deserved.

Congrats.

Well done Ray,very well deserved.

Congratulations Ray! A very well deserved award (and about time too!).

Congratulations to Ray, a well deserved award, I used to see Ray and Lennie Lowe waiting for the bus to school opposite Mrs Delucies shop on Derbyshire Hill Rd, (only seems like yesterday)

Brian, I am sure he will do the same for you when you get your own ground.

Avery much deserved reward for his unstinting work

Well done Ray, fully deserved for the decades of service to the game.

Compare that to the England XI who will play 20 days of Cricket and will each earn an MBE with the coach and captain getting a knighthood!

He's terrible to listen to on tv these days but it's spot in fir his service to the game.

Well done ray

All this adoration for Mr French, is it the same man when he was a Cowley, threatened boy's who played for the Under 16 Rugby League team I ran that they would not get selected at school if they continued to play league? the same man who made so much money out of rugby league playing, books and the BBC commentating?

Personally I am not for honours for stars of TV, theatre, films or sport who have done nicely financially out out their work, I am more for the lady from Sutton who has run a young football team for many years, who like many of us gave time and money without question.

As far as the BBC TV commentating the BBC should have relieved Ray of his role many years back, once again they have managed to produce like sadly Eddie Waring became a Joker! which is not good for our great game!

I am sure Ray is a great guy and superb family man, there is no doubt his loyalty to St Helens Rugby League Club, but I was only in my early 20's when he Tried to stop young 15 and 16 year olds playing rugby league and as I state why honour someone for what they are paid to do as a job????

Cowley High School did not play rugby league while it was a grammar school. Was it still a grammar school when you were there? According to a family member who also coached rugby league and knew Ray French from Cowley High School, it was Ray French who coached rugby league at Cowley once it had become a comprehensive and once it had changed its school policy towards rugby.

Very harsh.IF Ray French said that,i am sure that you have taken it out of context.My teacher at school wasnt over keen on us playing for teams outside school,regardless of the code,due to picking up injuries,playing too many matches in one week and possible fixture clashes.
I also dont think he made a fortune from playing and i am sure his media work doesnt make him millions.He's hardly driving round town in a Rolls Royce.
Ray French has a genuine love of both codes of Rugby.He does a lot of work down at LSH that us league fans dont realise.You seem to have a chip on your shoulder about something but that should not deter from him gaining a well deserved honour.

Very much deserved, congratulations Mr French, i personnally love his commentary and one of the best after dinner speakers I have ever had the pleasure of listening to.

For the record, Cowley's got a long history of Rugby Union, certainly when i was there, 7 years ago now, it was very much the dominant code at the school, as a Pilk Recs player at the time there where numerous times i was made to feel a little pressured into putting school before club, something along the lines of 'What do you think university selectors would do if they had two educationaly balanced applicants but one plays the international sport of Rugby Union and the other plays the northern provincial sport of League, it come down to that one day etc etc....'

It may be different there now though with the like of Mike Bennet on the teaching staff and having the new training ground.

I know what he said thanks! and so do the players involved, I always played rugby league outside of school, in fact the team I was involved with/ran had players such as Andy Platt who would have only otherwise played Union at West Park as many other good players, Ray and myself had many heated discussions!

The sad thing is there are more kids playing rugby league now in London than such as in our home town and many famous league towns!

I said I respect Ray, but please don't try to tell me his work was just a labour of love for BBC TV and those who think his commentaries are still good, well that shocks me as it is the BBC as always treating our game so badly, perhaps the hnour is a great time for Mr French himself to stand down himself and let more new blood come though, such as rugby league fanatic on BBC Radio Five Live George Riley, now I would respect Ray is he does that as the Rugby Leaguer used to say "All For The Good of The Game"

I don't honestly think anyone would praise his commentaries in recent years and hasn't he already in effect stood down?
Interesting to hear it wasn't all flowers and puppies.

I am a Royalist, but some mates are not, but I accept and respect their opinions, it would be a boring world if we all thought the same. Regards the Honours System I do feel it is totally outdated now, the outcry from such as the sun about Bruce Forsyth to be made a Sir, the man received an honour some years back.

Gotta agree with your view of him stepping down.
Can't comment properly on the quality of his services to rugby league from a while ago but recently his commentaries are boring and sound ill-informed. He doesn't know the players on a team and can't recognise the ones he does know when they are playing.

Additionally he is out of date with the game. Last year's semi final highlights it perfectly. IT was like watching Ian Botham arguing on the cricket. He was discussing with J. Davis the system of licenses and was well off in what he said. Everyone around him were making excellent points and added to the discussion; he just seemed confused and was making a great deal of sense.

He has been a voice for the sport but i think he should step down now.

Congratulations, though, on the recognition./

Ray French was involved in rugby league as a labour of love, period. His commentary for the BBC was just a part of that and in some ways a small part of it. That he was a commentator, and still is at local level, means that people know of him nationally and he was referred to on the national BBC news when news of his award first broke. Had he not had that involvement, he would not have been mentioned, given league's low media profile nationally.

So you know then, does Mr French not accept any payment from BBC TV? I admit he may not get much payment from BBC Radio Merseyside, but again I don't think he will do it for no payment at all! Of course BBC TV are going to mention the award when it is their own salary staff! they need to bang the drum as anyone, shame they do not rate Rugby League so Highly when it is time for Sports Personality of the Year Award, once more they treat the game as it is in the gutter!

Ray sadly is now totally out of touch with the current game, he can't keep up with the pace of the game any longer, well if that is the image we want to portray on a national basis then we are in a mess as a sport!

I said period. I didn't say 'on TV'. Whether he was paid or not, and whether you are talking about his coaching, his promotion of the game, his writing about the game or his commentating upon the game, it was all a labour of love to him. He has a passion for rugby, especially rugby league. That was a complaint against him when he was teaching. Some teachers at Cowley did not think he was passionate enough about English because he cared so much about rugby. Being paid for something you are good at and love does not in any way negate your commitment to what it is that you love. As I said, his TV work was only part of it and historically a relatively small part of it.

Ray taught me at Cowley Grammar from 1971 to 1976 both in the classroom and on the Rugby pitch. This was the time of "never the two codes will meet". He never once showed bias to either code and even had RL Pros (Ian MacCorquadale for one) helping him coach there. He brought a lot of lads into the school from League to play Union (Ian Potter and Mick Burke for eg) and then helped with their entry into the Pro Game. He arranged Half time RU 7 a sides at Saints v Wigan Games.

He deserves his MBE for his Services to School Sport in the St Helens area alone, never mind anything he has done on TV. A lot of lads owe an awful lot to "Uncle Earie" especially those that were fortunate enough to go on the many Globe Trotting Tours he arranged. The guy is a star and anybody who says different doesn't know him.