Norman Turley (born 5 September 1955) is an English former professional rugby league footballer and coach who played as a fullback or loose forward. He holds the British rugby league record for most drop goals in a career, scoring 97 between 1974 and 1991.
Playing career
Born in Leigh, Turley started his career at Warrington, making his first team debut at 1974. He played at fullback during his early career, and spent most of his time at Warrington as an understudy to Derek Whitehead.
He joined Blackpool Borough in 1977, where he switched to playing at loose forward. At Blackpool, Turley became a prolific drop goal kicker; when the club won promotion to the First Division in the 1978–79 season, Turley kicked 18 drop goals, the most by any player that season. Blackpool played Australia in the opening game of the 1978 Kangaroo tour, and were defeated 1–39, with a drop goal by Turley being Blackpool's only point.
Later in his career, he went on to play for Rochdale Hornets, Swinton, Runcorn and Barrow. He also had three further spells at Blackpool Borough (known as Trafford Borough during his third and fourth stint at the club) and was appointed as player-coach at Workington Town and Whitehaven.
When Turley ended his playing career in 1991, he had kicked a total of 97 drop goals, the most scored by any player in British rugby league history.
Coaching career
After retiring as a player, Turley became a coach at his hometown club, Leigh. In 1998, he was appointed as head coach for the rest of the season, following the departure of Keith Latham. He remained an assistant coach at Leigh for several years, during which time his son Neil was a player at the club.