Rugby league community mourns passing of iconic coach Cameron Bell

The rugby league community is mourning the passing of legendary coach Cameron Bell, who has died aged 87.

Bell died on Sunday at Thames Hospital and is remembered as a successful coach with Auckland and the New Zealand Māori, while he also had stints in England with the Carlisle Border Raiders and Barrow.

His most memorable achievements came at Carlaw Park when he led Auckland to a 30-14 win over Great Britain in 1988 and then Australia the following year, 26-24.

Among the players who played for Auckland during that time were Tea Ropati, Mark Horo, Kevin Iro, Tony Tuimavave and Duane Mann, all of whom went on to play for the Warriors.

Bell went on to coach the NZ M ā ori team, including an appearance at the 2000 Rugby League World Cup.