MAN of the moment Richie Hayes reaches a notable landmark in his award-laden career tomorrow.

As revealed by the Evening Press on Tuesday, the 33-year-old legend is to be rewarded with a testimonial match at the end of this season in recognition of his efforts over the years for rugby league and, in particular, for his home-town club, York.

And anyone who saw that article would have noted he has played a mammoth 399 professional games over his 16-season career, including 280 for York.

That means tomorrow's match against Sheffield, fittingly at his home town stadium, will be the mighty prop's 400th professional match.

Knights chief executive Steve Ferres said: "For anybody to get to 300 games is a tremendous achievement and to go 33 per cent on top of that is fantastic. It's a credit to his ability, fitness, stamina and determination to do well."

Hayes remains some way short of the appearance record for York, held by Willie Hargreaves, who played 449 times for the club between 1952 and 1965, while rugby league's record number of appearances is held by Wigan great Jim Sullivan with an astonishing 928 between 1921 and 1946 - a figure that will surely never be beaten. There are 17 more players with more than 600 games to their name and several more who have passed the 500 mark.

However, few of those players are from the modern era - for example, no player with more than 600 appearances began their careers after 1973 - and the Rugby Football League's official stats man, Ray Fletcher, has confirmed that to have clocked up 400 appearances these days is "some going".

"In the modern era, say from the onset of Super League in 1996, to get between 300 to 400 appearances is quite a feat," he said.

"Richie Hayes started out before then but even so it is very good."

Incidentally, two of those players with more than 600 appearances to their name played at some stage for York. Neil Fox, who played 13 times for York towards the end of his 1956-1980 career, is third on the list with 828 and Keith Mumby, who played eight times in 1994, is eighth with 695.

Free First York buses running to tomorrow's game at Huntington Stadium leave from:

Thanet Road Baths (Edmund Wilson) 2pm, then Stonebow Job Centre 2.15;

Burton Stone Lane (Corner House) 2pm then Lowther Street (shops) 2.15;

To wait at York Railway Station forecourt from 2pm to meet potential trains from Sheffield, departing 2.20 to stadium.

All return buses will depart Huntington Stadium at 5pm.

Updated: 10:38 Saturday, July 26, 2003