KANGAROOS PROUD HISTORY

Australian coach, Mal Meninga asked Steve Ricketts to write a condensed version of the History of the Kangaroos ahead of the 2024 Pacific Cup. Mal wanted his players to realise that those who had gone before them, had left a wonderful legacy.

Here is the next chapter, with a couple of small additions to the one presented to the players.

KANGAROOS’ PROUD HISTORY
CHAPTER 6
1940-1950

WAR SHIP DELIVERS THE BRITS

The Second World War saw the suspension of International football from 1940 to 1945, although club football continued and inter-state series were played in 1940, 1941 and 1945. But there were problems. For instance, in Brisbane the Past Brothers Club (which Wayne Bennett played for in the 1970s) was unable to field a team for a few weeks when 14 players enlisted in the armed forces. The war interrupted the career of many players, and it is anyone’s guess how many more Tests the likes of Jack Reardon, Ray Stehr and Fred Gilbert might have played, except for the hostilities.

Rugby League started in Darwin in 1941, partly due to number of soldiers from Queensland and New South Wales being based there. There was even a match played in Alice Springs between Northern Australia and Southern Australia. Rugby League games were played by troops overseas, in places as exotic as Tripoli in Syria; South Alexishafen in New Guinea; and Bougainville in the Pacific. The Bougainville match was regarded as the first Origin match because players were chosen on state allegiances, rather than regimental attachments. The teams played for a trophy made from a Japanese shell. There was even a match played in Hiroshima, Japan, just after the end of the war, between Australian soldiers from the occupying forces, and a British team from the ship, HMS Shropshire. Hiroshima had been devastated by one of the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan by the Americans.

Peter Hickey, who was a reserve for the Second Test against England in Brisbane in 1936, enlisted in 1940 and served with the RAAF. While based in Yorkshire he represented the RAAF against the RAF in cricket. The Leeds rugby league club tried to entice him to play with them, but he declined.

“I am afraid it is impossible. It would interfere with ‘work’ too much,” Hickey said at the time. “Apart from that the Air Ministry frowns on officers playing professional types of football.”

Early in 1942 Hickey was killed while returning from a raid over Germany. He is buried in the Cherbourg cemetery in France.

In 1946, the British Rugby League team, captained by Welshman, Gus Risman, travelled to Australia on the aircraft carrier, HMS Indomitable. The voyage was the brainchild of the Federal Minister for External Affairs, Dr H V Evatt, a devoted rugby league man who was keen for life to return to normal as soon as possible after the War. The British played a match in Perth and then caught a troop train to the eastern states. One of the players was Fred Hughes from Workington Town, whose son, Emlyn, would go on to captain England in soccer, from the Liverpool club. Emlyn, known had represented Lancashire in colts rugby league, and marked British great, Roger Millward in a match against Yorkshire.

The First Test was an 8-all draw, but the British won the next two Tests. As you might expect, after disruption by war, Australia fielded 13 debutants in the First Test. This touring side was the first to be called Great Britain, rather than England. It was felt the name change was necessary because there were so many Welshmen playing league, along with the odd Scot and Irishman.

Australia’s first post War captain was Joe Jorgenson, who was born at Berry on the NSW South Coast, and played A grade for Illawarra club, Port Kembla in 1939 when he was just 16. He was contracted to Balmain when selected for the match against Britain, playing in the centres alongside Ron Bailey from Canterbury-Bankstown.

Bailey became Canterbury’s first ever Test captain when he was given the task for the return Test at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground. Bailey had played for Waratah Mayfield in Newcastle before the war, as well as having a had a stint with English club, Huddersfield. He set-up Australia’s only try – for winger, Lionel Cooper – in the 14-5 loss in what proved a spiteful game, with English forward, Joe Egan sent from the field.

Jorgenson was reinstated for the Third Test at the SCG, after Bailey was ruled out with an ankle injury. Australia led 7-2 at halftime, but were beaten 20-7 with Sydney Wests’ forward, Arthur Clues sent from the field, for throwing a punch at rival forward, Willie Horne. He missed his intended target by a foot. “I deserved to be sent off for missing,” Clues said later.

Queensland scored a famous victory against that British touring side, with each of the Maroons given an extra five pounds in winning bonuses by a delighted administration.

THE SACKING OF LEN SMITH

The Kiwis were the next to tour Australia – in 1948 – with a new look Kangaroos’ outfit beaten 21-19 in the First Test at the SCG, played in front of a crowd of 55,866. There were 12 debutants in the side, including Fred De Belin from Balmain, the grandfather of current St George Illawarra forward, Jack de Belin; Eddie Brosnan from Brisbane Brothers, an uncle of Wayne Bennett’s; and the skipper, Len Smith from Newtown in Sydney, a former Wallaby, and a soldier who saw overseas service. The only man who previously played for Australia was prop, Frank ‘Bumper’ Farrell, a policeman.

Despite the loss, Smith retained the captaincy for the return Test at the Gabba in Brisbane and Australia made amends with a 13-4 win. This match saw the debut of future Immortal, Clive Churchill (South Sydney) at fullback, as well as future Team of the Century prop, Duncan Hall from Valleys in Brisbane. De Belin was the star of the Gabba win, with the Kiwis dubbing the former World War II pilot ‘the blonde tiger’

The Kangaroos toured Britain and France at the end of the season and Smith was expected to be retained as skipper. But he was dumped in favour of Bowraville product, Colin Maxwell from Wests Magpies. Smith did not even make the touring squad.

Writing in his ‘Centenary of Rugby League’ book, Hall of Fame inductee, Ian Heads described the sacking of Smith as one of the greatest injustices in Australian sporting history. Heads interviewed Smith in 1990, and recollections of his sacking still brought tears to Smith’s eyes. Smith was the only player from the Trans-Tasman series to miss out. At the end of the season he was named New South Wales Rugby League player of the year.

The reasons given for his sacking still remain somewhat of a mystery. The popular reason given was religious prejudice – Smith was a Catholic and many of the power brokers were protestants. But how did he get the captaincy for the series against the Kiwis, if that was the case? Ian Heads’ investigations came to the conclusion that it was more about politics and ambition, with Smith having to be cast aside so a certain people could achieve their goals.

The British won all three Tests against Maxwell’s 1948-49 Kangaroos, although Australia won both Tests in France. Maxwell missed the First Test in Leeds through injury, the captaincy reins being handed to halfback, Wally O’Connell from Eastern Suburbs. It was one of the great Test matches, with Britain winning 23-21. Maxwell returned for the Second Test at Swinton, with Britain retaining the Ashes via a 16-7 victory.

The Third Test was postponed because of fog, so the Kangaroos went to France to play two Tests, with Brisbane Souths’ lock, Bill Tyquin the skipper. Australia won both Tests and seven of the eight club/provincial matches, the only loss coming against a Catalans 13 in Perpignan.

When the Australians returned to England, they were a tired bunch, and the British were keen to rub salt into the wounds. There was a crowd of 43,500 at Bradford’s Odsal Stadium for the dead rubber game, and the home team won 23-9, with De Belin scoring Australia’s final try of the tour. The tour was a financial success with the players given a record 420 pounds ($12,000 in 2025 money) a man bonus by the ARL.

In 1949, the Kangaroos closed the decade with a tour of New Zealand under the captaincy of Armidale born, Keith Froome, who made his senior debut with Wests in Newcastle before moving to Sydney, where he signed with Newtown.

Australia led 8-0 in the First Test in Wellington, but were run down by the Kiwis, who emerged 26-21 victors. The match was refereed by 22-year-old Roly Avery. Australia squared the series with a 13-10 win in Auckland, the highlight a 50-metre try in the mud by St George centre, Matt McCoy.

Without taking anything away from the quality of those Kangaroo line-ups in the late 1940s, it has to be remembered that many Australians had left these shores for the big money on offer in England, and were not eligible for Australian selection. In the 40 years since the First Kangaroo tour, 70 Australians had played club football in the UK, the bulk of them after the Second World War. One of them was future Team of the Century winger, Brian Bevan from Bondi, who never got to represent his country.

Others, like Arthur Clues, had a brief time in the green and gold, before heading to England. Arthur, who never lost his Australian accent, married a local lass and settled in Leeds after playing club rugby league there for many years. An Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame inductee, Clues opened his own sports store in Leeds and was a friend to many touring rugby league and cricket sides visiting Yorkshire, including the 1982 and 1986 Kangaroos, of which current Kangaroos’ coach, Mal Meninga was a part.

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