Bernie Purcell
Encyclopedia
Bernie Purcell was an Australian rugby league
premiership
winning footballer and coach. He was a goal-kicking second-row forward
of the 1950s for the South Sydney Rabbitohs
and Australian national representative and New South Wales state sides.
Grand Final
teams shouldering the goal-kicking responsibilities in each of those matches.
(1950) and appeared four times for New South Wales (1951–1956). Purcell's sole Test appearance was in the third Test against Great Britain
in 1950. This was the famous 5-2 victory that gave Australia the Ashes for the first time in thirty years. Purcell also toured Great Britain with the 1956-57 Australian Kangaroos, playing seven tour matches against English sides but no Tests.
played at the Sydney Cricket Ground
in front of a record crowd of 78,056. Souths lost a hard fought encounter 12-8 against the then nine-times champions.
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
premiership
New South Wales Rugby League premiership
The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League from 1908 until 1994, the premiership was the state's and later the country's elite rugby league competition...
winning footballer and coach. He was a goal-kicking second-row forward
Rugby league positions
A rugby league football team consists of thirteen players on the field, with four substitutes on the bench. Players are divided into two general categories: "forwards" and "backs"....
of the 1950s for the South Sydney Rabbitohs
South Sydney Rabbitohs
The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in Redfern, a suburb of South-central Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League premiership and are one of nine existing teams from the state capital...
and Australian national representative and New South Wales state sides.
Club career
He played 178 games with South Sydney between 1949 and 1960, scoring 36 tries and 509 goals for a total of 1,126 points. A Souths junior, he was the Australian first forward in the game to score over 1,000 career points. He was also the first Australian forward to kick over 500 career goals a record only matched by three other players up till 2011. He played in the 1950 - 1951 and 1954 - 1955 victorious RabbitohsSouth Sydney Rabbitohs
The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in Redfern, a suburb of South-central Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League premiership and are one of nine existing teams from the state capital...
Grand Final
Grand Final
Grand Final is a predominantly Australian sport term used to describe a match that decides a league champion.It originated in Victoria and South Australia and has become specifically significant Australian culture...
teams shouldering the goal-kicking responsibilities in each of those matches.
Representative career
Purcell represented for Australia in one Test matchTest match (rugby league)
A Test match in rugby league football is a representative match between teams representing members of the Rugby League International Federation.The definition of a Test match differs from that of an international match...
(1950) and appeared four times for New South Wales (1951–1956). Purcell's sole Test appearance was in the third Test against Great Britain
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
in 1950. This was the famous 5-2 victory that gave Australia the Ashes for the first time in thirty years. Purcell also toured Great Britain with the 1956-57 Australian Kangaroos, playing seven tour matches against English sides but no Tests.
Coaching career
Purcell coached the Rabbitohs (1962–1966) after his retirement as a player, the highlight being the 1965 Grand Final against St. GeorgeSt. George Dragons
The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,...
played at the Sydney Cricket Ground
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
in front of a record crowd of 78,056. Souths lost a hard fought encounter 12-8 against the then nine-times champions.
Sources
- The Encyclopaedia of Rugby League Players - South Sydney Rabbitohs, Alan Whiticker & Glen Hudson, Bas Publishing, 2005.