Keith Holman
Encyclopedia
Keith Victor Holman, MBE (11 September 1927 – 11 October 2011) was an Australian rugby league
footballer, a national and state
representative whose club career was played with the Western Suburbs Magpies
from 1949 to 1961. He has since been named as one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century. After retiring as player, Holman was coach of Wests and later became one of the game's top-level referees.
. In his earliest years he was raised in a shanty at Yarra Bay in Sydney by a man named Holman who may have been his father. He was taken in by a local family named Schofield who enabled him to be schooled by the De La Salle
Brothers at Surry Hills
. There he met and befriended Bernie Purcell
whom he would later play against and alongside in state and Kangaroo touring sides.
Toward the end of the Second World War Holman joined the RAAF as a Leading Aircraftman. He was a chef with 82 Wing, 23 Squadron
and was posted to bases in Ipswich, Queensland
and later after the Japanese surrender, at Morakai and Balikpapan
in Borneo
. The Squadron flew B-24 Liberator
s in a transport role, flying ex-Prisoners of War and other Australian personnel back to Australia.
but was turned away due to his small stature. An approach to Manly was also unsuccessful so he headed to Dubbo and befriended former Wests Eric Bennett
. With Bennett's help, he landed a contract with the Magpies in 1948 and quickly rose through the ranks, playing with the Magpies until 1961.
In thirteen seasons at Wests he never played in a premiership-winning team at club level. He missed Wests' premiership victory in 1952 because he was selected for that year's Kangaroo tour
. He was captain-coach at Wests for seasons 1954 and 1955.
in 1950 and continued to represent the Blues until 1955.
Also in 1950, Holman made his test debut for Australia
, figuring prominently in Australia's first Ashes conquest in 30 years. He made both the 1952 Kangaroo tour
(5 Tests and 5 tour matches) and the 1956–57 tour (all 6 Tests plus 11 tour matches). Holman was the Australian selectors preferred halfback choice and regular in Test sides and World Cup
squads from 1950 to 1958. By the end of his representative career he had amassed the then record of 32 Tests and a then record of 14 Anglo
-Australian international appearances, beating Clive Churchill
and Sandy Pearce
. He made 12 Test appearances against France
and 6 appearances against New Zealand
. He was name New South Wales Player of the Year three times – 1951, 1956 and 1958.
He coached a Port Kembla
side in 1975 and 1976 and then Western Suburbs in the NSWRFL. His final year active year in rugby league was 1977 when he coached his beloved Wests to victory in the 1977 Amco Cup
.
He was selected in the Wests Tigers
Team of the Century and the Western Suburbs Magpies
Team of the Century. In 2003 he was admitted into the Australian Rugby League
Hall of Fame.
In 2007 Holman was selected by a panel of experts at halfback in an Australian 'Team of the 50s'.
In February 2008, Holman was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the NRL
and ARL
to
celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia. Also in 2008 the Western Suburbs Magpies celebrated their centenary by inducting six inaugural members into the club's Hall of Fame. These six included Holman.
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...
footballer, a national and state
New South Wales Rugby League
The New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...
representative whose club career was played with the Western Suburbs Magpies
Western Suburbs Magpies
The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia...
from 1949 to 1961. He has since been named as one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century. After retiring as player, Holman was coach of Wests and later became one of the game's top-level referees.
Youth and war service
Holman had an impoverished childhood during the Great DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. In his earliest years he was raised in a shanty at Yarra Bay in Sydney by a man named Holman who may have been his father. He was taken in by a local family named Schofield who enabled him to be schooled by the De La Salle
De La Salle
De La Salle is the name of several educational institutions affiliated with the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools, also known as the Lasallian Brothers, a Roman Catholic religious teaching order founded by French priest Saint Jean-Baptiste de la Salle:* Lasallian educational...
Brothers at Surry Hills
Surry Hills, New South Wales
Surry Hills is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Surry Hills is located immediately south-east of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Sydney...
. There he met and befriended Bernie Purcell
Bernie Purcell
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....
whom he would later play against and alongside in state and Kangaroo touring sides.
Toward the end of the Second World War Holman joined the RAAF as a Leading Aircraftman. He was a chef with 82 Wing, 23 Squadron
No. 23 Squadron RAAF
No. 23 Squadron of the Royal Australian Air Force is a non-flying base operations and training squadron headquartered at RAAF Base Amberley near Brisbane, Queensland. The Squadron was formed in 1937 and saw action during World War II as a bomber squadron.-History:No...
and was posted to bases in Ipswich, Queensland
Ipswich, Queensland
Ipswich is a city in South-East Queensland, Australia. Situated along the Bremer River Valley approximately 40 kilometres away from the state's capital Brisbane. The suburb by the same name forms the city's Central Business District and administrative centre...
and later after the Japanese surrender, at Morakai and Balikpapan
Balikpapan
Balikpapan is a seaport city on the eastern coast of the island of Borneo, Indonesia, in the East Kalimantan province, a resource-rich region well known for its timber, mining, and petroleum export products. Two harbors, Semayang and Kariangau , and the Sepinggan International Airport are the main...
in Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
. The Squadron flew B-24 Liberator
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
s in a transport role, flying ex-Prisoners of War and other Australian personnel back to Australia.
Club career
After the war he trialled for a contract with South SydneySouth 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...
but was turned away due to his small stature. An approach to Manly was also unsuccessful so he headed to Dubbo and befriended former Wests Eric Bennett
Eric Bennett
Eric Bennett is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1940s. Hailing from The Central West region of New South Wales, he played in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership for the Western Suburbs Magpies at centre and five-eighth. Bennett played over 100 games for the...
. With Bennett's help, he landed a contract with the Magpies in 1948 and quickly rose through the ranks, playing with the Magpies until 1961.
In thirteen seasons at Wests he never played in a premiership-winning team at club level. He missed Wests' premiership victory in 1952 because he was selected for that year's Kangaroo tour
Kangaroo Tour
Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian national rugby league team tours of Great Britain and France. The first Kangaroo Tour was in 1908. Traditionally, Kangaroo Tours took place every four years and involved a three-Test Ashes series against Great Britain and a number of tour matches...
. He was captain-coach at Wests for seasons 1954 and 1955.
Representative career
Holman started his representative career with selection for New South WalesNew South Wales Rugby League
The New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...
in 1950 and continued to represent the Blues until 1955.
Also in 1950, Holman made his test debut for Australia
Australian national rugby league team
The Australian national rugby league team have represented Australia in senior men's rugby league football competition since the establishment of the game in Australia in 1908. Administered by the Australian Rugby League, the Kangaroos' are ranked number one in the RLIF World Rankings...
, figuring prominently in Australia's first Ashes conquest in 30 years. He made both the 1952 Kangaroo tour
Kangaroo Tour
Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian national rugby league team tours of Great Britain and France. The first Kangaroo Tour was in 1908. Traditionally, Kangaroo Tours took place every four years and involved a three-Test Ashes series against Great Britain and a number of tour matches...
(5 Tests and 5 tour matches) and the 1956–57 tour (all 6 Tests plus 11 tour matches). Holman was the Australian selectors preferred halfback choice and regular in Test sides and World Cup
Rugby League World Cup
The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by members of the Rugby League International Federation . It has been held nearly once every 4 years on average since its inaugural tournament in France in 1954...
squads from 1950 to 1958. By the end of his representative career he had amassed the then record of 32 Tests and a then record of 14 Anglo
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"....
-Australian international appearances, beating Clive Churchill
Clive Churchill
Clive Bernard Churchill AM was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach of the mid-20th century. An Australian international and New South Wales and Queensland interstate representative fullback, he played the majority of his club football with and later coached the South Sydney Rabbitohs...
and Sandy Pearce
Sandy Pearce
Sidney Charles Pearce , better known as Sandy, was a pioneer Australian rugby league footballer and boxer...
. He made 12 Test appearances against France
France national rugby league team
The France national rugby league team represent France in international rugby league tournaments. They are also sometimes referred to as "Les Tricolores" or more commonly "Les Chanticleers"...
and 6 appearances against New Zealand
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...
. He was name New South Wales Player of the Year three times – 1951, 1956 and 1958.
Referee & coach
When his playing days were over he turned to refereeing. Holman controlled the 1971 Grand Final and went on to referee the Tests of New Zealand's tour of Australia in 1972. He was consistent first grade referee in 155 games from 1965 till 1974.He coached a Port Kembla
Port Kembla Blacks
The Port Kembla Blacks are a Rugby League team that compete in the Illawarra Rugby League competition.-History:...
side in 1975 and 1976 and then Western Suburbs in the NSWRFL. His final year active year in rugby league was 1977 when he coached his beloved Wests to victory in the 1977 Amco Cup
1977 Amco Cup
-Format:Random draw, straight knock-out with 38 teams, 12 of which played off in a preliminary round.-Preliminary round:-Round 1:-Round 2:-Quarter finals:-Semi finals:-Final:* *- Advanced on penalty count-back-Sources:...
.
Accolades
He had the rare honour of being made a life member of Western Suburbs while still playing.He was selected in the Wests Tigers
Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's mid-western suburbs. They have competed in the National Rugby League since they were formed at the end of the 1999 season as a joint-venture club between the Balmain Tigers and the Western Suburbs...
Team of the Century and the Western Suburbs Magpies
Western Suburbs Magpies
The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia...
Team of the Century. In 2003 he was admitted into the Australian Rugby League
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
Hall of Fame.
In 2007 Holman was selected by a panel of experts at halfback in an Australian 'Team of the 50s'.
In February 2008, Holman was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the NRL
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
and ARL
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
to
celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia. Also in 2008 the Western Suburbs Magpies celebrated their centenary by inducting six inaugural members into the club's Hall of Fame. These six included Holman.