The 1953 New Zealand rugby league season was the 46th season of rugby league that had been played in New Zealand.

International competitions

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

2–1 in a Test series. New Zealand were coached by Jim Amos and included

Des White Desmond Henry White (born 1927) is a New Zealand former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s and 1950s. A record-breaking goal-kicking , he was named amongst the country's finest players of the 20th century. His total for ...

, Jimmy Edwards,

Ron McKay Ron McKay is a New Zealand former rugby league footballer who represented New Zealand national rugby league team, New Zealand in the 1954 Rugby League World Cup, 1954 World Cup. Playing career McKay played in the Taranaki Rugby League competition ...

Tommy Baxter Thomas Owen Baxter (c. 1930 – 26 May 2014) was a New Zealand former rugby league footballer who represented New Zealand in twenty nine tests between 1949 and 1956. In 2007 he was named in the New Zealand Rugby League's Team of the Century. Pl ...

Bevin Hough William Bevin Keith Hough (21 April 1929 – 25 November 2019) was a New Zealand sportsman who represented New Zealand in rugby league and the long jump. Early life and family Hough was born on 21 April 1929 in the Auckland suburb of Ponsonb ...

Bill Sorensen William Sorensen was a New Zealand rugby league footballer who represented New Zealand national rugby league team, New Zealand in the 1954 Rugby League World Cup, 1954, 1957 Rugby League World Cup, 1957 and 1960 Rugby League World Cup, 1960 World ...

, captain Jimmy Haig, John Bond, George Davidson, Bill McLennan, Bob Neilson,

Alister Atkinson Alister James Atkinson (1925-2002) was a New Zealand rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played representative rugby league (RL) for New Zealand in the 1954 World Cup. His position of preference was at Loose forward. Play ...

Frank Mulcare Frank Mulcare is a New Zealand rugby league player who represented New Zealand national rugby league team, New Zealand. Playing career Born in Ngahere, Mulcare was a farmer. Mulcare played for the Ngahere club and represented the West Coast ru ...

, Cyril Paskell,

Vern Bakalich Vernon Andrew Neville Bakalich (8 July 1929 – 21 November 2015) was a New Zealand rugby league player who represented New Zealand in the 1957 World Cup. Playing career Bakalich played for Richmond in the Auckland Rugby League competition and w ...

and

Cyril Eastlake Cyril Aston Eastlake (21 August 1930 – 30 September 2007) was a New Zealand rugby league player who represented his nation in the sport. He captained New Zealand at the 1954 World Cup and also played at the 1960 World Cup. Early years Eastl ...

. The Kangaroos recorded wins over the

West Coast West Coast or west coast may refer to: Geography Australia * Western Australia *Regions of South Australia#Weather forecasting, West Coast of South Australia * West Coast, Tasmania **West Coast Range, mountain range in the region Canada * Britis ...

, 17–11,

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

66–9 in Dunedin, Taranaki, 62–3, South Auckland 63–11 at Davies Park. They then defeated Auckland 26–4 at Carlaw Park. The Auckland side was

, Don Clapp,

, captain

Des Barchard Desmond Alfred Barchard is a New Zealand former rugby league footballer, and coach who represented and coached New Zealand. Barchard was the coach of the Kiwis in the 1968 and 1972 World Cups. His uncle, Len Barchard also played for New Zealand, ...

, Jack Wright, George Davidson, Jack Meates, Henry Maxwell,

Doug Richards-Jolley Doug Richards-Jolley is a New Zealand rugby league player who represented New Zealand. Playing career Richards-Jolley played for the Ponsonby club in the Auckland Rugby League competition and represented Auckland. In 1951 he was selected to pl ...

and Barry Singe. Australia finished the tour with a 98–7 victory over Northland.Kangaroos Tour 1953
''rugbyleagueproject.org'' The American All Stars arrived in the country after touring Australia.Sky Rugby League Annual '98 ''New Zealand Rugby League'', 1998 The squad had many injuries and so

Travers Hardwick Travers Harry Hardwick (13 March 1923 – 25 April 1979) was a New Zealand rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played representative rugby league (RL) for New Zealand and coached them in the 1960 World Cup. Early years Har ...

and Roy Roff joined the All Stars squad. Roy Moore and Dick Haggie also played in some matches. The All Stars lost to Auckland, 26–54, on 1 August before beating Taranaki, 21–18, on 5 August and Wellington 17–8 on 8 August. They then lost to the

10–27 on 11 August and Canterbury 8–39 on 15 August before beating

North Auckland The Northland Peninsula, called the North Auckland Peninsula in earlier times, is in the far north of the North Island of New Zealand. It is joined to the rest of the island by the Auckland isthmus, a narrow piece of land between the Waitematā ...

26–5 on 19 August. They then lost to Auckland Māori, 23–40, on 22 August before finishing the tour with a win against South Auckland 22–19 on 24 August. The Auckland side was

, Jimmy Edwards,

, Keith Graham, Henry Maxwell, George Davidson, Jack Meates,

Jim Riddell Charles James Riddell is a New Zealand rugby league player who represented New Zealand in the 1957 World Cup. Playing career Riddell played in the Auckland Rugby League competition and first represented Auckland in 1953 against the American Al ...

and Bill Goulin. Jack Redwood stepped down as the New Zealand Rugby League chairman, after serving since 1937.Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909–2009'', 2009. .

National competitions

Northern Union Cup

Auckland again held the Northern Union Cup at the end of the season.

Inter-island competition

The

defeated the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

23–20 on 2 June. The South Island included Cyril Paskell, Jimmy Haig, Bill McLennan, John Bond, Bob Neilson,

Jock Butterfield John Rutherford "Jock" Butterfield (18 January 1932 – 14 February 2004) was a New Zealand rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s. He was named amongst the finest that New Zealand produced during the 20th century. A New Zeala ...

and Trevor Kilkelly.

Inter-district competition

The Meates Cup was presented by West Coast official Bill Meates for competition between the

and Auckland. Auckland won the first contest 12–2 at Carlaw Park. Canterbury defeated

Otago Otago (, ; mi, Ōtākou ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government reg ...

20–5 on 2 June as the curtain raiser to the South Island v North Island game. Auckland included

and Jimmy Edwards. Canterbury included

, Jimmy Haig, Cyril Paskell,

Lory Blanchard David Lory Blanchard (4 September 1924 – 1 January 2013) was a New Zealand rugby union and professional rugby league football player who played representative rugby league (RL) for New Zealand in the 1954 World Cup and coached them at ...

, John Bond,

and Trevor Kilkelly.

Club competitions

Auckland

Pt Chevalier won the

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is responsible for rugby league in the region, including both club and school rugby league. It began in 1910 when the fi ...

's Fox Memorial Trophy.Lion Red Rugby League Annual 1990 ''New Zealand Rugby League'', 1990. p. 72 Mt Albert won the Rukutai Shield, Ponsonby won the Roope Rooster and

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

won the Sharman Cup.

Wellington

St George won the

Wellington Rugby League Wellington Rugby League is the local sporting body responsible for the administration of Rugby league in the Greater Wellington region. It is responsible for the local competition of the same name, as well as its representative team, the Wellingto ...

's Appleton Shield.

Canterbury

Sydenham won the Canterbury Rugby League's Massetti Cup.

Other Competitions

Sydenham defeated Dunedin Combined 24–11 at Taranga Park during Easter Weekend.Coffey, John. ''Canterbury XIII'', Christchurch, 1987. Blackball defeated Sydenham 12–7 to win the Thacker Shield.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1953 New Zealand Rugby League Season Rugby league season