Dick Vest (1897-1974) was an Australian

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

footballer who played in the 1910s and 1920s . An Australian international and New South Wales interstate representative

three-quarter back Three-quarter back is the back-line positions of wing or centre in either rugby league or rugby union. See also *Rugby league positions *Rugby union positions *Half back (disambiguation) A halfback, half back, or half-back may refer to: * , in ru ...

, he played in the

New South Wales Rugby Football League Premiership The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia and contributor to today's National Rugby League. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League (initially named the New Sout ...

for Sydney's Western Suburbs club.

Playing career

The son of an Austrian immigrant, Vest was born Gregoria Richard Veserema in the country New South Wales town of

Barmedman Barmedman is a rural village in the Bland Shire in the New South Wales state of Australia, located approximately half-way between West Wyalong and Temora. Barmedman began as a service centre for gold-mining operations in the area. Nowadays the ...

. Following the death of his father in a mine accident, Vest and his two older brothers were sent to a boys home in the Western Sydney suburb Westmead, playing junior rugby league for local club Parramatta. Vest commenced his

first grade career with Western Suburbs in the 1914 NSWRFL season. During the

1920 Great Britain Lions tour The 1920 Great Britain Lions tour was the third British national rugby league team or 'Lions' tour of Australasia, where it was winter and matches were played against the Australian and New Zealand national sides, as well as several local teams. In ...

Vest played in all three Tests for Australia as they won the Ashes for the very first time. He was later selected to go on the 1921–22 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain. He played for West Wyalong and Barmedman in the

Maher Cup The Maher Cup was an Australian rugby league (originally rugby union) challenge cup contested between towns of the South West Slopes and northern Riverina areas of New South Wales between 1920 and 1971. The main teams involved were Cootamundra, Tum ...

Death

Vest died at

Enfield, New South Wales Enfield is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 11 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district in the Local government in Australia, local government area of Municipality of ...

on 11 June 1974.Sydney Morning Herald - death notice "Richard Vest" 13/06/1974

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vest, Dick 1897 births 1974 deaths Australian people of Austrian descent Australian rugby league players Western Suburbs Magpies players Australia national rugby league team players New South Wales rugby league team players City New South Wales rugby league team players Rugby league centres Rugby league players from New South Wales Rugby league wingers Date of birth missing