Jean Galia (born 20 March 1905 in
Ille-sur-Têt
Ille-sur-Têt (; Catalan: ''Illa'' or ''Illa de Tet'') is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales département in southern France.
Its inhabitants are called ''Illois''.
Geography
The commune is situated in the Ribéral region along the route n ...
, Pyrénées-Orientales, died 17 January 1949 in
Toulouse
Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...
) was a French
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
and
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 and champion boxer. He is credited with establishing the sport of rugby league in France in 1934, where it is known as ''rugby à treize'' ("rugby 13s").
Playing in the forwards, Galia made his international debut for the
France national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team () represents France in men's international rugby union and it is administered by the French Rugby Federation. They traditionally play in blue shirts emblazoned with the national emblem of a golden rooster ...
in a 1927 test against England in Paris. After 20 internationals, He later played in France's first ever rugby league international, also against England in Paris, on 15 April 1934 and was captain of the
France national rugby league team
The France national rugby league team represent France in international rugby league matches. They are referred to as ''les Chanticleers'' or less commonly as ''les Tricolores''. The team is run under the auspices of the Fédération Française ...
in its early days. Following France's tour of Northern England, Galia arranged a series of demonstration matches around France.
The
Courtney Goodwill Trophy
The Courtney Goodwill Trophy is a rugby league trophy that was awarded for competition between the national rugby league teams of Australia, France, Great Britain and New Zealand between 1936 and 1988. The trophy is displayed in the Heroes and Leg ...
, international rugby league's first, was presented for the first time in 1936 and depicted Galia, along with other pioneering greats of the code,
James Lomas (Britain),
Albert Baskiville
Albert (Bert) Henry Baskerville (born as "Baskiville") (15 January 1883 – 20 May 1908) was a Wellington postal clerk, a rugby union forward, author of the book "''Modern Rugby Football: New Zealand Methods; Points for the Beginner, the Pla ...
(New Zealand) and
Dally Messenger
Herbert Henry Messenger, nicknamed "Dally" and sometimes "The Master" (12 April 1883 – 24 November 1959) was one of Australasia's first professional rugby footballers, recognised as one of the greatest-ever players in either code. He played f ...
(Australia).
“League Legends: fast facts about rugby league”
at ''nsm.org.au''
In 1988 Galia was inducted into the Rugby League Hall of Fame
The Rugby League Hall of Fame honours the leading players of the sport of rugby league. It was established by the sport's governing body in the UK, the Rugby Football League, in 1988. Players must have been retired for at least five years to be ...
.
References
External links
Jean Galia at scrum.com
* Jean Galia's introduction of the May 1934 Yorkshire's tour in France
Jean Galia's parent of the expression jeu à treize or Game of thirteen
History of rugby league at napit.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Galia, Jean
1905 births
1949 deaths
Dual-code rugby internationals
France international rugby union players
France national rugby league team captains
France national rugby league team coaches
France national rugby league team players
French male boxers
French rugby league coaches
French rugby league players
French rugby union players
Rugby league second-rows
Sportspeople from Pyrénées-Orientales
Toulouse Olympique coaches
Villeneuve Leopards players