Kenneth Henry James Mountford (27 May 1924 – 19 January 1967) was a New Zealand rugby league player who represented New Zealand. He was the brother of fellow players

Ces Mountford Cecil Ralph Mountford (16 June 1919 – 19 July 2009), also known by the nickname of "The Blackball Bullet", was a New Zealand rugby league footballer and Coach (sport), coach. Mountford was one of ten siblings, he and four of his brothers pl ...

and Bill Mountford.

Playing career

Mountford played for Blackball of the West Coast Rugby League during the 1940s along with his two brothers. Blackball held the Thacker Shield at the time.Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009'', 2009. . He represented both the West Coast and the

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 ...

. He played for the New Zealand national rugby league team in six test matches on the 1947 tour of Great Britain and France.

Later years

A coal miner, Mountford was one of 19 miners who lost their lives in the

Strongman Mine The Strongman Mine was an underground coal mine north of Greymouth on the West Coast of New Zealand from 1938 to 2003. On 19 January 1967 a gas explosion in the mine killed 19 miners. In 1994 the original mine was replaced by the Strongman 2 mi ...

gas explosion on 19 January 1967.

References

1924 births 1967 deaths Blackball players New Zealand coal miners New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league players Other Nationalities rugby league team players Place of birth missing Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league halfbacks Rugby league locks Rugby league players from West Coast, New Zealand South Island rugby league team players West Coast rugby league team players {{NewZealand-rugbyleague-bio-stub