Ron Rowles (12 February 1928 in

Wollongong, New South Wales Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near wate ...

- 3 June 2017) 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 1940s and 1950s, he was a goal-kicking whose club career was played with the

Manly-Warringah The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Sydney's Northern Beaches. The team colours are maroon and white, while their namesake and logo is the sea eagle. They compete in Australia's premier rugb ...

for whom he set a number of point-scoring records in the 1950s.

Playing career

Originally a Wollongong / Illawarra junior, Ron Rowles was to become one of the greatest point scorers for Sydney's

club. He played in Manly's maiden grand final in

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

and played five first grade seasons with the club between 1950–1954.

Point scoring records

He was the first Manly player to top 100 points in a season and was the season's leading point-scorer in four successive years; 1951 (11t, 83g - 199 pts), 1952 (8t, 77g - 178 pts), 1953 (8t, 64g - 152 pts) and 1954 (13t, 92g - 223 pts). He scored a club record 30 points (4t, 9g) in a match against Canterbury in 1954. He starred in a Possibles vs. Probables trial for the 1948-49 Kangaroos, but it was 'a travesty that he never played for his state or Australia'. He was the second highest point scorer in

Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Sydney's Northern Beaches. The team colours are maroon and white, while their namesake and logo is the sea eagle. They compete in Australia's premier rugb ...

history, scoring 842 points during his career at the club. Ron Rowles was the father of the former

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

footballer

Peter Rowles Peter George Rowles (born 18 November 1952) is an Australian former rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s. In union he represented Australia and in league he played in the NSWRFL Premiership for ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowles, Ron 1928 births 2017 deaths Australian rugby league players Country New South Wales rugby league team players Manly Warringah Sea Eagles players Rugby league players from Wollongong Rugby league wingers