Sydney Henry Albert Christensen (31 May 1910 – 9 February 1942) was an Australian rugby league player who played in the 1920s and 1930s and a casualty of World War II.

Background

Christensen was born at Sydney on 31 May 1910 and was of

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

descent.

Playing career

Syd 'Sardie' Christensen was a first grade player for

Glebe Glebe (; also known as church furlong, rectory manor or parson's close(s))McGurk 1970, p. 17 is an area of land within an ecclesiastical parish used to support a parish priest. The land may be owned by the church, or its profits may be reserved ...

for two seasons between 1928 and 1929. He transferred to the

Balmain Tigers The Balmain Tigers (also known as the Sydney Tigers from 1995–96) are a rugby league club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful in t ...

when the Glebe club disbanded in 1929 and went on to become a prolific point scorer for the Tigers. He played six seasons with Balmain between 1930, 1933–37. In 1936 he became club captain, and became the first Balmain player to reach 100 points in a season, a record that he achieved three years in a row. He was the NSWRFL top point scorer in 1933 and 1936. He was captain of the Balmain team that were defeated by

Eastern Suburbs Eastern Suburbs may refer to: Places *Eastern Suburbs (Mumbai), India *Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Australia **Eastern Suburbs railway line, Sydney, Australia Sports clubs ;Association football *Eastern Suburbs AFC, Auckland, New Zealand * Eastern ...

in the 1936 Grand Final. He was known as an excellent tactician and goal kicker during his rugby league career.

War service

Syd Christensen enlisted in the Australian Army in 1940. He was killed in action on 9 February 1942 in

British Malaya The term "British Malaya" (; ms, Tanah Melayu British) loosely describes a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the island of Singapore that were brought under British hegemony or control between the late 18th and the mid-20th century. U ...

, although his death was not confirmed until October 1944.Sydney Morning Herald: Roll of Honour – Death notice- 25 October 1944

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christensen, Syd 1910 births 1942 deaths Australian Army personnel of World War II Australian Army soldiers Australian military personnel killed in World War II Australian rugby league players Australian people of Danish descent Balmain Tigers players Glebe rugby league players City New South Wales rugby league team players Queensland rugby league team players Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league players from Sydney