Wally Prigg (1908–1980) 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. He was a for the

Australian national rugby league team The Australian National Rugby League Team, the Kangaroos, have represented Australia in senior men's rugby league football competition since the establishment of the 'Northern Union game' in Australia in 1908. Administered by the Australian ...

. He played nineteen Tests for the Kangaroos between 1929–38, seven as captain and was the first Australian player to make three tours to Great Britain with the

. Whiticker pp113-115 He has been named amongst the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.

Club and state playing career

Wally Prigg was one of the great forwards in the history of rugby league. He spent his whole career as a Newcastle Wests and Central Charlestown player. He was the first

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

country based player to captain the

. He made his first appearance for New South Wales at the age of 20. Between 1929 and 1939 he made 32 appearances for New South Wales, a record at the time. He scored twelve tries, thirty-six points for New South Wales. During his career he revolutionized the position of . His game was based around short passing and close support play.

Australian representative career

Prigg was selected to make the 1929–30 and the 1933–34 tours of Great Britain. He toured with the Australia on their tours of New Zealand in 1935 and 1937 and the on the

Kangaroo Tour Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian national rugby league team tours of Great Britain and France, tours to New Zealand and the one-off tour to Papua New Guinea (1991). The first Kangaroo Tour was in 1908. Traditionally, Kangaroo Tours to ...

of England in 1937–1938 when he was tour captain. He played in all five Tests of that tour as captain and in 24 minor matches. He was the first man to be picked for three

Kangaroo tour Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian national rugby league team tours of Great Britain and France, tours to New Zealand and the one-off tour to Papua New Guinea (1991). The first Kangaroo Tour was in 1908. Traditionally, Kangaroo Tours to ...

s. His leadership style and skills were respected by English fans. His final Test match for Australia was the first ever between Australia and France in 1938. Prigg retired with the record for most Test caps for the Kangaroos, breaking the record set by original Kangaroo tourist Sid Pearce, Prigg played 19 Tests for Australia between 1929–38. He scored a total of four tries (twelve 12 points) for Australia.

Accolades

Post football Prigg operated a general store in the Newcastle suburb of Hamilton. He died in 1980 at the age of 71. In 2003 he was admitted into the

Australian Rugby League The Australian Rugby League Commission (ARL), formerly the Australian Rugby Football League known as the Australian Rugby League is an Australian rugby league football competition operator. It was founded in 1986 as the Australian Rugby Footbal ...

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

. In February 2008, Prigg was named in the list of Australia's ''100 Greatest Players'' (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the

NRL The National Rugby League (NRL) is an Australasian rugby league club competition which contains clubs from New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and New Zealand. The NRL formed in 1998 as a joint partnership ...

and

ARL ARL may refer to: Military * US Navy hull classification symbol for repair ship * Admiralty Research Laboratory, UK * United States Army Research Laboratory * ARL 44, a WWII French tank Organizations * Aero Research Limited, a UK adhesives compan ...

to celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia. In 2008 Prigg was named in New South Wales' rugby league team of the century. Kangaroos 1932

References

* Whiticker, Alan (2004) ''Captaining the Kangaroos'', New Holland, Sydney

External links

Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prigg, Wally 1908 births 1980 deaths Australia national rugby league team captains Australia national rugby league team players Australian rugby league players Rugby league five-eighths Rugby league locks Rugby league players from Newcastle, New South Wales Western Suburbs Rosellas players