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HallOfFame

Reg Gasnier

Centre

Player Bio

Inducted:
2002
Date of Birth:
12 May 1939
Birthplace:
Sydney, NSW
Nickname:
Gaz
Debut Team:
St George Dragons
Date:
11 April 1959
Opposition:
Canterbury-Bankstown
Venue:
Belmore Oval, Sydney
Representative:
City, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Club:
St George Dragons

Career

Milestones

  • Premierships: 1960-65
  • NSWRL Player of the Year: 1960, 1962, 1965
  • Kangaroo Tour captain: 1967-68
  • New South Wales Team of the Century: 2008
  • Kangaroo Tours: 1959-60, 1963-64, 1967-68
  • Australian captain: 8 Tests
  • Immortal: 1981
  • Australian Rugby League Team of the Century: 2008
  • Rated No. 3 in Rugby League Week’s Top 100 players: 1992
  • Named in NRL Team of the 1950s: 2007
  • Named in NRL Team of the 1960s: 2006

Playing

First Class Games
269
Points
759
Tries
231

Biography

Reg Gasnier's celebrated rugby league career ended due to injury in France near the close of the 1967–68 Kangaroo tour.

He was 28, and had played 223 first-class games. During that time he had scored 219 tries, including 26 in Tests, even though he was always regarded as the most unselfish of centres.

He remains Australia's youngest captain against Great Britain (23 years, 28 days, in the first Test of 1962), was a three-time Kangaroo, and was part of eight premiership-winning sides with St George.

Gasnier seemed destined for greatness from the start, identified as a shooting star in Saints juniors, elevated carefully to first grade in 1959, and a Kangaroo champion by the end of the year.

The sight of him in full flight, head slightly back, remains one of the great visions in league history.

Saints secretary Frank Facer called him a ''genius'' and recalled a try scored by Gasnier against New Zealand at the SCG in 1963: ''He took the ball on his fingertips and juggled it brilliantly in a bewildering dash which resulted in a try. It was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen''.

Perhaps the greatest try he was involved in was one he didn't score, but instead set up for winger Brian Carlson in the third Test against Great Britain in 1959.

Late in a muddy game, Gasnier broke through from near his own line, dummied magically to keep the British fullback at bay, before sending Carlson racing away with the perfect pass. In that try was artistry of the rarest kind.

“I don’t think those who have seen him play will watch another genius like him for years to come … if ever”.

Frank Facer Former St George secretary

Reg Gasnier - Hall of Fame

Career Stats

Club Career

Club
Team Name Competition Year Start Year End Played Tries Goals Field Goals Points
St George Dragons Premiership 1959 1967 125 127 20 - 421
St George Dragons Official Pre-Season 1962 1967 30 7 1 - 23
St George Dragons Touring Sides 1962 1963 2 3 5 - 19
St George Dragons State Cup 1964 1965 4 2 - - 6

Representative Career

City - Country

City - Country
Team Name Opponent Year Start Year End Played Tries Goals Field Goals Points
City Firsts Country Firsts
1959
1963
1960
1965
5 3 - - 9
Sydney Touring Sides
1960
1963
1960
1964
3 4 - - 12

State

State
Team Name Competition Opponent Year Start Year End Played Tries Goals Field Goals Points
New South Wales Interstate Series Queensland
1959
1967
1965
1967
16 13 3 - 45
New South Wales Touring Sides
1959
1963
1967
1960
1964
1967
5 4 - - 12
New South Wales Tour Matches 1965 1965 1 3 1 - 11

International

International
Team Name Competition Year Start Year End Played Tries Goals Field Goals Points
Australia Tests and World Cup
1959
1967
1965
1967
39 28 - - 84
Australia Tour Matches
1959
1963
1967
1961
1965
1967
39 37 3 - 117

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Acknowledgement of Country

National Rugby League respects and honours the Traditional Custodians of the land and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the lands we meet, gather and play on.

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