Frank Drake (rugby league)

Frank Drake (born 15 February 1939) is an Australian former rugby league player.

Frank Drake
Personal information
Born (1939-02-15) 15 February 1939 (age 85)
Balmain, NSW, Australia
Playing information
PositionFullback
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1958 Balmain Tigers 12 5 0 0 15
1964–65 Eastern Suburbs 20 1 0 0 3
Total 32 6 0 0 18
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1959–63 Queensland 21 5 0 0 15
1961–62 Australia 2 1 0 0 3

Drake was born in Sydney and educated at Christian Brothers College in the suburb of Rozelle.[1]

A fullback, Drake captained Balmain in the junior Presidents Cup competition and during the 1958 NSWRFL season competed for the Tigers in first-grade. He played fullback when Keith Barnes was unavailable and was used as a winger in the finals series, which ended with a preliminary final loss to St. George.[2]

Drake played in Queensland from 1959 to 1963 with Brisbane Souths and Toowoomba All Whites.[3] He featured as a fullback in two Test matches for Australia during this period, against New Zealand at Auckland's Carlaw Park in 1961, then Great Britain at the Sydney Cricket Ground the following year, scoring a try in the latter. His try was the first ever by a Kangaroos fullback against Great Britain.[4]

In 1964 and 1965, Drake competed in first-grade for Eastern Suburbs.[5]

References

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  1. ^ "Frank Drake - Rugby League Legend Series". The Creative Writer. 6 September 2022.
  2. ^ "NSWRFL 1958 - Balmain Tigers - RLP". www.rugbyleagueproject.org.
  3. ^ "How the controversial Frank Drake changed rugby league". The Toowoomba Chronicle. 30 May 2019.
  4. ^ "Narrow Win for Australia". The Age. 16 July 1962.
  5. ^ "C'Bury 'Break The Ice'". The Sydney Morning Herald. 26 July 1964.
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