Keith Barnes
Encyclopedia
William Keith Barnes OAM
(born 1934 in Port Talbot
, Wales) is an Australian former rugby league
footballer and coach. He was a fullback for the Australian national team and for the Balmain Tigers
. He played in 14 Tests between 1959 and 1966, as national captain on 12 occasions. He was known as "Golden Boots" due to his exceptional goal-kicking ability. After his playing days he became a referee and later co-commentated on the Amco Cup
on Network Ten
with Ray Warren
in the 1970s. He is considered one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.
to join the Balmain Tigers
and moved to the district and straight into first grade, never playing a single lower grade game in the following 14 seasons. The following year he played in the first of three Grand Final
s against the St George Dragons at the beginning of their long premiership reign. On three occasions 1956, 1964 and 1966 Keith Barnes would experience defeat in a premiership decider – the latter two as captain.
Barnes quickly became known for his deadly accurate goal-kicking and would regularly kick penalties from the further side of the 50-yard line. He once kicked eleven goals in a club match. His career club tally of 1,519 points for Balmain places him (as of Feb 2008) 11th on the all-time list of club pointscorers.
In his final playing year with Balmain in 1967, Barnes was captain-coach. He returned briefly for some match appearances in 1968 when the club's playing roster was depleted by injury.
Barnes made his debut for New South Wales
in 1956. His international debut was in the 1957 World Cup
. He broke his cheekbone in the opening match of the series but stayed on field to kick five goals.
He made his Test debut against New Zealand
in Brisbane in the second Test of the 1959 trans-Tasman series enjoying the rare distinction of captaining his country in his first Test appearance. He kicked seven goals in that outing and stayed on as fullback, goal kicker and captain for the third Test. He was then selected as captain for the 1959 Kangaroo tour
and played as skipper in all six Tests and sixteen minor tour matches, kicking 101 goals on the tour. At the tail-end of the trip he appeared in two promotional games against Italy.
In 1960, Barnes led Australia in all three Tests of a domestic series against France. He enjoys the record of six career Test appearances against France, all as captain, for four wins, 1 draw and a loss. In the Brisbane second Test 55–6 victory Barnes kicked a Test record of 10 goals. He was then selected as captain-coach of the 1960 World Cup
squad played in England. He appeared in Australia's second and third matches of the tournament with his representative rival Brian Carlson
doing the goal-kicking.
Barnes returned to national honours in the second Test of the 1962 domestic series against Great Britain, his final Test as captain. Thereafter Australian selectors enjoyed a surfeit of talented young fullbacks to choose from and Ken Thornett and Les Johns
were regularly selected until Graeme Langlands
later became the incumbent. In 1966 however Barnes made two final representative appearances in the first and second Tests of the domestic Ashes series. He scored all of Australia's points in the second Test victory. Injury saw Les Johns take Barnes' spot for the third and he would not regain it.
He continued an active role in rugby league and in 1976 became Secretary-Manager of the Balmain Leagues Club and in 1984 took up the role of Chief Executive of the football club . Barnes was the first ex-Kangaroo captain to manage the Australian side on the 1990 Kangaroo tour
. At the turn of the century Barnes was honoured with selection in the Balmain's 'Team of the Century' and in the Wests Tigers
' 'Team of the Century". http://www.weststigers.com.au/team_of_the_century.php The yearly award for the best back at the Wests Tigers
club is named the Keith Barnes Medal in his honour.
In 2007 he was inducted into the Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
. In February 2008, Barnes was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the NRL
and ARL
to
celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia.
OAM
OAM is an acronym that may refer to:*OA&M, Operations, Administration, and Maintenance*Oamaru Aerodrome, New Zealand*Object access method*Observatorio Astronómico de Mallorca, an observatory in Spain*U.S...
(born 1934 in Port Talbot
Port Talbot
Port Talbot is a town in Neath Port Talbot, Wales. It had a population of 35,633 in 2001.-History:Port Talbot grew out of the original small port and market town of Aberafan , which belonged to the medieval Lords of Afan. The area of the parish of Margam lying on the west bank of the lower Afan...
, Wales) is an Australian former rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
footballer and coach. He was a fullback for the Australian national team and for the Balmain Tigers
Balmain Tigers
The Balmain Tigers are a rugby league football 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 the history of the premiership, with eleven titles...
. He played in 14 Tests between 1959 and 1966, as national captain on 12 occasions. He was known as "Golden Boots" due to his exceptional goal-kicking ability. After his playing days he became a referee and later co-commentated on the Amco Cup
Amco Cup
The Amco Cup was a mid-week rugby league competition held in Australia between 1974 and 1989. The format was usually a straight knock-out, but various group formats were used between 1979 and 1982...
on Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
with Ray Warren
Ray Warren
Ray "Rabbits" Warren in Junee, New South Wales is an Australian sports commentator, most famous for his coverage of televised professional rugby league matches on the Nine Network. On occasion he is referred to as "The Voice of Rugby League". Ray also calls the action for Australian swimming team...
in the 1970s. He is considered one of the nation's finest footballers of the 20th century.
Early years
Barnes' family originally emigrated at age 15 to Australia in 1948 to Wollongong where Barnes learnt the game at Wollongong High School. He was graded by the Wollongong club at age 19 as a half-back and in 1954 represented for Country and in a Southern Districts side against the touring Great Britain Lions.Club career
In 1955 he was signed by Norm "Latchem" RobinsonNorm Robinson
Norman "Latchem" Robinson was an Australian rugby league player, coach, selector and administrator for the Balmain club and a City, State and National selector and manager.-Playing career:...
to join the Balmain Tigers
Balmain Tigers
The Balmain Tigers are a rugby league football 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 the history of the premiership, with eleven titles...
and moved to the district and straight into first grade, never playing a single lower grade game in the following 14 seasons. The following year he played in the first of three Grand Final
Grand Final
Grand Final is a predominantly Australian sport term used to describe a match that decides a league champion.It originated in Victoria and South Australia and has become specifically significant Australian culture...
s against the St George Dragons at the beginning of their long premiership reign. On three occasions 1956, 1964 and 1966 Keith Barnes would experience defeat in a premiership decider – the latter two as captain.
Barnes quickly became known for his deadly accurate goal-kicking and would regularly kick penalties from the further side of the 50-yard line. He once kicked eleven goals in a club match. His career club tally of 1,519 points for Balmain places him (as of Feb 2008) 11th on the all-time list of club pointscorers.
In his final playing year with Balmain in 1967, Barnes was captain-coach. He returned briefly for some match appearances in 1968 when the club's playing roster was depleted by injury.
Representative career
New South Wales Rugby League team
The New South Wales rugby league team has represented the Australian state of New South Wales in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1907. Administered by the New South Wales Rugby League, the team competes in the annual State of Origin series against arch-rivals, the...
in 1956. His international debut was in the 1957 World Cup
Rugby League World Cup
The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by members of the Rugby League International Federation . It has been held nearly once every 4 years on average since its inaugural tournament in France in 1954...
. He broke his cheekbone in the opening match of the series but stayed on field to kick five goals.
He made his Test debut against New Zealand
New Zealand national rugby league team
The New Zealand national rugby league team has represented New Zealand in rugby league football since intercontinental competition began for the sport in 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of that name...
in Brisbane in the second Test of the 1959 trans-Tasman series enjoying the rare distinction of captaining his country in his first Test appearance. He kicked seven goals in that outing and stayed on as fullback, goal kicker and captain for the third Test. He was then selected as captain for the 1959 Kangaroo tour
Kangaroo Tour
Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian national rugby league team tours of Great Britain and France. The first Kangaroo Tour was in 1908. Traditionally, Kangaroo Tours took place every four years and involved a three-Test Ashes series against Great Britain and a number of tour matches...
and played as skipper in all six Tests and sixteen minor tour matches, kicking 101 goals on the tour. At the tail-end of the trip he appeared in two promotional games against Italy.
In 1960, Barnes led Australia in all three Tests of a domestic series against France. He enjoys the record of six career Test appearances against France, all as captain, for four wins, 1 draw and a loss. In the Brisbane second Test 55–6 victory Barnes kicked a Test record of 10 goals. He was then selected as captain-coach of the 1960 World Cup
Rugby League World Cup
The Rugby League World Cup is an international rugby league competition contested by members of the Rugby League International Federation . It has been held nearly once every 4 years on average since its inaugural tournament in France in 1954...
squad played in England. He appeared in Australia's second and third matches of the tournament with his representative rival Brian Carlson
Brian Carlson
Brian Carlson was an Australian professional rugby league footballer of the 1950s and 60s. He was a centre & utility back for the Australia national team. He played in 17 Tests and 6 World Cup games between 1952 and 1961, as captain on 2 occasions...
doing the goal-kicking.
Barnes returned to national honours in the second Test of the 1962 domestic series against Great Britain, his final Test as captain. Thereafter Australian selectors enjoyed a surfeit of talented young fullbacks to choose from and Ken Thornett and Les Johns
Les Johns
Les Johns was an Australian rugby league player for Newcastle's Souths club, then the Canterbury-Bankstown club as well as the New South Wales and for the Australian representative sides...
were regularly selected until Graeme Langlands
Graeme Langlands
Graeme 'Changa' Langlands, MBE, is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach of the 1960s and 70s. He retired as the most-capped player for the Australian national team with 45 from 1963 to 1975, and captained his country in 15 Test matches and World Cup games. Langlands was the...
later became the incumbent. In 1966 however Barnes made two final representative appearances in the first and second Tests of the domestic Ashes series. He scored all of Australia's points in the second Test victory. Injury saw Les Johns take Barnes' spot for the third and he would not regain it.
Post playing
Barnes retired from competitive rugby league in 1968 having made seventeen appearances for his adopted country and 234 appearances for the Tigers in which he averaged four goals per game. After three unsuccessful Grand Final outings during his time, the Tigers ironically won their first premiership in twenty-one years in Barnes' first year after retirement – 1969.He continued an active role in rugby league and in 1976 became Secretary-Manager of the Balmain Leagues Club and in 1984 took up the role of Chief Executive of the football club . Barnes was the first ex-Kangaroo captain to manage the Australian side on the 1990 Kangaroo tour
Kangaroo Tour
Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian national rugby league team tours of Great Britain and France. The first Kangaroo Tour was in 1908. Traditionally, Kangaroo Tours took place every four years and involved a three-Test Ashes series against Great Britain and a number of tour matches...
. At the turn of the century Barnes was honoured with selection in the Balmain's 'Team of the Century' and in the Wests Tigers
Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's mid-western suburbs. They have competed in the National Rugby League since they were formed at the end of the 1999 season as a joint-venture club between the Balmain Tigers and the Western Suburbs...
' 'Team of the Century". http://www.weststigers.com.au/team_of_the_century.php The yearly award for the best back at the Wests Tigers
Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Sydney's mid-western suburbs. They have competed in the National Rugby League since they were formed at the end of the 1999 season as a joint-venture club between the Balmain Tigers and the Western Suburbs...
club is named the Keith Barnes Medal in his honour.
In 2007 he was inducted into the Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
The Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame honors players who have shown exceptional skill at rugby league, all-time great coaches and referees, and other major contributors to the game who are Australian...
. In February 2008, Barnes was named in the list of Australia's 100 Greatest Players (1908–2007) which was commissioned by the NRL
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
and ARL
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
to
celebrate the code's centenary year in Australia.
Representative matches played
| Team | Matches | Years | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 12 | 1959–1963 | 114 |
| Australia (Tests) | 14 | 1957–1966 | 108 |
| Australia (World Cup) | 3 | 1957&1960 | 10 |
Sources
- Whiticker, AlanAlan WhitickerAlan J. Whiticker is an Australian non-fiction author with currently over 30 published books.Whiticker writes primarily on matters pertaining to the history of the sport of rugby league in Australia, but has also published works on subjects as diverse as the Wanda Beach Murders and an adaptation...
(2004) Captaining the Kangaroos, New Holland, Sydney - Andrews, Malcolm (2006) The ABC of Rugby League Austn Broadcasting Corpn, Sydney