WE WANT A FAIR GO FOR OUR AREA, MORE OPPORTUNITIES AND MORE THAN 4 NRL GAMES AT CAMPBELLTOWN STADIUM
| Donnelly, John (Dallas); 1st Grade No: 708 | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Dec 23 2009, 10:12 PM (3,127 Views) | |
| galahs | Dec 23 2009, 10:12 PM Post #1 |
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John "Dallas" Donnelly was an Australian professional rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. An Australian Kangaroos and New South Wales Blues representative, he played for the Western Suburbs Magpies between 1975 and 1984 in the New South Wales Rugby League premiership. Donnelly who was also commonly known by his nickname "Dallas", referring to his size, came from the New South Wales country town of Gunnedah to the Wests club in 1975 after previously representing New South Wales and winning the award for country player of the year in 1973. Donnelly quickly gained a reputation that grew to almost cult status for his fiery on-field play as well as his off-field larrikin persona. With Wests, Donnelly formed part of one of the most dominant forward packs in Australian Rugby League history under coach Roy Masters in the late 1970s, earning test selection for Australia in 1978 against New Zealand. By the 1980s however, he was plagued by increasing weight problems and constant suspensions, subsequently moving to English club Southend Invicta for the 1985-1986 seasons. Donnelly returned to Australia in 1986 immediately after his season in England where he took on a position as Captain/Coach of the Byron Bay side. However, Donnelly who suffered from epilepsy throughout his career, drowned after suffering an epileptic seizure while surfing in the beach at Byron Bay, New South Wales. In 2004 Donnelly was named at prop in the Western Suburbs Magpies Team of the Century. Career (Australian Competitions) * Western Suburbs: 144 games - 6 tries, 4 goals, 6 field goals (32 points) * New South Wales: 4 games (0 points) * Australia: 1 Test (0 points) |
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| galahs | Dec 23 2009, 10:12 PM Post #2 |
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| galahs | Dec 23 2009, 10:18 PM Post #3 |
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John "Dallas" Donnelly There are a thousand stories about the toughness of John "Dallas" Donnelly, told and re-told by his former Wests teammates. But the real evidence of Donnelly's courage is one that Tommy Raudonikis doesn't often nominate. "The real toughness with Dallas was the fact he beat epilepsy and played a great career despite having that condition," Raudonikis said. "He never used it as an excuse. He would have a turn on the morning of a match, and look like he's gone 12 rounds with Muhammad Ali, but then insist on playing." Hailing from Gunnedah, Donnelly played 114 games for Wests, as well as for NSW and Australia. He died before his time in 1986. |
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| galahs | Dec 23 2009, 10:19 PM Post #4 |
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| galahs | Dec 23 2009, 10:23 PM Post #5 |
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| galahs | Dec 23 2009, 10:24 PM Post #6 |
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