Eric Lewis (rugby league)

Eric Lewis (1909–1959) was an Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1930s. A New South Wales interstate and Australian international representative forward, he played club football in the NSWRFL for South Sydney,[3] winning the 1932 Premiership with them, and later coaching them.

Eric Lewis

Eric Lewis. 1935
Personal information
Full name	Eric William Lewis
Born	(1909-09-20)20 September 1909 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Died	17 April 1959(1959-04-17) (aged 49) Surry Hills, New South Wales, Australia
Playing information
Position	Second-row, Prop
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P 1931 Griffith 1932–37 South Sydney 76 7 1 0 47 Total 76 7 1 0 47 Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 1935–37 New South Wales 11 5 0 0 15 1935–38 Australia 9 0 0 0 0 1933–37 NSW City 7 0 0 0 0 1938 NSW Country 1 0 0 0 0
Coaching information
Club Years Team Gms W D L W% 1945 South Sydney 14 1 0 13 7
Source: [1][2]

Playing career

Lewis started playing for Waverley's Christian Brothers club before spending a season playing in Griffith in 1931. He then returned to Sydney, and joined South Sydney Rabbitohs, where he would remain for six seasons. At the end of the 1932 NSWRFL season, Lewis' first in the top grade,[4] he played in the premiership Final for Souths, scoring a try in their 19–12 victory over Western Suburbs.

Lewis played for Souths in the 1935 NSWRFL season's premiership final loss to Eastern Suburbs. After that he toured New Zealand with the Australian national team, becoming Kangaroo No. 200.

Lewis was a member of the 1937–38 Kangaroo touring side to England and France.[5] The French leg of this tour helped establish rugby league in France.

Post-playing

After returning from war duties in early 1945, Eric Lewis stepped in to coach Souths for the 1945 NSWRFL season at a time when many players and coaches were absent because of the war. The South Sydney Rabbitohs line up was so disrupted, that no constant club captain was named during the season. Often, the captain was named on game day depending on who was available to play. The club only won one game during 1945.[6]

In Papua New Guinea during World War II, Lewis spotted Jack Rayner playing inter-regiment rugby league on a muddy field at Port Moresby and invited him to trial with South Sydney when he got home.[7] Jack Rayner went on to captain and coach Souths, becoming an important figure in the club's history.

Lewis was long time resident of the Baine family's Dolphin Hotel in Surry Hills, New South Wales and lived there until his death which was widely mourned by South Sydney fans. He was buried at Botany Cemetery on 20 April 1959.[8]

References

1. Rugby League Project
2. Rugby League Project Coaches
3. Eric Lewis Archived 14 June 2012 at the Wayback Machine at rabbitohs.com.au
4. Eric Lewis Archived 13 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine at nrlstats.com
5. "He fought for every yard". The Sydney Morning Herald. 24 May 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
6. "Eric Lewis". yesterdayshero.com. SmartPack International Pty Ltd. Archived from the original on 25 February 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
7. "Jack Rayner passes away". The Daily Telegraph. 17 May 2008. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
8. Sydney Morning Herald: Death & Funeral Notice 20 April 1959