David Watkins was a Welsh dual-code rugby international, having played both rugby union and rugby league football for both codes' national teams between 1963 and 1979. He captained the British and Irish Lions rugby union side, and made six appearances for the Great Britain rugby league team. With the Wales national rugby league team he played in every match of the 1975 World Cup, and with English club Salford he played more than 400 games over 12 seasons.
The Rugby Football League (RFL) is the governing body for rugby league in England. Founded in 1895 as the Northern Rugby Football Union following 22 clubs resigning from the Rugby Football Union, it changed its name in 1922 to the Rugby Football League.
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents Great Britain in rugby league. Administered by the Rugby Football League (RFL), the team is nicknamed The Lions.
The Australian national rugby league team, the Kangaroos, have represented Australia in senior men's rugby league football competitions since the establishment of the game in Australia in 1908. Administered by the Australian Rugby League Commission, the Kangaroos are ranked first in the IRL Men's World Rankings. The team is the most successful in Rugby League World Cup history, having won the competition 12 times, and contested 15 of the 16 finals, only failing to reach the final in the 1954 inaugural tournament. Only five nations have beaten Australia in test matches, and Australia has an overall win percentage of 69%.
The France national rugby league team represents France in international rugby league matches. They are referred to as les Chanticleers or less commonly as les Tricolores. The team is run under the auspices of the Fédération Française de Rugby à XIII.
The Wales national rugby league team represents Wales in representative rugby league football matches. Currently the team is ranked 17th in the IRL World Rankings. The team was run under the auspices of the Rugby Football League, but an independent body, Wales Rugby League, now runs the team from Cardiff. Six Welsh players have been entered into the Rugby Football League Hall of Fame.
Rugby league has been played in France since 1934. As with rugby union, rugby league was introduced by the English and the heartland of the game is in the south of France.
Puig Aubert, is often considered the best French rugby league footballer of all time. Over a 16-year professional career he would play for Carcassonne, XIII Catalan, Celtic de Paris and Castelnaudary winning five French championships and four French cups along with representing the France on 46 occasions. His position of choice was at fullback and after his retirement in 1960 he would go on to coach Carcassonne and France along with becoming head French national selector for several years.
Jacques Merquey also known by the nickname of "Jackiew", as a French rugby footballer of the 1950s. A dual-code rugby international, his position was centre, later in his career this changed to stand-off. While Merquey started in union, he played the vast majority of his career in rugby league. He played his club rugby league for Marseille, Sporting Olympique Avignon XIII and Lezignan, becoming the most capped International, with 37 games for France. Merquey is the only Frenchman to play in the first three successive World Cups, in 1954, 1957 and 1960.
Philip Clarke is an English former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. A Great Britain and England international representative back-rower or stand-off, he played his club rugby league in England for Wigan, and in Australia for the Sydney City Roosters.
George William Smith was a New Zealand sportsman who excelled at track and field as well as both codes of rugby football.
Joseph Paul Lydon is an English former professional rugby league footballer and rugby union coach. He played during the 1980s and 1990s as a fullback, wing, centre, or stand-off for Widnes, Wigan and Eastern Suburbs. He also represented Lancashire, and won 30 caps for Great Britain.
Manoa Thompson is a Fijian former professional rugby league footballer. Primarily playing as a centre, he played his first grade career with the South Sydney Rabbitohs, Western Suburbs Magpies, and the Auckland Warriors in the NSWRL / ARL competition, as well as playing in the Super League for the Warrington Wolves. He represented the Fijian national team.
George Fairbairn is a Scottish former rugby union and professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s, and coached rugby league in the 1980s and 1990s. He played representative level rugby union (RU) for Borders, and at club level for Kelso RFC, and representative level rugby league (RL) for Great Britain and England, and at club level for Wigan, winning the Man of Steel Award in 1980, and Hull Kingston Rovers, as a goal-kicking fullback, and coached at representative level rugby league for Scotland, and at club level Wigan, Hull Kingston Rovers, and Huddersfield.
Enrique "Topo"Edgardo Rodríguez is an Argentine and Australian retired rugby union player.
Gilbert Benausse was a French rugby league footballer who played in the 1950s and 1960s. He played at the international level for France, and at club level for AS Carcassonne, Lézignan Sangliers and Toulouse Olympique, playing at centre, stand-off, or scrum-half.
Jean Capdouze (( was a French rugby union and rugby league player who represented France internationally in both codes.
James Devereux (1887–1934), also known by the nickname of "Muscles", was a pioneering Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s, 1910s and 1920s. As New South Wales state and Australia national representative three-quarter back, he played in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership from its first season in 1908 for the North Sydney club, before playing several seasons in England with Hull FC. He later returned to Australia and coached North Sydney.
Frédéric "Freddie" Banquet is a French former professional rugby league and rugby union footballer who played in the 1990s and 2000s. He played representative level rugby league (RL) for France at the 1995 Rugby League World Cup and 2000 Rugby League World Cup, and at club level in France and England.
André Vadon was a French rugby league footballer who played as hooker.
