There have been over 830 rugby league footballers who have been selected to represent Australia since the nation first started playing international matches in 1908. The Australian Rugby League administered the team and maintained the Australian national rugby league team or "The Kangaroos" players register, assigning each player an individual cap number [1] until 2012 when this was taken over by the Australian Rugby League Commission. [2]
The first Kangaroo was Arthur Hennessey, as he was the original captain of the side. The rest were added in alphabetical order, then in order of selection. Inclusion in the Kangaroos register denotes a player's selection for a Kangaroos squad and does not necessarily mean an actual full international appearance was made. The year selected represents the first year in which they were called up for international duties and the appearances represent full international matches. New Zealand players who were selected to play for 'Australasian' representative teams are also included.
Super League test appearances, although counted as such by their overseas counterparts, have been disregarded by the sport's Australian governing body so are excluded from their register.
During the split season of 1997, the Australian Super League organisation held internationals with New Zealand and Great Britain. These are considered bona fide test matches by the British Rugby Football League, the New Zealand Rugby League and Rugby League International Federation but are excluded from the Australian Rugby League's records.
Wayne James Bennett, also known by the nickname "Benny", is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of the Dolphins in the National Rugby League (NRL), and has previously coached the South Sydney Rabbitohs, the Brisbane Broncos, the Newcastle Knights, the St George Illawarra Dragons, the Canberra Raiders, the Queensland Maroons State of Origin team, the NRL All Stars and the Australian Kangaroos national team as well as the England and Great Britain national teams.
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%.
Allan Jeffrey "Alfie" Langer AM is an Australian former multi-award-winning rugby league footballer who played in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s and worked as an assistant coach for the Australian national team, the Queensland Maroons and the Brisbane Broncos.
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Kurt Geoffrey Gidley is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who last played for the Warrington Wolves in the Super League. An Australia international and New South Wales State of Origin representative and captain, he previously played in the National Rugby League for the Newcastle Knights, captaining them for 123 games. He played as a fullback, five-eighth, halfback and hooker, although due to his versatility, he was able to slip into the positions of centre and lock when needed throughout his career.
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