Ron Ackland
| Personal information | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ronald Charles Ackland | |||||
| Born | 27 December 1934 Auckland, New Zealand | |||||
| Died | 25 October 2013 (aged 78) Auckland, New Zealand | |||||
| Playing information | ||||||
| Height | 180 cm (5 ft 11 in) | |||||
| Weight | 92 kg (203 lb) | |||||
| Position | centre, second-row | |||||
| Club | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| Mt Wellington | ||||||
| Mount Albert Lions | ||||||
| 1961 | City Newton | |||||
| 1965–1970 | Goulburn | |||||
| 1971–1973 | Inverell | |||||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Representative | ||||||
| Years | Team | Pld | T | G | FG | P |
| Auckland | ||||||
| 1954–1963 | New Zealand | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Coaching information | ||||||
| Club | ||||||
| Years | Team | Gms | W | D | L | W% |
| 1965–1970 | Goulburn | |||||
| 1971–1973 | Inverell | |||||
| 1974–1976 | Mt Wellington | |||||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Representative | ||||||
| Years | Team | Gms | W | D | L | W% |
| 1977–1978 | New Zealand | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 17 |
| Source: [1] | ||||||
Ronald Charles "Ron" Ackland (27 December 1934 − 25 October 2013) was a New Zealand rugby league player and coach who represented his country in the 1957 and 1960 World Cups and coached his country in the 1977 World Cup. His nephew, John, also played for New Zealand.[2]
Playing career
Ackland was a Mt Wellington player. During the Auckland Rugby League's District era he played for Eastern Districts. In 1960, Ackland won the inaugural Rothville Trophy for player of the year, a feat he repeated in 1961. Ackland also played for the Mount Albert Lions and captained the City Newton Dragons in 1961.[3]
He was selected for New Zealand in 1954 and went on to play in 18 test matches for the Kiwis. He was part of the 1957 and 1960 World Cup squads. He captained the Kiwis twice in 1961.[4] Ackland, along with Neville Denton and Gary Phillips, withdrew from the 1961 tour of Great Britain due to a dispute over allowances.[5]
He then moved to the New South Wales country and was captain-coach of Goulburn between 1965 and 1970 and Inverell between 1971 and 1973.
Coaching career
After retirement Ackland became Mt Wellington's head coach. In 1976, he won the Hyland Memorial Cup as the Auckland Rugby League's coach of the year.
Ackland became the coach of New Zealand in 1977, taking the squad to the 1977 World Cup. In his two-year reign the Kiwis won one out of six test matches.
Later life and death
Ackland was inducted as a New Zealand Rugby League "Legend of League" in 1995.[6] He is an Auckland Rugby League Immortal.[7]
In 2009, he was named in the New Zealand Rugby League Team of the Century in the second row.[8]
Ackland died following complications from heart surgery on 25 October 2013, aged 78, in his hometown of Auckland.[9]
References
- ↑ Ron Ackland rugbyleagueproject.org
- ↑ Rattue, Chris (14 March 2005). "48 hours: Sonny Bill - the future and a reminder of league's follies". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
- ↑ Bruce Montgomerie Those Who Played, Montgomerie Publishing, 2004. ISBN 0646434071. p.16.
- ↑ Ackland, Ronald Charles 1954 - 1963 - Kiwi #354 nzleague.co.nz
- ↑ Coffey, John and Bernie Wood Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009, 2009. ISBN 978-1-86969-366-4.
- ↑ Legends of League New Zealand Rugby League
- ↑ Stacey Jones, Auckland Rugby League Immortal est1995.co.nz, 21 September 2003
- ↑ "Graham is best in 100 years". The Sunday Star-Times. 2 December 2007. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
- ↑ Legendary Ron Ackland passes away warriors.co.nz, 26 October 2013
| Preceded by George Menzies |
Coach New Zealand Kiwis 1977-1978 |
Succeeded by Ces Mountford |
| ||||||