Jimmy Edwards (rugby league)

Robert James Edwards (24 December 1926 – 30 July 2015) was a New Zealand rugby league footballer who represented New Zealand in the 1954 World Cup.

Jimmy Edwards

Personal information
Full name	Robert James Edwards[1]
Born	24 December 1926 New Zealand
Died	30 July 2015 (aged 88) Mount Eden, Auckland, New Zealand
Playing information
Position	Wing
Club Years Team Pld T G FG P Marist Representative Years Team Pld T G FG P 1950–1954 Auckland 1951–54 New Zealand 17 8 0 0 24
Source: [2]

Playing career

Edwards played for the Marist club in the Auckland Rugby League competition and also represented Auckland, making his debut in the 1950 tour of Wellington and the South Island.[3] He later played for Auckland against the touring American All-Stars in 1953 and in a 5-4 victory over Great Britain in 1954.

Edwards made his debut for the New Zealand national rugby league team in 1951 on the tour of Great Britain. He played in a total of 17 test matches, including a tour of Australia in 1952 and the 1954 World Cup. He had the distinction of being the first scorer in Rugby League World Cup history, with a try after only five minutes in the first match against France on 30 October 1954. He scored 20 tries in a total of 45 matches for the Kiwis.[4]

Death

Edwards died in the Auckland suburb of Mount Eden on 30 July 2015.[5]

References

1. EDWARDS, Robert James - 1951 - 54 Archived 5 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine nzleague.co.nz
2. "Statistics at rugbyleagueproject.org". rugbyleagueproject.org. 31 December 2017. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
3. Coffey, John and Bernie Wood Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009, 2009. ISBN 978-1-86969-366-4.
4. "A time to remember..." New Zealand Warriors. 11 November 2015. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
5. "Robert Edwards death notice". New Zealand Herald. 1 August 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2016.