Roy Bull
Prop
Player Bio
- Inducted:
- 2008
- Date of Birth:
- 12 June 1929
- Birthplace:
- Orange, NSW
- Nickname:
- -
- Debut Team:
- Manly Warringah
- Date:
- 26 April 1947
- Opposition:
- South Sydney
- Venue:
- Sydney Sports Ground, NSW
- Representative:
- City, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- Club:
- Manly Warringah
Career
Milestones
- Premierships: 1957, 1959
- Kangaroo Tours: 1952-53, 1956-57
- NSWRL Player of the Year: 1955
- New South Wales Team of the Century: 2008
- Rated No. 65 in Rugby League Week’s Top 100 players: 1992
- Named in NRL Team of the 1950s: 2007
Playing
- First Class Games
- 282
- Points
- 108
- Tries
- 36
Biography
Roy Bull was one of the foundation stones of the Manly Warringah rugby league club. He was 17-years-old when the club joined the premiership in 1947 and was a first-grader for almost all of the club's first 13 seasons.
Bull was a fitness fanatic long before intense training regimes became ingrained in league culture.
He increased his strength by labouring on building sites during the week and when it came time to play football he was in peak condition.
In summer, he rowed a surf boat with Freshwater Lifesaving Club and won an Australian surfboat title at Manly beach in 1947.
Bull played his entire career with Manly, appearing in 177 first-grade games (including three grand finals), and became Manly's first international when he toured New Zealand in 1949 and played the first of his 22 Tests. He played more than 100 representative games in total.
In profiling Bull for his NSW Rugby League Official Yearbook in 1955, when the prop was named player of the year, EE Christensen wrote, ''Roy Bull is one of the best answers possible for those enthusiasts who claim the present-day player is never as good as his predecessor''.
Christensen praised Bull for his performances in the 1954 Ashes series, especially in the first Test, suggesting that ''old-timers generally agreed that he was fit for a place in rugby league's Hall of Fame''.
“Whilst the game has changed immensely since Ray retired, even today he would still be Australia’s star forward.”
Ken Arthurson Former ARL Chairman
42. Roy Bull - Hall of Fame
Career Stats
Club Career
| Team Name | Competition | Year Start | Year End | Played | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manly Warringah | Premiership |
1947
1949 |
1947
1959 |
177 | 24 | - | - | 72 |
| Manly Warringah | City Cup | 1959 | 1959 | - | - | - | - | - |
Representative Career
City - Country
| Team Name | Opponent | Year Start | Year End | Played | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City Seconds | Country Seconds |
1949
1951 |
1949
1951 |
2 | - | - | - | - |
| City Firsts | Country Firsts |
1950
1952 |
1950
1956 |
7 | 1 | - | - | 3 |
State
| Team Name | Competition | Opponent | Year Start | Year End | Played | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | Interstate Series | Queensland |
1949
1952 |
1950
1956 |
18 | - | - | - | - |
| New South Wales | Touring Sides |
1950
1953 |
1950
1956 |
9 | 2 | - | - | 6 |
International
| Team Name | Competition | Year Start | Year End | Played | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Tests and World Cup |
1949
1952 |
1949
1957 |
25 | 2 | - | - | 6 |
| Australia | Tour Matches |
1949
1952
1956 |
1949
1954
1957 |
39 | 6 | - | - | 18 |
Other Representative
| Team Name | Opponent | Year Start | Year End | Played | Tries | Goals | Field Goals | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sydney | 1953 | 1955 | 3 | 1 | - | - | 3 | |
| Australia-New Zealand | Rugby League XIII | 1954 | 1954 | 1 | - | - | - | - |
Hall of Fame Members
National Rugby League respects and honours the Traditional Custodians of the land and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and future. We acknowledge the stories, traditions and living cultures of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the lands we meet, gather and play on.
