John O'Neill

Rugged Gunnedah prop played in nine grand finals for Souths and Manly between 1965 and 1973. A ferocious defender who fearlessly took on the opposition with barging runs close to the ruck, ‘Lurch’ O’Neill formed part of a champion Souths pack that included Coote, McCarthy, Stevens, Sattler and Walters. After losing the 1965 grand final to St George, Souths assumed the mantle of League champions in the ensuing years with O’Neill going on to win grand finals in 1967-68 & 1970-71 with the club. In the 1970 grand final he mercilessly punished the Manly forwards in an awesome display that earned him a place in Australia’s World Cup squad. After Souths’ win over St George in the 1971 grand final, he signed with Manly and played his part in the club’s maiden grand final victory. O’Neill went to France with the Australian World Cup team in 1972 and returned to win another premiership with the Sea Eagles the following year. The 1973 grand final between Manly and Cronulla was certainly no place for the feint-hearted and O’Neill was in his element in the brutal match. He made his Test debut against France on an injury-interrupted 1973 Kangaroo tour but got his chance against the Englishmen in the third and deciding Test in 1974. O’Neill returned to Souths in 1975, citing a lack of team harmony at Manly as his main reason, and despite a disastrous year with the Rabbitohs, proved his competitiveness with his selection in Australia’s World Cup team. O’Neill, who coached Souths in 1977, lost his toughest personal contest - his battle against cancer - in August 1999 just before his Rabbitohs were excluded from the NRL competition.