Noel Martin Cavanagh (born 29 March 1942) is an Australian former rugby league player.

Noel Cavanagh
Personal information
Full nameNoel Martin Cavanagh
Born (1942-03-29) 29 March 1942 (age 84)
Playing information
PositionLock / Second-row
Club
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1968–72 North Sydney 78 5 66 0 147
1969 Bradford Northern 8 2 0 0 6
Total 86 7 66 0 153
Representative
Years Team Pld T G FG P
1965 Queensland 3 0 2 0 4
1965 Australia
Source: [1]

Biography

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Cavanagh was a lock and second-rower, originally from Clifton. He had several seasons in Brisbane playing for Brothers, from where he gained selection on Australia's 1965 tour of New Zealand. In 1967, Cavanagh won a premiership with Brothers, kicking all of his team's points in a try-less 6–2 grand final win over Northern Suburbs.[2]

From 1968 to 1972, Cavanagh played his rugby league for North Sydney. He had a difficult start, breaking a hand in his first pre-season, then getting suspended for a stiff-arm tackle on his first-grade debut, but became an important player. At the end of the 1969 season, Cavanagh had a stint in England with Bradford Northern, playing under Gus Risman. He captained North Sydney during the 1971 season.[3]

Cavanagh was appointed captain-coach of Bundaberg in 1973.[4] He continued to live in Bundaberg after retiring and it was on his recommendation that North Sydney recruited local product Les Kiss. In 2008, Cavanagh was named as a lock in the Bundaberg Rugby League Team of the Century.[5]

References

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  1. "Player Summary: Noel Cavanagh". Rugby League Records. Rugby League Record Keepers Club. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  2. "Australia Still Has Second Row Problems". The Canberra Times. 24 June 1965. p. 28 via National Library of Australia.
  3. "League Suspends Noel Cavanagh". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 April 1968.
  4. "A Kiss on the wing enters the Bears' den". The Sydney Morning Herald. 16 January 1986.
  5. "Dream team wins a place in history". The Courier-Mail. 1 April 2008.
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