Johnny Mayes (born April 28, 1947) is an Australian former rugby league halfback who represented Australia in the 1975 World Series and played in three consecutive premiership-winning teams from 1973 to 1975, the first for Manly and the latter two for Eastern Suburbs. Events 1192 - Assassination of Conrad of Montferrat (Conrad I King of Jerusalem, in Tyre, two days after his title Year 1947 ( MCMXLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1947 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. History See also History of rugby league The grass roots of rugby league can be traced to early football history, through the playing of ball games The Manly - Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional Rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney The Sydney Roosters is a professional Rugby league club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, Australia. His feat of playing in three consecutive premiership sides for different clubs is comparable only with Glenn Lazarus in the early 1990s for Canberra and the Brisbane Broncos, who played in four premiership sides between 1989 and 1993. Glenn Patrick Lazarus (born on 11 December 1965 in Queanbeyan New South Wales) is an Australian former Rugby league player who The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional Rugby league football team based in the city of Canberra Australian Capital Territory. The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional Rugby league club based in the city of Brisbane Queensland.
Mayes had a slow start to his career with Eastern Suburbs owing to competition from established half Kevin Junee. Kevin Junee was an Australian Rugby league footballer who played in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership in the years 1964 to He first played first grade in 1968, but was still mostly in reserve grade for several years. When Junee was injured in the years after winning the Rothmans Medal in 1970, Mayes spent a considerable amount of time in first grade and for part of 1972 actually relegated Junee to the reserves - though by finals time Junee had displaced him again. The Dally M Medal is the premier individual award in the National Rugby League, which is given to the player voted by commentators as the best and fairest in the competition
Being a similar type of halfback to Junee, Mayes naturally sought another club to be sure of a first grade berth and Manly, with Dennis Ward dropping out, picked him up for the 1973 season. Mayes' growth as a player that year was remarkable. He scored sixteen tries - four in one match against Penrith - and won Rugby League Week's Player of the Year award. The Penrith Panthers is an Australian professional Rugby league football team Rugby League Week (frequently abbreviated to RLW) is one of the two major Australian Rugby league Magazines Big League He was freely tipped to go on the Kangaroo tour but was not chosen, and was, remarkably, swapped for Junee so he could return to Easts the following year. Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian Rugby league tours of Great Britain and France
This rather unusual swap was surprisingly beneficial, for with Manly Junee was the 1974 season's leading try-scorer, whilst Mayes' corageous defence and frequent darting runs helped Easts develop a powerful attack and solid defence that ensured the team dropped only seven games under Jack Gibson in 1974 and 1975. Jack Gibson (rugby league, Australian rugby league player and coach In the 1975 grand final Mayes scored a brilliant try after an arcing run cross-field by winger Bruce Pickett and another one after running through a gaping hole, whist he scored four tries for the second time against Canterbury. The Bulldogs Rugby League Football Club (formerly Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and "The Berries") are an Australian professional Rugby league
However, with Junee's return to Easts and especially the unexpected emergence of the unknown Kevin Hastings, Mayes spent much of 1976 in reserve grade again. Kevin 'Horrie' Hastings (born on January 5, 1957 in Surry Hills New South Wales) is an Australian multi-award winning Rugby league With Junee gone for good, he fought with Hastings for a first grade spot in 1977 before returning to Newcastle where he captained teh city to a win over New Zealand in 1978.
In all Mayes played 131 first grade games for 71 tries and three field goals (two two-point and one one-point). In 1975 he was the leading try-scorer with sixteen.
References
- Whiticker, Alan and Hudson, Glen; The Encyclopedia of Rugby League Players. ISBN 1875169768
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