Michael Cleary (rugby)

The Hon. Mike Cleary AO

Full name	Michael Arthur Cleary[1]
Date of birth	30 April 1940 (1940-04-30) (age 71)[1]
Place of birth	Randwick, New South Wales
School	Waverley College 1947-58
Occupation(s)	Politician
Rugby league career
Position	Winger
Professional clubs
Years	Club / team	Caps	(points)
1962–70 1971	South Sydney Eastern Suburbs	140 13	(266) (15)
State Representation
Years	Club / team	Caps	(points)
1962–69	NSW	11	(39)
National teams
Years	Club / team	Caps	(points)
1962–69	Australia	8	(15)
Rugby union career
Playing career
Position	wing[1]
Amateur clubs
Years	Club / team
1959-60	Randwick DRUFC
National team(s)
Years	Club / team	Caps	(points)
1961[1]	Wallabies	6[1]	(12)[1]

Olympic medal record
Commonwealth Games
Bronze	1960 Perth	100m Athletics

Michael Arthur Cleary AO (b. 30 April 1940) is an Australian former rugby league and rugby union player and politician. He represented for Australia in both rugby codes as well as in athletics making him one of only four Australians who have represented their country at full international level in three different sports.^{[citation needed]}

Cleary was born in Randwick, New South Wales and was educated at Christian Brothers Waverley. At aged 17 having set a number of schoolboy sprint records he was offered a sporting scholarship to Stanford University which he declined with his sights set on representing Australia in athletics. He represented as a Wallaby in 6 Tests in 1961 and as a Kangaroo in 8 Tests from 1962.

Rugby union

In 1959 he joined the Randwick DRUFC and he played in the club's 1960 winning first-grade premiership side. He was selected in the Australian national side for all three Tests of the 1961 series against Fiji and made further Wallaby appearances against France and against the Springboks on the 1961 tour of South Africa.

Athletics

After leaving rugby union and during his first year of rugby league with the South Sydney Rabbitohs he maintained his amateur status to enable his selection for the Commonwealth Games later that year. He represented Australia in Athletics at the 1962 Commonwealth Games in Perth, collecting the Bronze Medal for the 100 yard sprint. The Gregory's source records him as having clocked 9.3 secs for the 100 yards during his athletic career.^[2]

In 1964 he beat the rugby league speedster Ken Irvine in a $2,000 match race at Wentworth Park and in 1966 he won the Australian professional 130m sprint race.

Rugby league

Cleary joined the South Sydney Rabbitohs in 1962 along with Jim Lisle his Wallaby three-quarter partner. Cleary was a Winger with the club throughout the 1960s playing in three premiership winning sides in 1967 , 1968 and 1970. Cleary finished his first grade career with the Rabbitoh's neighbouring club, the Eastern Suburbs Roosters, in 1971. This made him ideally suited to represent his future NSW State electoral district of Coogee, which sits close to the geographic border between the two clubs.

His international rugby league debut in the 1st Test against Great Britain in Sydney on 9 June 1962 saw Cleary become Australia's 29th dual-code international, following Arthur Summons and preceding Jim Lisle . He made Test appearances against New Zealand in 1963, 1965 and 1969; against France in 1964 and was selected for the 1963-64 Kangaroo tour during which he made one Test and twenty tour match appearances.

Triple international

He is one of only four Australian sportsmen to represent internationally in three different sports at the senior level (see also Dick Thornett and Snowy Baker).

Politics and community

Cleary joined the Australian Labor Party in 1965 and was the State member for Coogee in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1974 to 1991 and was the NSW Minister for Sport and Recreation and Tourism in the Wran Labor Government from 1981 to 1988. From 1986 to 1988 he was also the NSW Minister for Racing.^[3]

He was at one time or another the Chairman Sports House Advisory Committee, member North Bondi Surf Club, member Coogee Surf Life Saving Club and a director South Sydney Leagues Club.

In the Queen's Birthday Honours list of 1992, Cleary was awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia for his service to the New South Wales Parliament,^[4] and in 2000 he was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his achievements as a Kangaroo player.^[5]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "Scrum.com player profile of Mike Cleary". Scrum.com. http://www.scrum.com/australia/rugby/player/6601.html. Retrieved 12 July 2010. 
2. ^ Pollard, Jack (1965). Gregory's Guide to Rugby League. Australia: Grenville Publishing. p154. 
3. ^ "The Hon. Michael Arthur Cleary (1940 - )". Members of Parliament. Parliament of New South Wales. http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/members.nsf/1fb6ebed995667c2ca256ea100825164/29247b30e35933e1ca256a9200234f3a. Retrieved 19 February 2010. 
4. ^ It's an Honour - Officer of the Order of Australia
5. ^ It's an Honour - Australian Sports Medal

External links

• Michael Cleary biography at Sport Australia Hall of Fame

Parliament of New South Wales
Preceded by Ross Freeman	Member for Coogee 1974 – 1991	Succeeded by Ernie Page
Political offices
Preceded by Ken Booth	Minister for Sport and Recreation 1981 – 1982	Succeeded by Himself as Minister for Leisure, Sport and Tourism
	Minister for Tourism 1981 – 1982
Preceded by Himself as Minister for Sport and Recreation and Minister for Tourism	Minister for Leisure, Sport and Tourism 1982 – 1984	Succeeded by Himself as Minister for Sport and Recreation and Minister for Tourism
Preceded by Himself as Minister for Leisure, Sport and Tourism	Minister for Sport and Recreation 1984 – 1988	Succeeded by Bob Rowland Smith
	Minister for Tourism 1984 – 1988	Succeeded by Garry West
New title	Minister for Racing 1986 – 1988	Succeeded by Bob Rowland Smith

Persondata
Name	Cleary, Michael
Alternative names	Cleary, Michael Arthur
Short description	Australian rugby league and rugby union player, sprint runner and politician
Date of birth	30 April 1940
Place of birth	Randwick, New South Wales
Date of death	Living person
Place of death