Jim Lisle

Ronald James "Jimmy" Lisle (19 September 1939 – 1 March 2003) was an Australian rugby league and rugby union player – a dual code rugby international. He represented the Wallabies in 4 tests in 1961 and the Australia national rugby league team in 13 matches on the 1963 Kangaroo tour.

Union career

A champion schoolboy athlete Lisle broke into first grade in 1959 with the Sydney suburban club, Drummoyne DRFC (the "Dirty Reds"). He debuted for NSW in 1960 forming a successful halves combination with Ken Catchpole. In 1961 he made his national rugby union debut as a Wallaby playing three test matches against Fiji. Later that year he made an appearance against South Africa playing inside Mike Cleary. He played rugby union at fly half or centre.

League career

Along with Cleary, following the South African Wallaby tour he made the code switch and joined the South Sydney Rabbitohs in 1962 . He played 106 grade games with the club till 1968. After just one appearance in the professional code in 1961 he was selected for New South Wales. Three weeks later with still only one club appearance under his belt Lisle made his international rugby league debut in the third test in Sydney against the visiting Great Britain. This stands as the fastest rise to international representative status in Australian rugby league history.