Les Davidson is an Australian former professional

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

footballer who played in the 1980s and 1990s. He played for the

South Sydney Rabbitohs The South Sydney Rabbitohs are a professional Australian rugby league club based in Redfern, a suburb of inner-southern Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and are one of nine existing tea ...

and

Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are an Australian professional rugby league club based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales. They compete in the National Rugby League (NRL), Australasia's premier rugby leag ...

and represented at both the State and national levels. His position of choice on the field was or .

Playing career

Davidson made his first grade début for the

in 1985. At the end of the

1986 NSWRL season The 1986 New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the seventy-ninth season of professional rugby league football in Australia. Thirteen clubs competed for the J J Giltinan Shield and Winfield Cup during the season, which culminated in a gran ...

, he became the first South Sydney player in over a decade to be selected for Australia when he went on the

1986 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France The 1986 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France was the sixteenth Kangaroo tour in which the Australian national rugby league team (known as the Winfield Kangaroos due to sponsorship) plays a number of tour matches against British and French tea ...

. He played five

State of Origin A State of Origin competition is a type of sporting event between players representing their state or territory. State of Origin began in Australian rules football on 8 October 1977 between Western Australia (WA) and Victoria, at Subiaco Ov ...

matches for

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

and was named

Man of the match In team sport, a player of the match or man of the match or woman of the match award is often given to the most outstanding player in a particular match. This can be a player from either team, although the player is generally chosen from the winn ...

in Game 1, 1987. Davidson was a member of the New South Wales Origin squad which played

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

at Veterans Stadium,

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

on 6 August 1987. Davidson also represented Australia in a number of Test Matches. He is listed on the ''Australian Players Register'' as Kangaroo No. 577. In the Australian off-season of 1988 and 1989, Davidson had two stints in England playing for the

Warrington Wolves The Warrington Wolves are a professional rugby league club based in Warrington, England, that competes in the Super League. They play rugby at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, having moved there from Wilderspool in 2004. Founded as Warrington ...

and

Wigan Warriors The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League. Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Northern Rugby Football Union followin ...

. After very nearly joining the

Brisbane Broncos The Brisbane Broncos Rugby League Football Club Ltd., commonly referred to as the Broncos, is an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. Founded in April 1987, the Broncos play in Australia's elite c ...

, Davidson signed with Cronulla-Sutherland. He made 133 appearances in first grade for the Sharks, adding hardened representative experience to the Cronulla pack during the 1990s, and became a Sharkies favourite.

References

External links

Les Davidson at eraofthebiff.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davidson, Les Australian rugby league players Australian expatriate sportspeople in England Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks players South Sydney Rabbitohs players New South Wales Rugby League State of Origin players Country New South Wales Origin rugby league team players Warrington Wolves players Wigan Warriors players Australia national rugby league team players Living people 1963 births Rugby league second-rows South Sydney Rabbitohs captains