Cyril John Connell

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

(6 June 1899 – 25 October 1974) was an Australian university registrar and

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

footballer and administrator. His son

Cyril Connell Jr. Cyril Connell (born 4 May 1928 in Rockhampton, Queensland, died 9 June 2009 in Brisbane, Queensland) was an Australian rugby league footballer who played in the 1940s and 1950s. An Australian international and Queensland Maroons representative ...

also went on to become a successful rugby league footballer in his era. Connell was born in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

and in his youth he fought in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, serving with the Australian Imperial Force in France. In 1922 he was of the first Queensland team to defeat New South Wales. After retiring from the football field Connell also served as an administrator for the

Queensland Rugby League The Queensland Rugby Football League QRL Constitution, 2009: 3 (QRL QRL Constitution, 2009: 2) is the governing body for rugby league in Queensland. It is a member of the Australian Rugby League Commission (ARL Commission) and selects the mem ...

. Connell's time as registrar of the

University of Queensland The University of Queensland is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone ...

is thought to have contributed significantly to the university's growth in the 1950s and 1960s. This earned him the honour of commander (civil) of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 1965. In 2000 Connell was awarded the

Australian Sports Medal The Australian Sports Medal is an award given to recognise achievements in Australian sport to commemorate Australian participation in major sporting events. Original recipients of the award included competitors, coaches, sports scientists, off ...

for his contribution to Australia's international standing in rugby league.

References

External links

Cyrill Connell at the Online Dictionary of Australian BiographiesQueensland Representatives at qrl.com.au
{{DEFAULTSORT:Connell, Cyrill 1899 births 1974 deaths Academic staff of the University of Queensland Australian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Australian military personnel of World War I Australian rugby league players Brisbane Tigers players Fortitude Valley Diehards players Queensland rugby league team players Recipients of the Australian Sports Medal Rugby league halfbacks Rugby league players from Sydney 20th-century Australian sportsmen