Ronald Charles Ackland (27 December 1934 − 25 October 2013) was a New Zealand professional

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 who played in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

ed in the 1960s and 1970s, who represented

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

in the

1957 Events January * January 1 – The Saarland joins West Germany. * January 3 – Hamilton Watch Company introduces the first electric watch. * January 5 – South African player Russell Endean becomes the first batsman to be Dismissal (cricke ...

and 1960 World Cups, and coached

in the 1977 World Cup. His nephew,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, also played for New Zealand.

Playing career

Ackland was a Mt Wellington player. During the

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. Founded in 1909, the ARL has played a pivotal role in the development and promotion of rugby league in Auckland and beyond. ...

's District era he played for Eastern Districts. In 1960, Ackland won the inaugural Rothville Trophy for player of the year, a feat he repeated in 1961. Ackland also played for the

Mount Albert Lions The Mount Albert Lions are a rugby league club based in Mount Albert, New Zealand. The Lions home ground is at Fowlds Park. Their patron is the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark. In 2008 and 2009 Auckland Rugby League season, 2009 ...

and captained the City Newton Dragons in 1961.Bruce Montgomerie ''Those Who Played'', Montgomerie Publishing, 2004. . p.16. He was selected for

in 1954 and went on to play in 18 test matches for the Kiwis. He was part of the

and 1960 World Cup squads. He captained the Kiwis twice in 1961. Ackland, along with Neville Denton and Gary Phillips, withdrew from the 1961 tour of Great Britain due to a dispute over allowances.Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009'', 2009. . He then moved to the

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 ...

country and was captain-coach of Goulburn between 1965 and 1970 and Inverell between 1971 and 1973.

Coaching career

After retirement Ackland became Mt Wellington's head coach. In 1976, he won the Hyland Memorial Cup as the

's coach of the year. Ackland became the coach of New Zealand in 1977, taking the squad to the 1977 World Cup. In his two-year reign the Kiwis won one out of six test matches.

Later life and death

Ackland was inducted as a

New Zealand Rugby League The New Zealand Rugby League (NZRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league, rugby league football in New Zealand.#SPARC-2009, SPARC, 2009: 13 The NZRL was founded on 25 April 1910 in preparation for a 1910 Great Britain Lions tour o ...

"Legend of League" in 1995. He is an

Immortal. In 2009, he was named in the New Zealand Rugby League Team of the Century in the second row. Ackland died following complications from heart surgery on 25 October 2013, aged 78, in his hometown of

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

.Legendary Ron Ackland passes away
''warriors.co.nz'', 26 October 2013

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ackland, Ron 1934 births 2013 deaths Auckland rugby league team players City Newton Dragons players Mount Albert Lions players Mount Wellington Warriors coaches Mount Wellington Warriors players New Zealand national rugby league team captains New Zealand national rugby league team coaches New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league coaches New Zealand rugby league players Rugby league centres Rugby league players from Auckland Rugby league second-rows