The Birth of Professional Rugby League in Australia: A selection from the Sydney Morning Herald (1907-08): Free Audiobook and Listening Guide

The Birth of Professional Rugby League in Australia: A selection from the Sydney Morning Herald (1907-08), credited to Sydney Morning Herald, is available as a LibriVox volunteer audiobook. This guide identifies the recording, its source summary and its audio tracks.

About the work

The LibriVox catalogue summary, preserved with the recording, reads:

LibriVox recording of The Birth of Professional Rugby League in Australia: A selection from the Sydney Morning Herald (1907-08) by Sydney Morning Herald. Read in English by Phil Benson In early 1907 the world of Australian rugby was rocked by the news that a professional New Zealand All Blacks team was set to tour the northern counties of Engliand, where professional rugby had been a reality for more than a decade. The professionalization of Australian rugby was unthinkable, but within a few months the unthinkable had come to pass. The professional All Blacks had played a hastily formed New South Wales team, the great Dally Messenger had joined the New Zealand tour of England, and by 1908 a professional league was formed in Sydney, with several of the teams that play in the NRL today. This selection from the Sydney Morning Herald's coverage of the fierce debate that ensued, shows how concerns for the welfare of the game and players were mingled with class-interest, colonial ideologies and greed for profit. - Summary by Phil Benson

Recording facts

• Recording title: The Birth of Professional Rugby League in Australia: A selection from the Sydney Morning Herald (1907-08)
• Author credits: Sydney Morning Herald
• Language: English
• Original MP3 tracks: 10
• Listed recording duration: 4:31:57

Catalogue topics

• australia
• new zealand
• rugby

Track guide

1. 01 - A professional All Blacks team to visit the northern counties of England — 28:25
2. 02 - A wave of discontent — 30:41
3. 03 - Foundation of the NSW Rugby League — 30:35
4. 04 - The All Blacks arrive — 23:21
5. 05 - The first professional fixtures — 27:47
6. 06 - The 1907 season ends: Rugby union in crisis — 29:05
7. 07 - News from England: The All Blacks tour — 21:55
8. 08 - New clubs formed — 16:36
9. 09 - Professionalism in Australian sport: The debate goes on — 36:24
10. 10 - The NSW Rugby League: The first season opens — 27:08

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Source and rights

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