View source for Ron Willey

{{short description|Australian RL coach and former Australia international rugby league footballer}}
{{Use Australian English|date=July 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox rugby league biography
|name            = Ron Willey
|fullname        = Ronald William Willey
|image           = Ron Willey.jpg
|image_size      = 150px
|caption         =
|birth_date      = {{birth date|1929|11|20|df=y}}
|birth_place     = [[Canterbury, New South Wales|Canterbury]], [[New South Wales]], [[Australia]]
|death_date      = {{death date and age|2004|09|24|1929|11|20|df=y}}
|height          =
|weight          =
|position        = {{rlp|FB|CE}}
|club1           = {{nowrap|[[Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs|Canterbury-Bankstown]]}}
|year1start      = 1948
|year1end        = 53
|appearances1    = 70
|tries1          = 5
|goals1          = 136
|fieldgoals1     = 0
|points1         = 287
|club2           = [[Manly Warringah Sea Eagles|Manly-Warringah]]
|year2start      = 1956
|year2end        = 62
|appearances2    = 124
|tries2          = 20
|goals2          = 447
|fieldgoals2     = 2
|points2         = 958
|club3           = [[Parramatta Eels|Parramatta]]
|year3start      = 1963
|year3end        = 64
|appearances3    = 7
|tries3          = 1
|goals3          = 20
|fieldgoals3     = 0
|points3         = 43
|teamA           = [[Queensland Maroons|Queensland]]
|yearAstart      = 1955
|yearAend        =
|appearancesA    = 1
|triesA          = 0
|goalsA          = 10
|fieldgoalsA     = 0
|pointsA         = 20
|teamB           = [[City New South Wales rugby league team|NSW City Firsts]]
|yearBstart      = 1956
|yearBend        =
|appearancesB    = 1
|triesB          = 0
|goalsB          = 7
|fieldgoalsB     = 0
|pointsB         = 14
|teamC           = [[New South Wales rugby league team|New South Wales]]
|yearCstart      = 1956
|yearCend        =
|appearancesC    = 3
|triesC          = 0
|goalsC          = 12
|fieldgoalsC     = 0
|pointsC         = 24
|teamD           = [[Australian Kangaroos|Australia]]
|yearDstart      = 1952
|yearDend        = 53
|appearancesD    = 0
|triesD          = 0
|goalsD          = 0
|fieldgoalsD     = 0
|pointsD         = 0
|coachteam1      = [[Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles|Manly-Warringah]]
|coachyear1start = 1962
|coachyear1end   = 
|coachgames1     = 18
|coachwins1      = 7
|coachdraws1     = 1
|coachlosses1    = 10
|coachteam2      = [[Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles|Manly-Warringah]]
|coachyear2start = 1970
|coachyear2end   = 74
|coachgames2     = 132
|coachwins2      = 95
|coachdraws2     = 3
|coachlosses2    = 34
|coachteam3      = [[Balmain Tigers|Balmain]]
|coachyear3start = 1977
|coachyear3end   = 79
|coachgames3     = 70
|coachwins3      = 36
|coachdraws3     = 4
|coachlosses3    = 30
|coachteam4      = [[North Sydney Bears|North Sydney]]
|coachyear4start = 1980
|coachyear4end   = 82
|coachgames4     = 74
|coachwins4      = 31
|coachdraws4     = 2
|coachlosses4    = 41
|coachteam5      = [[South Sydney Rabbitohs|South Sydney]]
|coachyear5start = 1983
|coachyear5end   = 85
|coachgames5     = 83
|coachwins5      = 39
|coachdraws5     = 1
|coachlosses5    = 43
|coachteam6      = [[Penrith Panthers|Penrith]]
|coachyear6start = 1988
|coachyear6end   = 89
|coachgames6     = 49
|coachwins6      = 31
|coachdraws6     = 0
|coachlosses6    = 18
|coachteam7      = [[Bradford Bulls|Bradford Northern]]
|coachyear7start = 1989
|coachyear7end   = 90
|coachgames7     = 
|coachwins7      = 
|coachdraws7     = 
|coachlosses7    = 
|coachteamA      = [[City New South Wales rugby league team|NSW City]]
|coachyearAstart = 1986
|coachyearAend   = 87
|coachgamesA     = 2
|coachwinsA      = 2
|coachdrawsA     = 0
|coachlossesA    = 0
|coachteamB      = [[New South Wales rugby league team|New South Wales]]
|coachyearBstart = 1986
|coachyearBend   = 87
|coachgamesB     = 7
|coachwinsB      = 5
|coachdrawsB     = 0
|coachlossesB    = 2
|updated         = 11 June 2013
|source          = <ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/players/ron-willey/summary.html|title = Ron Willey - Career Stats & Summary - Rugby League Project}}</ref>
| module       = {{infobox person
| embed        = yes
| father       = 
| mother       = 
| spouse       = 
| education    = 
| alma_mater   = 
| relatives    = [[Anthony Don]] (grandson)
}}
}}

'''Ronald William Willey''' (1929−2004) was an Australian [[rugby league]] footballer and coach. He was a representative for the [[Australian national rugby league team|Australian national side]]. Post-playing, Willey had a long and successful first grade and State representative coaching career.

==Playing career==
Born in [[Canterbury, New South Wales]] in 1929, Willey was graded by the [[Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs|Canterbury-Bankstown Berries]] in [[1948 NSWRFL season|1948]] as a {{rlp|CE}}, but was soon shifted to {{rlp|FB}}, and was the Berries regular first-grade fullback and goal-kicker from 1949 to 1953. In 1951, he was appointed captain for four games at the age of 21. Willey held the record as the youngest Canterbury captain until [[Braith Anasta]] in 2002. He became the first Canterbury local international when he was selected on the 1952–53 [[Kangaroo tour]], and was the Berries’ standout player in a dark era for the club.<ref>See Lester, Gary; ''From Berries to Bulldogs: Fifty Years of the Canterbury-Bankstown R.L.F.C.''; pp. 47-60 {{ISBN|9780949853066}}</ref>

Willey missed most of 1953 and the entire 1954 season through a serious knee injury, but returned to the game as captain-coach of Rockhampton and represented [[Queensland rugby league team|Queensland]] that season.

He joined [[Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles|Manly-Warringah]] in 1956 and played a total of 124 games over seven seasons for the club including their unsuccessful [[New South Wales Rugby League season 1957#Grand Final|1957]] and [[New South Wales Rugby League season 1959#Grand Final|1959]] [[Grand final|Grand Final]] appearances. In 1956, Willey played two games for [[New South Wales Rugby League team|New South Wales]], but although a player of immense talent, Willey played in an era where [[Clive Churchill]] was the incumbent representative fullback, denying Willey many selection opportunities. In his last season as a player at Manly in 1962, Willey was captain-coach. He held the record for the most points scored at Manly until overtaken by Graeme Eadie in the 1970s, and during 1962 he overtook [[Bernie Purcell]]'s record for the most points scored in an [[NSWRFL]] career (1,152); Willey's eventual total of 1,288 stood as the new career record for four seasons until it was bettered by [[Keith Barnes]] in 1966.

Willey joined the [[Parramatta Eels]] in 1963 but only played seven games before retiring in 1964.

==Coaching career==
===Club coach===
Willey returned to [[Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles|Manly]] in 1970 for a successful five season tenure as a non-playing coach. During this time he guided them to their first [[New South Wales Rugby League]] premiership in [[New South Wales Rugby League season 1972#Grand final|1972]] and repeated that premiership success in [[New South Wales Rugby League season 1973#Grand Final|1973]]. In this, his second coaching stint at Manly he enjoyed an extraordinary 74% win rate.

Willey later coached [[Balmain Tigers|Balmain]] from 1977 to 1979, [[North Sydney Bears|North Sydney]] from 1980 to 1982 (with whom he guided the club to their first finals series in 17 years) and [[South Sydney Rabbitohs|Souths]] from 1983 to 1985 but was unable to repeat premiership success. His last head coaching role in Australia was with [[Penrith Panthers|Penrith]] where he coached the club a fifth-place playoff in 1988 where they lost to [[Balmain Tigers|Balmain]]. In his final season at Penrith, Willey guided the club to a second-placed finish but the Panthers were knocked out in straight sets by eventual grand finalists Balmain and [[Canberra Raiders|Canberra]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/newslocal/west/former-penrith-panthers-players-mark-geyer-and-darryl-brohman-pay-tribute-to-former-nsw-coach-graham-murray/news-story/ab592ad5457c098d28a9edc0209543eb/|title=Former Penrith Panthers players Mark Geyer and Darryl Brohman pay tribute to former NSW coach Graham Murray|website=www.dailytelegraph.com.au|date=29 July 2013}}</ref>

Willey coached English side [[Bradford Bulls|Bradford Northern]] for a short stint and led them to the Premiership final and success in the Yorkshire Cup in 1989–90. Willey coached for a total of 17 seasons and 403 matches.

===Representative coach===
Willey also coached [[New South Wales Rugby League team|New South Wales]] to the first ever clean sweep of a [[Rugby League State of Origin|State of Origin]] series against [[Queensland Rugby League team|Queensland]] in 1986.

==Personal life==
Willey's grandson is fellow [[rugby league]] footballer [[Anthony Don]], a fullback/winger who played over 150 games for the [[Gold Coast Titans]] from 2013 to 2021.<ref>{{cite news|author=Travis Meyn|work=The Courier Mail|title=Gold Coast Debutant Anthony Don Brings A Top Rugby League Pedigree to the Game|url=http://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/nrl/gold-coast-debutant-anthony-don-brings-a-top-rugby-league-pedigree-to-the-game/story-e6frfggf-1226619540926|access-date=14 April 2013|date=13 April 2013}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{S-start}}
{{S-sport}}
{{succession box|
  before = [[Bernie Purcell]] (1959)|
  after  = [[Keith Barnes]] (1966)|
  title  = Record-holder<br />Most points in an [[NSWRFL]] career<ref>Heads, Ian and Middleton, David (2008) ''A Centenary of Rugby League'', MacMillan Sydney</ref>|
  years  = 1962 (1,155) - 1966 (1,288)|
}}
{{Succession box
|  before = [[David Hobbs (rugby league)|David Hobbs]]<br>1989
|  after  = [[David Hobbs (rugby league)|David Hobbs]]<br>1990-1993
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|bradford|size=18}}<br>[[Bradford Bulls|Bradford Northern]]
|  years  = 1989–1990
}}
{{Succession box
|  before = [[Tim Sheens]]<br>1984–1987
|  after  = [[Phil Gould (rugby league)|Phil Gould]]<br>1990–1994
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|penrith|size=18}}<br>[[Penrith Panthers]]
|  years  = 1988–1989
}}
{{Succession box
|  before = [[Terry Fearnley]]<br>1985
|  after  = [[John Peard]]<br>1988
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|new south wales|size=18}}<br>[[New South Wales rugby league team|NSW State of Origin]]
|  years  = 1986–1987
}}
{{Succession box
|  before = [[Bill Anderson (Australian coach)|Bill Anderson]]<br>1980–1982
|  after  = [[George Piggins]]<br>1986–1990
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|south sydney|size=18}}<br>[[South Sydney Rabbitohs]]
|  years  = 1983–1985
}}
{{Succession box
|  before = [[Tommy Bishop]]<br>1979
|  after  = [[John Hayes (rugby league)|John Hayes]]<br>1983–1984
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|north sydney|size=18}}<br>[[North Sydney Bears]]
|  years  = 1980–1982
}}
{{Succession box
|  before = [[Paul Broughton]]<br>1975-1976
|  after  = [[Dennis Tutty]]<br>1980
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|balmain tigers|size=18}}<br>[[Balmain Tigers]]
|  years  = 1977–1979
}}
{{succession box
|  before = [[George Hunter (rugby league)|George Hunter]]<br>1968–1969
|  after  = [[Frank Stanton (rugby league)|Frank Stanton]]<br>1975–1979
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|manly|size=18}}<br>[[Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles]]
|  years  = 1970–1974
}}
{{succession box
|  before = [[Ken Arthurson]]<br>1957–1961
|  after  = [[Tony Paskins]]<br>1963
|  title  = Coach<br>{{leagueicon|manly|size=18}}<br>[[Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles]]
|  years  = 1962
}}
{{S-end}}

{{Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles squad 1972 NSWRFL premiership}}
{{Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles squad 1973 NSWRFL premiership}}
{{Navboxes
|title= Coaching positions
|list1=  
{{Balmain Tigers head coaches}}
{{Bradford Bulls Coaches}}
{{Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles Coaches}}
{{New South Wales State of Origin coaches}}
{{Penrith Panthers Coaches}}
{{North Sydney Bears coaches}}
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willey, Ron}}
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:2004 deaths]]
[[Category:Australia national rugby league team players]]
[[Category:Australian rugby league coaches]]
[[Category:Australian rugby league players]]
[[Category:Balmain Tigers coaches]]
[[Category:Bradford Bulls coaches]]
[[Category:Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs players]]
[[Category:City New South Wales rugby league team players]]
[[Category:Manly Warringah Sea Eagles captains]]
[[Category:Manly Warringah Sea Eagles coaches]]
[[Category:Manly Warringah Sea Eagles players]]
[[Category:New South Wales Rugby League State of Origin coaches]]
[[Category:New South Wales rugby league team players]]
[[Category:North Sydney Bears coaches]]
[[Category:Parramatta Eels players]]
[[Category:Penrith Panthers coaches]]
[[Category:Queensland rugby league team players]]
[[Category:Rugby league fullbacks]]
[[Category:Rugby league players from Canterbury-Bankstown]]
[[Category:South Sydney Rabbitohs coaches]]
[[Category:20th-century Australian sportsmen]]