Ken 'The Mayor' Thornett

While Ken 'The Mayor' Thornett had a brief career in international football he had a lasting influence on the P’matta club. With brothers John and Dick Thornett forging careers in international Rugby Ken Thornett changed codes to play for Leeds in England before he had the opportunity to play in a RU Test. He had actually gone to England to be a woolclasser but Leeds beat P’matta and Souths to his signature. Thornett was a dangerous attacking player and safe under pressure (it was said that English bookies gave up framing odds on when he would drop a ball). Joining P’matta in 1962 he became an institution at fullback despite being plagued by knee trouble late in his career. Thornett made his Test debut in the series against NZ in 1963 and scored a decisive try in the 14-0 Third Test win at the SCG that gave Australia the series. He then played in all six Tests on the Ashes-winning Kangaroo tour in 1963-64 – forcing St George fullback Graeme Langlands to play in the centres. A try-scorer in the record-breaking 50-12 win over England in the Second Test Thornett was also the first Australian fullback to score a try in a Test match on a Kangaroo tour. His final Test series was against France in 1964 but he went on to give great service to the Eels (he was captain-coach 1965). Thornett played for Leeds during the 1965-66 off-season but left Sydney at the end of 1968 to become a farmer at Binnaway in northwest NSW. Captain-coach of Coonabarabran he returned to P’matta in 1971 to captain the troubled club and led the team back into the semi-finals. Ken Thornett has since been honoured with the dedication of a grandstand at P’matta Stadium in his name and was named in P’matta’s best ever merit team (1947-2001).