Terry 'Baa Baa' Lamb

Playing Career

Vital Statistics

Full Name
Terry John Lamb
Nickname(s)
Baa Baa
Born
Friday, 15th September, 1961
Current Age
62 years and 186 days
Place Of Birth
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Awards & Accolades

Dally M Five-Eighth Of The Year
1983, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1991, 1992, 1993
Dally M Player Of The Year
1983
Rothmans Medal
1984
National Rugby League Hall Of Fame
2008

Known Family Links

Brother
Peter Lamb

Biography

Arguably the greatest support player the game has produced Terry Lamb's long and successful career was based upon his desire to succeed and a resolute toughness that kept him competitive through a record number of first grade appearances. The C’bury junior served a four-year apprenticeship with battlers Wests after the Bulldogs hesitated in signing him as an 18-year-old in 1980. Lamb signed with Wests because he had faith in his ability to play first grade and made his debut that year as halfback in a mid-week Tooths Cup game. Incredibly strong for his size (1.66m), Lamb's match-winner reputation grew in stature - either backing up to score a determined try or potting a late field-goal. He was a last minute replacement in NSW's State of Origin side in 1981, in which he was on the receiving end of a bashing from Wally Lewis, his opposite number. In 1983, the year Wests finished with the wooden spoon, Lamb won the 'Dally M' Player of the Year award. Signed by C’bury in 1984, he was the season's leading try-scorer (17 tries) but after a short time as C’bury captain, gave up the captaincy in favour of Steve Mortimer. After winning his first grand final in 1984 Lamb was injured in the major semi-final the following year and missed C’bury's 7-6 win against St George. In a memorable 1986 season Lamb made his Test debut as a reserve against NZ and was the season's leading point-scorer with 184pts (11t, 8fg, 66g). Beaten in the grand final by P’matta 4-2, (Lamb had a chance to equalise just before full-time but the kick was beyond him), he toured with the Kangaroos at year’s end. Lamb scored 5 tries in a match against Hull KR and created history by becoming the first player to take the field in every game on tour. He then decided to stand down from rep duty to spend time with his young family but the NSWRL refused his request and suspended him from club matches. Despite this distraction Lamb was again the leading try-scorer during the 1987 season (16 tries.) In 1988 Lamb played the perfect team-game against Balmain in the grand final, scoring half his team’s 24 points. He then regained Australian selection as a reserve in the World Cup Final in NZ after reversing his stance on his unavailability. Lamb's 7 Test appearances were each as a reserve and it seems incongruous that one of the game's most creative players did not get the chance to score a point at Test or interstate level. Despite C’bury’s problems with coaches (first with Warren Ryan followed by the sacking of Phil Gould in 1989) Lamb was able to tread that fine line between fulfilling his coach's expectations and being loyal to his club. The close of the decade saw him finish as the leading try-scorer of the 1980s (115 tries). In the face of damaging player defections to Wests Lamb held the Bulldogs together during the early 1990s with his on-field leadership and off-field, self-defacing humour. Unable to fully train because of a chronic groin tear Lamb was in superlative form during his testimonial year in 1992. Winning his 15th 'Dally M' award (a record) he went on to captain the club to back-to-back grand final appearances in 1994-95. One of the game's greatest competitors he was the first player to score 100 tries and 1000pts with the one club and, in 1994, surpassed Geoff Gerard's record for first grade matches. In early 1995 he was snapped up by Super League to act as a liaison between players and management after his retirement but there were still some personal goals to achieve. Against a highly-fancied Manly team in the 1995 grand final Lamb inspired his ‘underdogs’ to a 17-4 victory. While this would have been a fitting finale to his career he shelved plans for his retirement to help C’bury through the transitional 1996 season after the club’s ranks were decimated by the ARL-Super League war. His retirement at the end of 1996 found him second on the all-time list of try-scorers (164t, since bettered by Andrew Ettingshausen) and with the greatest number of first grade games (349) to his credit. In 1998 C’bury’s President’s Cup team overcame a 0-24 half-time deficit to give Lamb premiership success in his new career as a coach. The same year he was awarded an OAM for services to sport and to the community. After capturing the First Division premiership in 2000 Lamb succeeded Wayne Pearce as the coach of the W’Tigers. It was to prove a baptism of fire for the former champion pivot – drug scandals among players, a feud with star player Terry Hill and the ‘John Hopoate’ affair – with the club deciding not to extend his contract past the 2002 season. Lamb was brought back to the Bulldogs’ fold when elected to the club’s Board of Directors in early 2003 and the following year, as part of the C’bury club’s 75th Anniversary season, he was named captain of the club’s greatest ever team. Biography, The Terry Lamb Story (1992).
- ALAN WHITICKER

Playing Career Statistics

All statistics shown in this section are based only on data available in the RLP database, and are not necessarily a complete and/or 100% accurate representation of a player's career. This information should be used as a guide only. If you see a question mark (?), it denotes that the figure is not available.

To view a list of corresponding matches, click on the List button.

Competitions

Competition   App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
NRL 350 164 386   44 1442 213 126 11 60.86% List
NRL Finals 23 7 25   5 82 14 9 0 60.87% List
State of Origin 7 - -   - - 2 5 0 28.57% List
National Panasonic Cup 6 6 10   5 47 2 3 1 33.33% List
City vs Country Firsts 1 1 -   - 4 1 0 0 100.00% List
Tour Matches Australia 17 15 13   - 86 17 0 0 100.00% List
Test Series 5 - -   - - 5 0 0 100.00% List
World Cup 4 - -   - - 4 0 0 100.00% List
The Ashes 3 - -   - - 3 0 0 100.00% List
City vs Country 4 3 8   1 29 4 0 0 100.00% List
Tooheys Challenge Cup 1 3 3   1 19 0 1 0 0.00% List


International

Test Matches - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Australia 1986, 1988 8 - -   - - 8 0 0 100.00% List

World Cup Matches - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Australia 1986, 1988 4 - -   - - 4 0 0 100.00% List


Representative

Australia - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
NSW 1981, 1984, 1986, 1988-89 7 - -   - - 2 5 0 28.57% List
NSW City Firsts 1986 1 1 -   - 4 1 0 0 100.00% List
NSW City 1987-90 4 3 8   1 29 4 0 0 100.00% List
Overall1981-1990 12 4 8   1 33 7 5 0 58.33% List


Club Career

NRL/NSWRL - By Year

Team Season App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Western Suburbs NSWRFL 1980 18 9 -   2 29 10 8 0 55.56% List
Western Suburbs NSWRFL 1981 21 8 -   1 25 11 9 1 52.38% List
Western Suburbs NSWRFL 1982 27 13 -   3 42 16 11 0 59.26% List
Western Suburbs NSWRFL 1983 22 11 11   1 67 5 15 2 22.73% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1984 22 17 17   7 109 19 3 0 86.36% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1985 22 11 19   1 83 14 6 2 63.64% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1986 24 12 76 / 112 67.86% 10 210 15 8 1 62.50% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1987 21 16 57 / 81 70.37% 1 179 12 9 0 57.14% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1988 24 9 68 / 115 59.13% 5 177 19 5 0 79.17% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1989 16 9 27 / 43 62.79% - 90 8 7 1 50.00% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1990 19 6 47 / 76 61.84% - 118 12 6 1 63.16% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1991 17 9 16 / 30 53.33% 1 69 10 6 1 58.82% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1992 17 8 24 / 32 75.00% 2 82 8 7 2 47.06% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1993 23 5 23 / 41 56.10% 3 69 16 7 0 69.57% List
Canterbury NSWRL 1994 14 7 -   2 30 11 3 0 78.57% List
Sydney Bulldogs ARL 1995 22 8 1 / 1 100.00% 4 38 16 6 0 72.73% List
Canterbury ARL 1996 21 6 -   1 25 11 10 0 52.38% List

NRL/NSWRL - By Team

Team Years App T G   GK % FG Pts W L D Win %  
Western Suburbs 1980-83 88 41 11   7 163 42 43 3 47.73% List
Canterbury 1984-96 262 123 375   37 1279 171 83 8 65.27% List
Overall1980-1996 350 164 386   44 1,442 213 126 11 60.86% List

Your Say

  • Dean milgate
    22/08/2015

    Terry lamb the best player ever to pull on a bulldogs jumper legend and my idol loved to watch him play just to good. Good on ya terry and thanks for the memorys I make sure my three sons watch your old games to see how good you were

  • peter selby
    27/04/2020

    CHEAT look at 88 grand final knocked out Hanley in back play

  • Ben Todd
    25/05/2020

    Terry Lamb- FREAK!

  • Michael Gorevski
    16/11/2022

    Who’s better than Terry Lamb? No one that’s who!

  • Anonymous
    20/07/2023

    terry lamb is just simply him

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Contributions: Rugby League Tables, Shawn Dollin, Andrew Ferguson, AJ Lucantonio, Paul Carter, Greg Fiveash, Alan Katzmann, Steven Russo, Max Turner, Bill Bates

Sources: ARL Rugby League Yearbook 1996, ARL Rugby League Yearbook 1997, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1989-90, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1987-88, Match Video, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1988-89, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1990-91, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1991-92, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1992-93, NSWRL Rugby League Yearbook 1994, ARL Rugby League Yearbook 1995, Newspapers