Kevin Junee

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Kevin Junee was an Australian rugby league footballer who played in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership in the years 1964 to 1976. Kevin is the father of Australian rugby union player Darren Junee who also played rugby league for the Eastern Suburbs club.

Junee played all his junior football with Eastern Suburbs, breaking into the top grade in 1964 - the bleakest period in the clubs history, winning just 2 matches that year and just 3 more in the following two, However this didn’t stop Junee from breaking into the representative scene, in 1965, the speedy halfback was chosen for NSW and in 1967 was selected for that year's Kangaroo Tour. In the 1972 season Junee was awarded the Rothmans Medal – rugby league's leading player award presented annually to the year's best player. While playing for the Manly Warringah rugby league club in 1974 Junee topped the season's try-scoring list with 23 tries, a club record at the time. He rejoined Easts for his final season in 1976.

Premiership success was one of the few things that eluded Junee throughout his career. The closest he came was in 1972 when he was a member of the Eastern Suburbs side that was defeated by Manly Warrigah in that year's Grand Final - 19 points to 14. The international halfback left Easts to join Manly in 1974 after a player swap brought his former halfback rival at Easts, Johnny Mayes back to the club. Ironically, that year Eastern Suburbs won their first premiership since 1945 and won again in 1975, losing only three games all season. To rub salt into these wounds, Mayes had just won a premiership with Manly in 1973 and was part of these two premiership winning sides.

Junee returned to Easts for his final season in 1976, displacing Mayes at halfback before the emergence of an up-and-coming Kevin Hastings.

Junee, who played 159 matches for Eastern Suburbs has been made a life member of that club.

He currently works in management in rugby union.

v • d • e Rothmans Medallists 1968 Terry Hughes • 1969 Denis Pittard • 1970 Kevin Junee • 1971 Denis Pittard • 1972 Tommy Raudonikis • 1973 Ken Maddison • 1974 Graham Eadie • 1975 Steve Rogers • 1976 Ray Higgs • 1977 Mick Cronin • 1978 Mick Cronin • 1979 Ray Price • 1980 Geoff Bugden • 1981 Kevin Hastings • 1982 Greg Brentnall • 1983 Mike Eden • 1984 Terry Lamb • 1985 Wayne Pearce • 1986 Mal Cochrane • 1987 Peter Sterling • 1988 Barry Russell • 1989 Gavin Miller & Mark Sargent • 1990 Peter Sterling • 1991 Ewan McGrady • 1992 Allan Langer • 1993 Ricky Stuart • 1994 David Fairleigh • 1995 Paul Green • 1996 Jason Taylor • 1997 Brad Fittler

v • d • e National Rugby League top try scorers 1908 Horrie Miller • 1909 Tommy Anderson • 1910 Arthur McCabe • 1911 Dave Garlick • 1912 Roy Algie • 1913 Harold Horder • 1914 Harold Horder • 1915 Frank Burge • 1916 Frank Burge • 1917 Harold Horder • 1918 Frank Burge • 1919 Gordon Wright • 1920 Gordon Wright • 1921 Gordon Wright • 1922 Cecil Blinkhorn • 1923 Herman Peters • 1924 Tommy Kennedy • 1925 Benny Wearing • 1926 Benny Wearing • 1927 Benny Wearing • 1928 Tony Redmond • 1929 Alan Brady • 1930 Morrie Boyle • 1931 Jack Lynch • 1932 Alan Ridley • 1933 Jack Gray-Spence • 1934 Dave Brown, Fred Gardner & Vic Hey • 1935 Dave Brown • 1936 Fred Tottey • 1937 Fred Tottey • 1938 Don Manson • 1939 Sid Goodwin • 1940 Jack Lindwall • 1941 Percy Dermond & Sel Lisle • 1942 Jack Lindwall • 1943 C "Kelly" McMahon • 1944 Sid Goodwin • 1945 Chicka Cahill & Jack Snare • 1946 Jack Lindwall • 1947 Bob Lulham • 1948 Norm Jacobson • 1949 Ron Roberts • 1950 Jack Troy • 1951 John Graves • 1952 Peter O'Brien • 1953 Ian Moir • 1954 Ray Preston • 1955 Brian Allsop & Ian Moir • 1956 Tommy Ryan • 1957 Tommy Ryan • 1958 Eddie Lumsden • 1959 Ken Irvine • 1960 Reg Gasnier • 1961 Johnny King • 1962 Eddie Lumsden • 1963 Reg Gasnier • 1964 Reg Gasnier • 1965 Johnny King • 1966 Ken Irvine • 1967 Les Hanigan • 1968 Stan Gorton • 1969 Ken Irvine • 1970 Ken Irvine • 1971 Paul Cross • 1972 Bob Fulton • 1973 Bob Fulton • 1974 Kevin Junee & Bill Mullins • 1975 Johnny Mayes • 1976 Bob Fulton • 1977 Russel Gartner • 1978 Larry Corowa • 1979 Mitch Brennan & Tom Mooney • 1980 John Ribot & Wayne Wigham • 1981 Terry Fahey • 1982 Steve Ella • 1983 Phil Blake • 1984 Terry Lamb & Steve Morris • 1985 Steve Linnane • 1986 Phil Blake & Garry Schofield • 1987 Terry Lamb • 1988 John Ferguson • 1989 Gary Belcher • 1990 Mal Meninga • 1991 Alan McIndoe • 1992 Mark Bell & Tim Brasher • 1993 Noa Nadruku • 1994 Steve Renouf • 1995 Steven Menzies • 1996 Noa Nadruku • 1997 Terry Hill & Mathew Ryan • 1998 Darren Smith • 1999 Nathan Blacklock • 2000 Nathan Blacklock • 2001 Nathan Blacklock • 2002 Nigel Vagana • 2003 Rhys Wesser • 2004 Amos Roberts • 2005 Matt Bowen • 2006 Nathan Merritt • 2007 Matt Bowen