Name Don Furner Role Rugby player | Awards Dally M Award Best Coach | |
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Team coached Canberra Raiders (Coach, 1982–1987) Similar People David Furner, Ricky Stuart, Josh Papalii, Tim Sheens, Joel Edwards | ||
Children David Furner, Don Furner | ||
Don Furner (born 26 December 1932) is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. As a player, he represented Queensland on nine occasions and also toured with the 1956–57 Kangaroos.
He began his coaching career as a player-coach with Junee in 1964. In that year team won their first Group 9 grand final as well as the Maher Cup. In 1965 he coached the Queanbeyan Blues (1965–69), the Eastern Suburbs Roosters (1970–72), whom he took to the 1972 NSWRFL season's premiership final, Queanbeyan again from 1973 to 1981, and then became the first coach of the newly formed Canberra Raiders. Furner also coached the Canberra club to the 1987 NSWRL season's Grand Final. He later joined Parramatta for the 1985 NSWRL season. He was appointed the Australian national coach from 1986 to 1988. He coached the NSW Country team and two now-defunct Group 20 clubs, Narrandera Lizards in 1998 and Yanco Wamoon Hawks in 2005. He took the latter to the 2005 group 20 grand final, which they lost to West Wyalong.
His sons are David Furner who used to be a player and coach of the Canberra Raiders and Don Furner, Jr. who became the Canberra Raiders' CEO.