Name Tank Rooyen | ||
Died September 21, 1942, Runcorn, United Kingdom | ||
Gert Wilhelm "Tank" van Rooyen (9 December 1892 – 21 September 1942), also known as George van Rooyen, was a South African international rugby union and rugby league footballer. His position was at lock.
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Club career
At the age of 29, van Rooyen moved to England in 1922 to play rugby league for Hull Kingston Rovers, where he won the 1922–23 league championship. He joined Wigan in November 1923, and went on to win the Challenge Cup in 1924, and two Lancashire County League titles in 1923–24 and 1925–26. Tank van Rooyen played left-second-row, i.e. number 11, in Wigan's 11-15 defeat by Swinton in the 1925 Lancashire County Cup Final during the 1925–26 season at The Cliff, Broughton on Wednesday 9 December 1925. He spent six years at Wigan, making a total 178 appearances for the club.
In 1929, he joined Widnes on a free transfer, and became the club's first ever overseas player. In 1930, he won his second Challenge Cup in a shock 10–3 win against St. Helens. He continued to play for Widnes before until his retirement in 1933.
Representative career
In rugby union, van Rooyen appeared for South Africa in two Tests in 1921. As a rugby league player, his only appearance at representative level was for Other Nationalities, playing in the team that beat England 23–17 at Headingley in 1924.