Simon David Kreutzer

Sam Kreutzer was an excellent prop forward who made his Test debut against the 1914 All Blacks after just one match for Queensland and then lost his best years to the First World War. Born in 1894, Kreutzer was in the firsts in 1908 at St Joseph’s College, Gregory Terrace, Brisbane, before leaving school. He joined the police force and secured a place in one of the Brothers’ first grade teams in 1914. In 1914, the Brothers club was so powerful that the club fielded two first grade teams of equal strength in the Brisbane club competition – Brothers ‘A’ and Brothers ‘B’. This gives the lie to theories that Irish Roman Catholic public servants followed Jack Fihelly’s lead in switching en masse to rugby league.

In fact, these people were conservatives who had little time for rugby league and remained loyal to rugby union until the union disbanded after 1915. Physically, Kreutzer was tall and strongly built and he initially played as a second row lock forward for Brothers. Later in the season, he graduated to loose head prop and, when Bert Perkins dropped out of Queensland’s return encounter with the 1914 All Blacks, Kreutzer was chosen as his replacement. There were six Brothers’ forwards in the team and Kreutzer packed down with Bill Morrissey (Brothers) and seasoned Test hooker, Dave Williams, from Toowoomba.

Three days later, Kreutzer packed down with Morrissey and Williams as Australia’s front row in the second Test match against the All Blacks. He and Morrissey owed their good fortune to the late withdrawal of the Sydney props, Bill Watson and Harold George. Australia was well beaten and neither was selected for the third Test match in Sydney. Kreutzer quickly confirmed himself as an established representative player in 1915 with selection for Brisbane and in the South Queensland team that toured North Queensland that year. Then war intervened and when rugby resumed in 1919, Kreutzer turned out again for Brothers along with his brother Vince and other old internationals, Pat Murphy, Jimmy Flynn and Tat McMahon.

When the AIF made a triumphant tour of Australia, Kreutzer represented Queensland in two matches against them and for Australia in one of the Test matches before injury forced him out for a time. He returned to play for Queensland in all four matches in the interstate series before rugby union in Queensland folded in 1920. His appetite for football remained unabated and Kreutzer switched to rugby league and soon earned a Queensland jersey in that code before retiring. Even though his best years were lost to the First World War, Kreutzer enjoyed a long football career and played seven matches for Queensland (scoring one try), one Test match against the All Blacks and one international against the AIF before playing one match for Queensland rugby league.