Rugby league-Australian rugby league great Raper dies aged 82

MELBOURNE : Australian rugby league great Johnny Raper died on Wednesday aged 82, the National Rugby League (NRL) announced.

He played in eight consecutive NRL premierships for St. George from 1959, and also represented the Australian Kangaroos in 39 tests.

Raper, who played as a lock and was adept at making low tackles behind the defensive line, was one of the greatest players ever, according to Australian Rugby League chairman Peter V'landys.

"Johnny was a football genius. He had a gut instinct for rugby league like few we have seen. He wasn't the biggest player on the field, but he was the smartest," he said.

(Reporting by Andrew Both in Melbourne; Editing by Stephen Coates)