Playing Career
Vital Statistics
- Born
- Sunday, 20th July, 1952
- Current Age
- 73 years and 253 days
Honours & Awards
Based only on data available in the RLP database. This information should be used as a guide only.
- City vs Country Firsts
- 1974
- Preseason Cup
- 1973, 1976
- Midweek Cup
- 1976
Biography
Newtown junior was graded as a 15-year-old hooker from the club's President's Cup team. Shifting to the centres Pringle made his first grade debut in 1972 at age 18 and represented NSW Colts before moving to lock forward. He joined Balmain in 1975 and toured NZ with a Combined Sydney side the following year. A whole-hearted player he was struck down by a mystery virus that attacked his nervous system at the end of the 1979 season. Pringle resumed his career but later made way for Wayne Pearce in the Balmain pack. He left the club in 1983 to captain-coach Cessnock.
- ALAN WHITICKER
Playing Career Statistics
All statistics shown in this section are based only on data available in the RLP database, and are not necessarily a complete and/or 100% accurate representation of a player's career. This information should be used as a guide only. If you see a question mark (?), it denotes that the figure is not available.
To view a list of corresponding matches, click on the List button.
| Tour Matches | Combined Sydney | - | 5 | 3 | - | - | 9 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 40.00% | List | |||
| Representative Career - Australia | Comp Wins | App | T | G | GK % | FG | Pts | W | L | D | Win % | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| City vs Country Firsts | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | List | ||||
| Club Career - Australia | Comp Wins | App | T | G | GK % | FG | Pts | W | L | D | Win % | ||||
| NSWRFL Premiership (NRL) | - | 182 | 46 | - | - | 138 | 88 | 84 | 10 | 48.35% | List | ||||
| NSWRFL Finals | - | 6 | 2 | - | - | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 50.00% | List | ||||
| Preseason Cup | 2 | 28 | 8 | - | - | 24 | 15 | 13 | 0 | 53.57% | List | ||||
| Midweek Cup | 1 | 13 | 9 | - | 1 | 28 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 53.85% | List | ||||
| Challenge Cup AU | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | List | ||||
| Endeavour Cup | - | 1 | - | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | List | ||||
| Overall | App | T | G | GK % | FG | Pts | W | L | D | Win % | |||||
| First Class | 229 | 66 | - | 1 | 199 | 116 | 108 | 11 | 50.66% | List | |||||
Australia - By Team | |||||||||||||||
| Team | Years | App | T | G | GK % | FG | Pts | W | L | D | Win % | ||||
| NSW Firsts | 1972 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | List | ||||
| NSW City Seconds | 1973 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | List | ||||
| NSW City Firsts | 1974 | 1 | - | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | List | ||||
| Combined Sydney | 1976 | 5 | 3 | - | - | 9 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 40.00% | List | ||||
| Overall | 1972-1976 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 50.00% | List | ||||
NSWRFL Premiership (NRL) - By Year | |||||||||||||||
| Team | Season | App | T | G | GK % | FG | Pts | W | L | D | Win % | ||||
| Newtown | NSWRFL 1972 | 17 | 5 | - | - | 15 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 58.82% | List | ||||
| Newtown | NSWRFL 1973 | 23 | 8 | - | - | 24 | 15 | 7 | 1 | 65.22% | List | ||||
| Newtown | NSWRFL 1974 | 20 | 5 | - | - | 15 | 9 | 10 | 1 | 45.00% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1975 | 21 | 5 | - | - | 15 | 10 | 10 | 1 | 47.62% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1976 | 18 | 1 | - | - | 3 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 50.00% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1977 | 21 | 12 | - | - | 36 | 13 | 7 | 1 | 61.90% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1978 | 20 | 4 | - | - | 12 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 40.00% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1979 | 16 | 5 | - | - | 15 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 50.00% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1980 | 3 | - | - | - | - | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.00% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1981 | 17 | 1 | - | - | 3 | 5 | 11 | 1 | 29.41% | List | ||||
| Balmain | NSWRFL 1982 | 6 | - | - | - | - | 1 | 4 | 1 | 16.67% | List | ||||
NSWRFL Premiership (NRL) - By Team | |||||||||||||||
| Team | Years | App | T | G | GK % | FG | Pts | W | L | D | Win % | ||||
| Newtown | 1972-74 | 60 | 18 | - | - | 54 | 34 | 23 | 3 | 56.67% | List | ||||
| Balmain | 1975-82 | 122 | 28 | - | - | 84 | 54 | 61 | 7 | 44.26% | List | ||||
| Overall | 1972-1982 | 182 | 46 | 0 | 0 | 138 | 88 | 84 | 10 | 48.35% | List | ||||
Contributions:
Greg Fiveash, Rugby League Tables, Andrew Ferguson, Paul Carter, Shawn Dollin, Steven Russo, Tony McCarron, Alan Katzmann, Max Turner, Wests Archives, AJ Lucantonio
Your Say
11 Aug 2011 9:25am
Hi,
Does anyone know the whereabouts of Neil nowadays?
4 Jan 2012 7:57am
fabulous open ball runner,most times when he touched the ball a try would seem likely,whole hearted all rounder.
16 Apr 2012 10:44pm
great person
20 Apr 2012 10:36am
Marrickville boy. Legend has it that he tried out for Newtown when he was 13 & was graded in 3rd grade until the selectors found out his true age & told to comeback in a few years. Broke my heart when he left Newtown. Great cover defender & good ball runner. Always gave 100% . Living in Queensland these days & a regular at Newtown re union days at Henson Park .
Sorry to here about his son's passing.
7 May 2012 11:51am
I remember Neil's supreme skills as a copybook tackler. Around the legs and down to the bootlaces.
Spectacular to watch, very effective and usually perormed with complete safety to Neil and the ball carrier. He was a great front on and covering defender. Oh, and a top attacking player as well.
A truely great lock forward.
7 May 2012 6:59pm
Started his career with the Blues like he was going to something really special, but somehow it never got to the top level.
Pringle had so much potential as a loose forward (and as a pivot), I likened him to the dynamic Nev Hornery who also shone for a short time (circa 1970) and then his career just petered out.
16 Jun 2012 10:37am
Running off Brian Lockwood was like drinking mothers to me ,it was so good. U were a star that should have gone further.Hope u are having a rewarding life wherever u are.
1 Jul 2012 10:54pm
Apart from his undoubted skill he is almost single -handedly responsible for the professional era. It was he who challenged the big boys in court.
22 Oct 2012 5:38pm
A living legend,I watched him at leichardt oval in 1979 in a fight with ray price,he almost killed price. Very tough man bing
20 Aug 2013 9:19pm
WHAT A GREAT PLAYER AND GREAT BLOKE
8 Oct 2013 4:22pm
I meet with Neil on the gold coast for work reasons in the building industry,
A complete gentleman with a heart of gold.
25 Nov 2013 6:39pm
i became a balmain supporter because of him. he worked at the local liquor store in Stanmore,
25 Apr 2014 4:44pm
I loved watching Neil with the Tigers. He was a cheeky bugger.. would steal the ball, then when his nemesis, ref greg Hartley would ping him, would raise his arms, act incredulous and ask what he did to deserve a penalty. My favourite player: cunning, fast and thoroughly enjoying every minute on the paddock
22 Jul 2014 8:02pm
neil who i have known personally since working together for o.brien glass in 1967, is a very compassionate human being and a great rugby league player, his representive career was curtailed due to football polictics, which i remind him each time when we get together for a quite drink,he was right up there with the greats , past and present,and has been a very loyal mate, not just to me but to everyone who knows him, neil is is a champion in every respect of life, in fact none come any better, crackers caco
7 Oct 2014 11:24pm
Sadly he has had to go through the anguish of losing his son in 2013 due to a mental illness.
22 Oct 2014 10:30pm
Neil pringle,,was a wholehearted player,& wonderful ball runner,& a tough defender, who always tackled around the legs, he was my favourite balmain player in the 70s
16 Nov 2014 12:12pm
great bloke and legend of rugby league always there to help other people
9 Feb 2015 11:45am
wonderful,wholehearted lock forward in the 70s for the mighty Balmain tigers,formed a formidable partnership with brian lockwood,
12 Feb 2015 7:11pm
what a top bloke. have a beer every now and then. a champion then and still one now
30 Mar 2016 8:31pm
Lives in Qld accidentally met him in Orange this Easter and had conversation with him. A lovely bloke. Still strong looking but a lot less hair. Like most of us at this age.
12 May 2016 7:49pm
What can you say about Neil one of the best players to ever play the game.
15 Jul 2017 11:05pm
Top bloke.
Met him after state of origin 2017.
Absolute legend bloke.
Very priveledged to have met him and a lot of other legends of leugue!!????
2 Oct 2017 4:42pm
Met Neil and Mary when he had the Coolangatta Sands Hotel. He was best mates with Larry Corowa. A really genuine good bloke with great senses of humour. Enjoyed having a beer with him. Although his career had finished and I was still playing. I remembered him as brilliant lock forward when I was a young junior here in Qld. He lived on the Goldy and probably still does.
7 Mar 2018 10:01pm
Wonderful wholehearted player for the balmain tigers in the middle to late 70s,with a never say die attitude,
28 Aug 2019 9:59pm
had a great partnership with brian lockwood in the mid seventies that magic flick pass
3 Oct 2019 5:55pm
great player running of flick passes from brian lockwood
13 Jan 2020 10:34pm
Neil Pringle was my first ever favourite player,,and is one the reasons I became a passionate balmain tigers fan,, he was such a wholehearted player who covered enormous ground and a tough copy book tackler, one of the finest players in the 1970s not to play for Australia, thanks for the memories,,
3 Dec 2020 9:48pm
Went to school with Neil at Marrickville De La Salle, and played with him for the school, a tough boy even at fifteen or so, but a real nice guy.
6 Apr 2021 8:47pm
Neil lives at Cooly on the Gold Coast, a great man, I had the pleasure to play with him in Reserve grade on a couple of occasions. He was passionate and gave 110%, he is fit and going well and has time for everyone.
3 Mar 2024 9:59am
A wonderful player. All instinct and natural talent. Neil played a major role in Jack Gibson's success at Newtown in '73. I think the sheer number of comments to Neil on this site is a tribute to the man.
27 Aug 2024 10:07pm
Saw him tonight on SBS "Insight" Program, dealing with male friendships and the challenges faced by men in this modern life.Great contribution by Neil. Very authentic. People can catch up with program on SBS On Demand.
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