John Edward Thornett MBE (1935–2019), former rugby union international, grew up in Sydney and was educated at Sydney Boys’ High where, in addition to being school captain, he excelled at rugby, swimming and rowing. In 1954 and 1956, he toured with the Australian Universities rugby side to New Zealand and Japan. In the midst of this, he had begun playing at state and national levels, making his Test debut against the All Blacks in 1955. He went on to earn another thirty-six Test caps, being a member of the squads that toured New Zealand in 1958, 1962 and 1964; South Africa in 1961 and 1963; and the UK and France in 1957/58 and 1966/67; and making four of these tours as captain. Under his captaincy, in 1963, the Wallabies became the first team in 67 years to beat South Africa in consecutive Tests. In one 1962 Test against New Zealand, he played alongside his younger brother, Dick (1940–2011), who also represented Australia in rugby league, and in water polo at the 1960 Rome Olympics. The third Thornett brother, Ken (b. 1937), was also a rugby league international and is considered one of the top league fullbacks of the 1960s, playing 136 first grade games for Parramatta. A versatile footballer known for his athleticism, John Thornett played for Sydney University and Northern Suburbs at club level. He was named a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1966 and was inducted into the Sports Australia Hall of Fame in 1985. In 2005, he became one of the five inaugural inductees into the Wallabies Hall of Fame; and in 2013, along with his close friend and erstwhile teammate, Ken Catchpole, Thornett was accorded the equivalent honour by the International Rugby Board with admission into the IRB Hall of Fame.
