John Lang

John Lang (born 7 November 1950) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and coached in the 1980s through to the 2010s. A Queensland State of Origin and Australian international representative , he played his club football in Brisbane with the Eastern Suburbs Tigers and in Sydney with the Eastern Suburbs Roosters. After playing, Lang became a first-grade coach in Brisbane with Easts, then in Sydney with the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks, Penrith Panthers (with whom he won the 2003 NRL premiership) and South Sydney Rabbitohs. Lang also coached the Australian Super League test team in 1997.

Lang's son, Martin Lang, also played for the Sharks, Panthers, Queensland and Australia, and uniquely played his entire first-grade career with his father as coach.

Playing career Lang was a with Brisbane club, Easts Tigers from 1969 to 1979. He won three premierships with the club in 1972, 1977 and 1978. Also in 1972 Lang played for Brisbane in the last ever Bulimba Cup final against Toowoomba, winning 55-2.

Lang was one of only two Queenslanders selected for the 1973 Australian Kangaroo tour to France. Lang also played a test in 1974 against Great Britain and again in 1980 against New Zealand. In 1975 he was a member of the victorious Australian team which won the Rugby League World Cup. Despite losing the first eight games of the 2002 NRL season, Lang was able to develop a side capable of contending for the finals. In his finest coaching achievement, Penrith defeated the Sydney Roosters in the 2003 NRL grand final by 18–6, thereby answering his detractors at Cronulla who argued that the Sharks could never win a premiership under Lang.

The Panthers finished fourth after the 2004 NRL season and were eliminated by the Bulldogs one game short of the grand final. Penrith narrowly missed the finals in 2005. In February, 2006, Panther's CEO, Glenn Matthews, announced that Matthew Elliott would take over from Lang as coach of the Panthers at the end of the 2006 season. The Panthers subsequently missed the finals and finished in tenth position.

The South Sydney Rabbitohs, in May 2008, appointed Lang as their football consultant, overseeing the club's structure and providing advice to head coach, Jason Taylor.

Following the sacking of Jason Taylor in September 2009, Lang was appointed as the head coach of South Sydney for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. He retired from coaching at the end of the 2011 NRL season.

Footnotes