death_date title nationality party birth_date term_start article_title term_end name
16 august 1988 senator for queensland australian australian labor party 25 june 1918 1 july 1971 ron mcauliffe
 30 june 1981 ron mcauliffe
ron mcauliffe

ronald edward mcauliffe obe -lrb- 25 june 1918 -- 16 august 1988 -rrb- was a politician and sports administrator in queensland , australia .
he is best remembered for his years running the queensland rugby league , and his instrumental role in the formation of the state of origin series .
mcauliffe attended school at st. joseph 's college , gregory terrace in brisbane .
in 1932 he played rugby league for the gregory terrace firsts .
he started playing senior rugby league in 1937 for the northern suburbs club , but with the outbreak of world war ii he joined the australian imperial force .
he served as a warrant officer for five years , before being honourably discharged after service in the middle east and new guinea with the 2/2 casualty clearing station .
after the war mcauliffe worked with the queensland railways audit office .
whilst living at new farm he formed social bonds with a number of valleys players .
in the late 1940s he moved to fortitude valley 's brunswick street , sharing a flat roy westaway , a former international representative playing for the diehards .
according to australian rugby league hall of fame inductee duncan hall , who was also playing for valleys : -lrb- ron -rrb- was one of those blokes who was always around the place ... he knew everyone worth knowing , and everyone knew him .
he drank at the valley pub with us every night after work .
in fact , he was one of those blokes who was the life of the party and who never seemed to want to go home .
he was always around .
mcauliffe was elected to the valley 's committee and became the club 's delegate to the brisbane rugby league in 1951 .
in 1952 he was elected chairman of the brisbane rugby league .
in 1953 the brisbane rugby league was subsumed into the queensland rugby league -lrb- qrl -rrb- .
ron mcauliffe became secretary to the organisation and began negotiations with the brisbane city council to lease lang park .
on 30 june 1971 mcauliffe was elected as a senator for the australian labor party in the parliament of australia .
that year he also became president of the qrl .
although initially opposed to the idea , mcauliffe became a driving force behind the establishment of the state of origin series .
the 1980s were to prove a golden period for rugby league in queensland .
mxauliffe sat in the senate until 30 june 1981 .
at the end of 1981 he was awarded civil officer status in the order of the british empire .
mcauliffe died in august 1988 from a stroke .
his funeral was held on 17 august 1988 at st. patrick 's roman catholic church in fortitude valley and he was buried in nudgee cemetery .
his pall bearers included then australian and queensland captain wally lewis .
in his obituary `` the courier-mail '' journalist barry dick wrote that `` he mcauliffe loved a drink , loved an argument , and most of all , he loved company . ''
the ron mcauliffe medal is awarded to each year 's state of origin queensland player of the series .
lang park 's ron mcauliffe stand was also named in his honour .
in 2009 mcauliffe was inducted into the queensland sport hall of fame .
