1957
At 3pm on Saturday 27th April 1957 Sydney's TCN 9 TV cameras were at Leichhardt Oval to broadcast live action of the NSWRL first grade game between the Balmain Tigers v Canterbury. The game was won 12-10 by Balmain - all the points were scored from kicks at goal.
Earlier this year Fred told friends that the TV cameras brought a new set of problems to the game that day. "TCN 9's live broadcast meant that the players started playing-up". Another record was also set during the game. For the first time on live TV, Fred sent off three players - Ron Potter (Tigers), Don Kerr (Canterbury) & Alan Lynch (Canterbury).
After the match the NSWRL said they were hesitant to broadcast games live because they were concerned that crowd numbers would be affected. It was not until 1961 that an agreement was reached to broadcast rugby league games live on Australian television.