Career
He primarily played at lock and is considered one of the nation"s finest football players of the 20th century. In 1907 he played for New South Wales in the very first rugby match run by the newly created "New South Wales Rugby Football League" which had just split away from the established New South Wales Rugby Football Union. Cann was also a long-term administrator at Souths and a football journalist.
Billy Cann AustRL 1955.jpg Cann, a contemporary of Dally Messenger and Albert Rosenfeld, began his playing career as a Rugby union three-quarter at Souths.
Frustrated at being ignored by rugby union selectors, he joined the rebel New South Wales rugby league team which played the New Zealand All Golds in 1907. He joined South Sydney Rabbitohs in 1908 and played 9 seasons with the club
Cann toured England with the Kangaroos in the 1908-1909 and 1911-1912 tours as well as two tours to New Zealand with the New South Wales team He also represented Australasia in 1910.
Billy Cann is listed on the Australian Players Register as Kangaroo Number.
20. In 1921–1922, Cann was co-manager of the Kangaroo tour along with Souths" secretary, South. G. "George" Balliol During the 1940s and 50s, Cann was a vice-president of the NSWRFL. He also wrote for The Sydney Morning Herald.
