International honours He was selected for the New Zealand side to tour
England and
Wales in July 1926. Before they departed he played for
New Zealand against
Auckland on 31 July and he scored a try in a 52-32 loss. On their tour he played he played in 15 matches and scored 8 tries. Desmond's only test appearance was against Great Britain on 2 October 1926. He played in New Zealand's 20-28 defeat by
Great Britain at
Central Park,
Wigan.
Club and domestic career Desmond began playing rugby league for the Linwood club in the Canterbury Rugby League competition in the early 1920s. He was their 5th grade captain in 1922. On 7 July he played for the 'Rest of New Zealand' against
Auckland. His side won 28-21 and he scored 1 try. Following this he played in a New Zealand trial match for the Probables on July and once again found the try line, this time twice however his side lost 32-15. Desmond made his début for
Leeds scoring 2-
tries in the 31-5 victory over
Keighley at
Headingley Stadium on Saturday 29 October 1927, he signed for
Batley from Leeds on 30 January 1930, and he made his début for Batley against
Hunslet at
Mount Pleasant,
Batley on Saturday 1 February 1930, he and /
halfback J. Whitaker signed for
Bramley from Batley on 29 September 1931, with Bramley's Welsh
forward Charles Walker transferred to Batley from Bramley. ==Personal life==