[1][2] O'Rourke was born in Hinton, near Morpeth, New South Wales, Australia in 1906, he was the cousin of the boxer; Les Darcy, he learned rugby league football while attending Marist Brothers High School in West Maitland.

Following the lifting of the twenty-three year international rugby league transfer ban Frank O'Rourke moved to the University of Leeds in England to secure his Bachelor of Arts, and he along with fellow Australian; Jeff Moores, and New Zealander; Wally Desmond, immediately joined the Leeds rugby league club where he had huge success.

O'Rourke played centre, and scored a try in Leeds' 5-0 victory over Featherstone Rovers in the 1928–29 Yorkshire Cup Final at Belle Vue, Wakefield on Saturday 24 November 1928.

O'Rourke went on to play centre in Leeds' 11-8 victory over Swinton in the 1931–32 Challenge Cup Final at Central Park, Wigan.

[2] He played in the 8-0 victory over Wakefield Trinity in the 1932–33 Yorkshire Cup Final at Fartown Ground, Huddersfield on Saturday 19 November 1932.