He earned two Test caps against Wales and England on the tour and was a member of the Olympic gold medal-winning Wallabies at the 1908 London Games.

On his return to Australia, he joined the fledgling code of rugby league along with 13 of his Olympic teammates.

Four of his former Wallaby teammates also debuted that day John Barnett, Bob Craig, Charles Russell and Chris McKivat - making them collectively Australia's 11th to 15th dual code internationals.

This mirrored a similar occurrence two years earlier when five former Wallabies in Micky Dore, Dally Messenger, Denis Lutge, Doug McLean snr and John Rosewell all debuted for the Kangaroos in the first ever Test against New Zealand.

"Darb' Hickey died of cancer on 15 May 1950 at the Sacred Heart Hospice, St. Vincent's Hospital.