General A bit of lockdown fun ....

[bruce]

First club: Northcote Tigers 5 year olds
Then Marist schoolboys,
Mount Albert Schoolboys
Rah Rah (details suppressed like the story of Tianamen Square)
Northcote Tigers...again
Richmond

 

[Dave Brough]

Hi Dave my Dad was Chairman of Southern Districts, Simon Yates was the captain

Southern Districts was always one of the top teams
Players like Simon and John Yates,Bunna Moore Jim Ford,Ross Johnson,Te Kawa brothers,Sanderson brothers,Ernie Wings and Ken George,to name a few. Bruce will remember all of these,
Roy Christian was probably there also.

 

[Pozza]

Southern Districts was always one of the top teams
Players like Simon and John Yates,Bunna Moore Jim Ford,Ross Johnson,Te Kawa brothers,Sanderson brothers,Ernie Wings and Ken George,to name a few. Bruce will remember all of these,
Roy Christian was probably there also.

Ken George was my coach at the Hawks. Ken took over from Neville Denton. I've still got Dads photo of Southern the year they won the Championship

 

[bruce]

Roy Christian was probably there also.

The district scheme finished before Roy started so he always played for Otahuhu.

Did anybody see Ray Cranch on TV One news tonight.

New rugby league honour for oldest Kiwi Ray Cranch, 97

Eighty-four years after his first game, league legend still retains a great love for his favourite sport.

www.stuff.co.nz

A lovely guy and genuine legend.

 

[Hardyman's Yugo]

Rah Rah (details suppressed like the story of Tianamen Square)

 

[Hardyman's Yugo]

Not a player but what got me into rugby league was watching amateur games from my grandparents garden. At the bottom of their garden was a hedge, through the gate in this was Seaton Rangers ARLFC ground. Think they are still going now, I even had a holiday job aged 17 (summer 1977) working as site labourer when their new clubhouse and changing rooms were being built, before this they changed in the small train station waiting rooms!

This and going to Workington games, initially with my grandad but older with my mates.
All this and watching live games on BBC Grandstand on Saturdays
At a pretty young age I knew all team colours, key players etc.

A few of my grandads mates used to come around to chat to him when I was there, all of these were RL people as my grandad had a reffing background so I picked up information on players current and retired really quickly

 

[Tonbridge (Swanley)]

Me: Mt Albert as a 5 year, first coach Jon Ackland!
then had a break being too small and played soccer for YMCA, based down at Victoria Park, then Pt Chev which became Western Springs both Juniors right up to playing for the 1st team.

Went back to league at 21! Played open age restricted for Mt Albert.

Also played tennis in the summer, then found cricket and have played cricket continually for 30 years, across three countries...

 

[Tonbridge (Swanley)]

First club: Northcote Tigers 5 year olds
Then Marist schoolboys,
Mount Albert Schoolboys
Rah Rah (details suppressed like the story of Tianamen Square)
Northcote Tigers...again
Richmond

Bruce

My dad:

I'm not quite sure of all the clubs, but here we go:

Ponsonby - played reserves when the Baileys etc were playing 1st grade
Then he played for Maritime.
Then he went to Mt Albert.

I'm also sure he got a transfer request to play for Newton Jets in Sydney, but as those days it involved money, nothing happened. I've seen the papers.

 

[Pozza]

The district scheme finished before Roy started so he always played for Otahuhu.

Did anybody see Ray Cranch on TV One news tonight.

New rugby league honour for oldest Kiwi Ray Cranch, 97

Eighty-four years after his first game, league legend still retains a great love for his favourite sport.

www.stuff.co.nz

A lovely guy and genuine legend.

that's a name from the past. Ray was a mate of my late Dad. Funny how you remember things, when I was maybe 9-10 years we went to Rays place. His cat had given birth to a litter of kittens and he gave me one of the kittens. Was he a solicitor ?

 

[bruce]

that's a name from the past. Ray was a mate of my late Dad. Funny how you remember things, when I was maybe 9-10 years we went to Rays place. His cat had given birth to a litter of kittens and he gave me one of the kittens. Was he a solicitor ?

I don't think he was a solicitor. Last I knew of Ray was he was the manager of the Auckland Leagues Club in Parnell. That was way back just before the Warriors started. A genuinely nice guy. I was an out of town member of the club back then but lost contact after the mid nineties.

 

[bruce]

Maritime

That was an interesting club. Sponsored by the Watersiders Union I think. Had loads of cash and bought players like the All Black Whiting and Tank Gordon from rah rah.

 

[Weno]

Started with Hamilton City Tigers as a 5 year old.
Wasn't interested really.
Was the kid digging birdnests,making mud pies or walking up and down with my hands in my mouth.

Last team were Randwick Kingfishers.
Was working in Seaview and past some action so stopped in for a watch.
P

Noticed Randwick had 1 on the bench and two hobbling on the pitch.
Walked over and the bench player was a kid from under 11s.

So pulled the number 12 off ,he was doing nothing(Scared in my eyes).
Then jumped on and made a fool of myself.
Hung in for a few more games until the premiere coach came knocking.
Stayed away from there,was just for sh#ts and giggles and staying active.

Whatawhata Wolves was my whanau club.
Jason Donelly is our sole NRL player.
Had a few North Island and JK players during the clubs tenure.

 

[Defence]

First game was for the mighty halswell hornets as a 6 year old then finished up back were I began- all be it 20 years later.

 

[Dave Brough]

A couple of old photos ,Both 1967 I think.
Some have passed on,Ray Shrimpton went on to be a Ref,
Bob Newald later became involved with the Otahuhu Club.
Colin Wells later played for Ponsonby alongside Roger Bailey

 

[playdaball]

I ended up playing senior rugby - great socially and back then, easier than RL. I also made an agreement with my wife that I wouldn’t play rugby or league, during our 2 years in the UK. I had old teammates and school mates playing professional footy over there too, asking why I wasn’t playing. No regrets as had a fantastic time in England.

 

[Hardyman's Yugo]

I ended up playing senior rugby - great socially and back then, easier than RL. I also made an agreement with my wife that I wouldn’t play rugby or league, during our 2 years in the UK. I had old teammates and school mates playing professional footy over there too, asking why I wasn’t playing. No regrets as had a fantastic time in England.

Where did you live? Did I read in one of your posts about Leeds area?

 

[Defence]

Howick Hornets back in the day.

We got billeted out with howick back in the day- great club - they really looked after us.

 

[playdaball]

Where did you live? Did I read in one of your posts about Leeds area?

Wives family are from Leeds, so spent some time there - Rodley / Bramley. Their old ground was within walking distance.
Moved back down to London and worked for a company with Head Office in North Yorkshire. Lovely part of the world. Still have a good mate loving in Ripon. I really do like the Yorkshire people - down to earth. Hopefully I can get back to England in the next few years... who knows with what’s happening?

 

[Hardyman's Yugo]

Wives family are from Leeds, so spent some time there - Rodley / Bramley. Their old ground was within walking distance.
Moved back down to London and worked for a company with Head Office in North Yorkshire. Lovely part of the world. Still have a good mate loving in Ripon. I really do like the Yorkshire people - down to earth. Hopefully I can get back to England in the next few years... who knows with what’s happening?

Between 20-30 years ago I did a lot of work in Harrogate. It is a nice part of the world, although Harrogate can be a bit up itself. Me and the missus have the occasional trip to York which is a great place

I did have the misfortune to go to Bramleys ground Maclaren Field about 1994. The number of people having a piss in the field behind the open terrace it should have been renamed WC Fields

 

[P-Unit]

Hukanui was my first ever club played for in Hamilton, and jaradites was my last. Played Waikato reps with wairangi Koopu when he was playing for taniwharau. My whole whanau was Hukanui, Sam and Stevie Rapira is my whanau. (Close). Then I moved onto basketball and represented New Zealand before getting a Basketball scholarship to the USA