‘It’s helped me define my life,’ says Bears icon as club looks to bright future

North Sydney’s oldest player backs NRL bid as 93rd birthday wish.

Oldest living North Sydney Bear Kevin Marr on his 93rd birthday accompanied by club legends Billy Moore, left, and Josh Stuart, right, at North Sydney Oval. Picture: Jane Dempster

When North Sydney’s oldest living player Kevin Marr first laced up his boots with the Bears 73 years ago, the game of rugby league was survival of the fittest, where players were often forced to take the law into their own hands.

There were no video refs, TV cameras capturing every angle or match review committees to identify and punish indiscretions.

“In those days you had to mark your man – if you played in the frontrow you made sure you got on top of the other bloke,” the sharp-as-a-tack Marr told The Australian after recently turning 93. “There was always niggling, headbutts, forearm jolts, punching.”

Players were often called upon to dispense some summary justice and that was the case in a game when Marr played prop against Western Suburbs at Pratten Park.

“Our little hooker Barry Bowtell said ‘every time they put the ball in, that bastard second-rower keeps putting his hands over my eyes’,” Mr Marr said.

“So he gave me a loose arm and I went ‘bang’ and he went backwards and fell over.

“The referee called Barry Bowtell out and sent him off.

“Poor old Barry had his arms over his props and couldn’t have thrown a punch if he wanted to.”

The Bears’ elder statesman fittingly celebrated the birthday with his family at his spiritual home of North Sydney Oval during the club’s Legends’ Day.

The group included his sons Greg and Kevin, who proudly followed in their dad’s footsteps by playing with the club.

Marr was a VIP guest among Norths’ greats, including Billy Moore, Greg Florimo, David Fairleigh, Don McKinnon and Bill Hamilton, who watched the current team beat the old foe Manly 28-10 in the NSW Cup.

Looking across the picturesque ground brought back many fond memories.

The best present he could receive would be to see his beloved club readmitted to the NRL, he said. “It would be fantastic and they deserve to be back in my opinion,” Marr said.

“There is no doubt in the world they would get tremendous support.”

Marr’s long association with Norths as player, coach and administrator began in 1951, when he stepped up from his local Naremburn B-grade team.

“That was the Holy Grail in football, to play for your district club,” he said.

“It was before television and I would go to work on the tram as an apprentice carpenter and everyone would say: ‘Kevin, who’s out for this weekend? Who’s going to play?’.”

As chuffed as young Marr was about making his Norths debut, it was also clear he was not getting any preferential treatment.

He was reserve for third grade and after two weeks on the bench was told “Marr you are playing, go and get a jumper off the gear steward’.”

“It was an old woollen red jumper with a black V and I said ‘but there is no number on it’. The coach said ‘when we give you the number tonight and you take it home and your mother sews it on, you will have a number’,” he said.

“So, my first game was in third grade without a bloody number – now that wouldn’t happen today.”

Marr spent six seasons in the front and second row, playing 92 games which included Norths’ 1955 reserve-grade grand final win.

For forwards in the 1950s, it was always a war of attrition and when he was sent off in a niggly reserve-grade game against Canterbury, that was an occupational hazard.

In the dressing room, he was confronted by Norths great former Kangaroo forward Peter Diversi, who was preparing to take the field in first grade.

“I told him I had been sent off and he said ‘well, that will serve you bloody right for punching’,” Marr said.

“They went out, I had a shower and five minutes later Diversi comes back.

“I said ‘what are you doing?’ and he said ‘I got sent off for fighting’. So, the pair of us went to the judiciary.”

One of Marr’s great achievements came when, as club president, he aced arch-rivals Manly to win the signature of a player who became one of the greatest of the modern era.

“I used to drink at Manly Leagues Club and someone told me (legendary Manly supremo) Kenny Arthurson was getting on the plane to go to England and sign Mark Graham when New Zealand were playing over there” he said.

“I got onto a bloke I knew who knew a solicitor over in England and I got him to go and see Mark Graham and ask if he was interested in playing with North Sydney.

“I said ‘if he signs up with us I’ll give his wife $5000 spending money while he is away overseas’.

“He signed up and came with us and Arko flew all the way over and we already had him.”

The high regard in which Marr is held was evidenced by the constant stream of ex-players who paid their respects to him with genuine affection during Legends’ Day.

Marr described his involvement with Norths as both a privilege and one of the highlights of his life. Even to get graded to play with North Sydney, I loved that,” he said.

“Over the years it is the players I met and they were great mates.

“And all these people I have seen today are such great blokes.

“It has helped define my life.”

Former champion lock Billy Moore appreciated the significance of sharing time with Marr on their field of dreams, Bear Park, on Legends’ Day.

“To me, it means the footprints I walked in are still relevant,” said Moore, one of the driving forces in getting the club back into the NRL with a team based in Perth.

“You have a future if you have a history, simple as that. And what the Bears are dawning on is another future.”

Moore joined Norths 35 years ago, aged 17, from the little town of Wallangarra in Queensland’s southern downs region.

“The Bears wrapped their arms around me and I didn’t play anywhere else; this means everything to me,” he said.

“We have earnt the right to come back into the NRL.

“If you have stayed loyal for 25 years, and never given up the dream, you deserve a second chance – and we’ll take it with both hands.”