Pride of Newtown Lions take out 1973 Toowoomba grand final and gather to celebrate 50 years on
Some 13 of the 20 players of the Newtown Lions victorious 1973 rugby league grand final winners gathered in Toowoomba 50 years on.
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It was the year Gough Whitlam was prime minister, Joh Bjelke-Petersen was premier of Queensland, Manly-Warringah won the then Sydney rugby league premiership and Fortitude Valley took out the honours in the Brisbane rugby league comp.
But in Toowoomba, the pride of Newtown Lions reigned supreme in winning the A-grade TRL premiership by defeating the Oakey Bears by 21-14 in the grand final.
The win came in the club’s 50th year since entering the Toowoomba Rugby League (TRL) competition and 50 years later most of that team gathered with partners, family, supporters and club officials of the day to celebrate that win, catch up and reminisce.
Remarkably, all of the players from that team are still around today although, unfortunately, the side’s captain-coach Graham Tucker, who now lives in Brisbane, couldn’t make the 50-year reunion held at Club Toowoomba on Saturday night.
The full squad of 20 that day included: Ray Prouten, Frank Hedge, Russ Zimmerle, Doug Muir, Trevor Smith, Graham Jenkins, Graham Tucker, Robin Horn, Graeme Wockner, Trevor Barron, Gary (Barney) Meara, Tony Brunner, Brian Meara, Ron Cameron, Ashley Smith, Phil Lep, Jack Hardey, Kevin Dixon, John Ritter and Geoff Say.
While skipper Graham Tucker, who played for Canterbury Bankstown in the Sydney competition as well as for Queensland, was among the older squad members, Ron Cameron was just 17.
And, for young footballers who think “Mad Monday” is a relatively recent invention, this team celebrated the day after the Toowoomba grand final just as hard.
“Yeah, we had a Mad Monday,” explained Graeme Wockner.
“We went to the Carlton Hotel (east side of Ruthven St between Russell and Bell streets).
“Some of us went across the road to Pigotts to get some ‘different’ clothing to wear that day,” he laughed.
Well before the CBD nightclubs of today, young people in 1973 Toowoomba were more likely to do the cabaret circuit at such venues as The Whitehorse Hotel (Ruthven St east, just south of Margaret St) where often the band playing was Chapter III, or the Matador Lounge in the Ruthven Hotel (just north of City Hall in Ruthven St) where The Countdowns were regularly the rock group on stage, or the Crown Hotel (corner of Neil and Margaret Sts), or The Portadown.
There was also JBs (Jungle Beat) at St Stephen’s Hall and The Bowl (where the Toowoomba Sports Club carpark now stands in Russell St).
“We used to go to the Helidon Spa as well where there would be bands playing and one of those bands was The Bee Gees,” Frank Hedge recalled.
“Late at night after the pubs shut you could also go to the Foodatorium across Ruthven St from the Foundry (now Bunnings).
“You were certain to get a feed and/or a fight there,” he grinned.