THE SNAIL MAIL PEST

One Man One Man’’s Black & White Enthusiasm s Black & White Enthusiasm

Continuing on with a series that features letters sent between myself and the Wests Football Office back in the 1990s. I evidently fancied myself as something of a talent scout back in the day and recently uncovered pieces of correspondence sent to hard working Magpie secretaries, Gordon Allen and Steve Noyce, where any number of prospective Magpie recruits were discussed.

I was covering junior footy at the time in my capacity as a photographer/journalist. I guess I figured, with the hours I was putting in on the sideline and the plethora of gifted young players I was getting to see first hand, that this may have morphed into information deemed useful by the Wests Footy Club Office. Of course they, like all the clubs, had people far better credentialed than Ole Kodak to handle the spotting and sifting of potential recruits. Reading back over the letters today I must admit to feeling a tinge of embarrassment at my forthright naivety.

So belated apologies go out to Gordon and Steve for creating extra paperwork, way back when. Having to respond to rabid season ticket holders who seem to think they have the league insight of a Jack Gibson, Wayne Bennett or Craig Bellamy, must be the bane of all football club offices.

This edition sees your trusty snapper getting a tad hot & bothered by all the junior talent slipping through the net circa 1993. Most notably via the rugby league nursery, St Gregory’s College, Campbelltown.

I’ve mislaid my response to this February 1993 letter (if in fact I ever received one). I have however found a May 1993 letter from Steve Noyce. A letter which canvas’some of my earlier concerns.

I’ve decided to black out a couple of names in Noyce’sletter. Despite it being thirty years hence, I feel it’s unfair to air publicly, targeted criticism which was included within private correspondence. Reading through my rant, it’s quite clear that I hadn’t as yet discovered the aesthetically useful deployment of smaller paragraphs. I’ve thrown down a massive and unrelenting slab of text for poor ole Steve to plough through.

Given three decades of hindsight, my comments on Damien Chapman read as somewhat cheeky. I failed to mention he was the son of former St George winger, John Chapman. The talented schoolboy half was always likely to head to Kogarah so it was a poor example to throw at the Wests Head Office. That Damien Chapman didn’t subsequently make a huge impression in the big league was I think a shock to everyone who watched him play for St Gregory’s. Young Chapman crossed for three tries and kicked four goals in the 1991 Commonwealth Bank Cup Final and was described by his coach, Peter Mulholland, as “one of the greatest players I have had the pleasure to coach”

Reading back over my comments on Trent Robinson gave me a chuckle. Unbeknownst to me at the time, Robinson had actually played in one of Wests development squad teams during his early teens. When I first spotted him, the big blond haired kid was playing fullback at the NSWCCC under 15 trials. In the seasons to follow he would become a hard working prop forward in Peter Mulholland’s St Gregory’s College 1st XIII. The “inter club bidding war”I amplified in my letter, was done and dusted once Big Artie headed out to the south-west to deliver his red, white & blue pitch. Roosters recruitment guru and legendary prop forward Arthur Beetsonswooped on the St Greg’s engine room, signing the College’s entire1995 front row. Peter Cusack, Simon Bonettiand Trent Robinson were all corralled into the chook pen. Robbo noted in a 2013 chat with SMH journalist, Richard Hinds that at the time, he was a boy from Camden who’d never before been as far east as Bondi.

The Wests junior headed to Henson Park with his front row school mates to play FleggCup in 1996, helping the Roosters win their first ever premiership in this grade. Robboduly earned selection in the NSW U19s and scored a try in the Blues 13-12 win over Queensland. The following year he captained the Roosters U20s into the semi finals. By 1998 his progress seems to have stalled somewhat and by season’s end, a change of scenery was sought. Robbosigned to play for Balmain in 1999, that club’s final year as an NRL entity. He suffered a season defining anterior cruciateinjury playing against Wests in an early round of the NSW Cup.

As the millennium ticked over, Balmain & Western Suburbs were forced into unholy matrimony and Trent Robinson would soon etch himself into the merged club’s history books. He became the Wests Tigers first NRL debutant when he came off the bench during a 10 point loss to Canterbury in mid July of 2000. The vast majority of his two years at the West-Ts however, was spent playing NSW Cup for Balmain.

Robinson ultimately played 3 top grade games across two seasons for the new club, before adding a 4th NRL game playing with Parramatta in 2002.

While Robinson, like Damien Chapman, never reached the on-field heights I was strongly suggesting in my 1993 letter, it’s fair to say, Trent has found his niche in the game. He is without doubt one of the great rugby league coaches of the modern era. Trent Robinson –the Magpie junior who cock-a-doodle-doo’dhis way into the game’s hall of fame.

Wests loss of legendary schoolboy coach Peter ‘Skull’ Mulholland was another pertinent item mentioned in my letter. This moment in regard the historical demise of the Western Suburbs club is an interesting one. Mulholland had coached Wests lower grades for 5 seasons before being head hunted by North Sydney in 1993. Not only was his rugby league knowledge and coaching expertise lost at this point, but so was a direct and vital connection between Wests and St Gregory’s College. That the legendary schoolboy coach, in tandem with former Wests Chief Exec’Gordon Allen, would two seasons later fill the Western Reds squad with a flock of Magpies, became a further cost to pay. It cut a swathe through our playing ranks. Jason Eade, Dale Fritz, Shaun Devine, Clayton Bennetts, KainCross, Chris Warren, Brett Cullen, Byron Hutton, CorinRidding, & Peter Shiels, headed to Perth, along with Wests juniors; Tim Horan & Shane Barrett and former Magpies; Brett Docherty, Cam Blair, Brendan Tuuta& Peter Trevitt. The Western Reds (1995-97) presented as an interstate chapter of the WestsMagpies. That this Mulholland inspired migration took place just as Wests were beginning their five year slide toward NRL oblivion, is worthy of a sombre footnote.

“I still can’t believe Tim Horan wasn’t given whatever he wanted and was virtually shown the door”

A footnote to this chapter of the Snail Mail Pest is to be found in this snippet written by Tim Prentice. It appeared in Big League Magazine’s club news column during August of 1992. Four future top grade players –one was a Wests junior who’d played junior reps with our club, two others were on Wests scholarships. The Magpies were apparently not going to simply contract these lads, they were “working overtime to sign all four to long term contracts”.

That Wests ended up missing out on all four of the St Gregory’s stars, does perfectly encapsulate the tone of my February 1993 letter to Steve Noyce.

FOUR FANS & A FUNERAL

Much is made of Leichhardt Oval. The orange crew portray it as their spiritual home, yet flash back to 1994 and Balmain were totally finished with the joint. FormerWests hooker Scott Rigney’s excellent cartoon encapsulates the Four Fans & a Funeral feel of the ground back in the pre-joint venture days. That they managed, for the good of their club, to shift west back then, is baffling. Given that today they hang on so stubbornly as the burgeoning south-west is paid tepid lip service.

LukeKellywasatalentedhalfwhoplayedtwoseasonsofSGBall

LukeKellywasatalentedhalfwhoplayedtwoseasonsofSGBall CupwithWests,beforeforginganNRLcareeracrossthreeclubs. CupwithWests,beforeforginganNRLcareeracrossthreeclubs.

HavingplayedhisjuniorfootballwiththeKatherineBushrangersinhis nativeNorthernTerritory,KellyearnedascholarshiptoStGregory’sCollege, Campbelltown. HerepresentedWesternSuburbsin2006&2007inBallCup teamsthatincludednotableteammates–SimonDwyer,PeniTagive& WillieMataka.

In2009helinkedwiththeMelbourneStormandbyseasonsend,was leadingthatclubtoaToyotaCupvictoryovertheWestsTigersinthe under20sgrandfinal.Kellywasadjudgedplayerofthematchinthe Storm’s24-22victory.HisWikipediapageclaimsthat “Kelly was discovered by Storm scouts at a NSWCCC tournament”. GiventhatStGreg’s hadinitiallyidentifiedhimthousandsofkilometresawayinthetopend, andWestssubsequentlythrewhimthenumbersevenjerseyforbackto backseasonsintheirunder17steam,theuseoftheword-“discovered”– isjustatadingenuous.

Kellykickedontoplayhalf-a-dozenNRLgamesforMelbourneacrossfour seasons.Havingmissedmuchof2011duetoanOsteitisPubisinjury,during early2012hefoundhimselfplayingsecondfiddletoCooperCronk.Amid seasontransfertoParramattayieldedfourtopgradegamesduringtheback halfoftheEels2012woodenspoonseason.TheformerMagpieadded another37NRLgamesacrossthenextfourseasonsatParramatta. LukeKellywassignedbySouthSydneyforthe2017season.Hewasseenas aworthybackuptotheirfirstchoicehalves,Reynolds&Walker.Hisfinal seasonintheNRLsawKellybookendappearances,ashefeaturedinjustthe openingandclosingroundsof2017.MadgeMaguirecalledhimintothe BunniessideforroundoneagainsttheWestsTigers,agameSouthslost3416.Kelly’sfinalNRLappearancecameinthelastround22-16lossto Parramatta.Remarkably,bothhis2017topgradeappearancessawKelly comeupagainsttheclubhoppingMitchMoses.

Attheendofthe2017season,Kellydecidedtohanguphisboots.Hiscareer hadspanned49NRLgamesplayedacrossnineseasons.Aqualifiedyouth workerwhoalsoheldadiplomainLeadership&Management,Kellywas employedbytheRabbitohsastheclub’s Wellbeing Manager duringearly 2018.Hemaintainedthispositionfor3yearsbeforebeingreassignedtothe roleofSouths People and Culture Manager,apositionhecontinuestohold.