The Cumberland Throw

The Sleeping Giant Awakens (Part 4) – Pete’s Parra History

The journey back in time for Eels fans continues as Parra Pete delves into the 1965 season. Here’s Part 4 of his Eels History series (check out the great old newspaper clippings):

The powerbase of Rugby League throughout Australia, New Zealand, England and France began to move in a different direction in the early years of the sixties.
The game had been strong in England where it was based around big, tough and skilful forwards, and where sailing close to the wind in aggression was never a problem. England had some wonderful ball players with blokes like Brian McTigue  able to create openings and opportunities for smart running forwards like the very mobile Dick Huddart
The 1963 Kangaroo team created history by being the first Australian team to win the Ashes against England, on English soil.
The Poms were the bench mark of World Rugby League before that series loss – with some of the best and toughest players ever to pull on the boots in its ranks.
Blokes like  Neil Fox and his bother Don, Eric Ashton, David Bolton, Alex Murphy, Vince (The Wild Bull of the Pampas) Karalius, Mike Sullivan, Rocky Turner, Dick Huddart, Ken Gowers, Billy Sayer, and Cliff Watson were in the Lions team – to name just a few – and those players would have been champions in any era.
Alex Murphy, the St Helens legend loved a stoush, but boy he could play.
Parramatta tried to sign Neil Fox to its roster, but a huge transfer fee was a stumbling block. The Eels offered Wakefield Trinity twelve thousand five hundred pounds ($25000) but it was knocked back..Lot of money in 1965…
I looked up details of the 63-64 tour just to refresh my memory.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1963–64_Kangaroo_tour_of_Great_Britain_and_France
The Australian Kangaroos had some great players also – Kenny Thornett at fullback, Ken Irvine and Peter Dimond on the wings, Reg Gasnier and Changa Langlands in the centres, a tough pivot Earl Harrison from Gilgandra, Queensland ‘tough man”Barry Muir (a Tommy Raudonikis style half back, who replaced injured Arthur Summons in the three Tests), Johnny Raper locking the scrum, Dick Thornett and Brian Hambly in the back row, with Noel Kelly, Ian Walsh and Peter Gallagher in the engine room. It was a great series, Australia winning two Tests to one.

Ian “Abdul” Walsh – a great Kangaroo player and later an Eels coach.

The Lions put in a much improved performance at Headingley in Leeds. The Rugby Football League had appointed “Sergeant Major” Eric Clay as the referee for the game. The two sides set about settling scores and the Australians felt Clay was biased.
It is considered was one of the most brutal Tests ever played, with two Australians (Barry Muir and Brian Hambly) and one British player (Cliff Watson) being sent off. Muir who was sent off (for kicking) later told that he first told Clay “where to go” as he left the field, and later approached Clay after the game and said to him “You robbed us”. According to Muir, Clay reportedly responded with “Barry, I’ve got to live here”
Ken Irvine, who scored Australia’s only try for the match, became the first Australian to score a try in each test of an Ashes series.
There was no television coverage, but it was exciting to sit up and listen to broadcast of the Tests from England by noted commentators Tiger Black (2KY) Frank Hyde (2SM) and John O’Reilly (ABC) -they called it ‘like it is’, with plenty of colour and it was exciting times to be a young Rugby League fan.
The international matches received excellent coverage from noted Rugby League writers like George Crawford, E E (Ernie) Christensen, Bill Mordey, Alan Clarkson, and Peter Frilingos. Those blokes added so much to the match reports, and were of the highest quality in their reports.

(BTW I knew both Clarko and Peter Frilingos. Alan was a regular attendee at CRL Annual conferences and I got to know him pretty well. Another great writer of Rugby League was Jimmy Huxley – and Jim became a very good friend, and I learned a lot from him. Jim was a ‘great contact for me to have for my Country League articles published in the Sunday Telegraph and Rugby League Week)

Back to the Eels.
1965 heralded in another new era with the MAYOR Ken Thornett appointed Captain/coach of the first grade side to replace Ken Killer Kearney at the helm.
Killer had done a wonderful job in his three seasons – taking the Club from wooden-spooners for six consecutive seasons, to a preliminary final with the First Grade side, and all three teams making the ‘top four’ for three seasons in a row.
He had prodded the giant out of its slumber, and given the people of the West, teams and a Club they could follow with pride “and brag about the exploits’ with other followers of teams in the strong competition.
Ken Thornett knew he was stepping into a big pair of shoes as a replacement for one of the most successful premiership coaches in the codes’s history. Could he continue to be the Club’s saviour and transfer his brilliance into the Club’s ‘mentoring role’ ? Parramatta fans mouth watered with anticipation.
Pre-season, Ken told George Crawford of the Sunday Telegraph that he planned to transform the Parramatta team.

The journo, George Crawford spoke with Thornett.

He said that he will develop an open attacking game instead of Parramatta’s old hard grinding down-the-middle stuff.
The Telegraph article said “Thornett’s appointment as captain-coach is one of the most interesting points of the preparation for the 1965 season.
“These days when the Australian League Board of control prefers to give the captain full charge of representative teams, Thornett could well become the Test captain if he has quick success with Parramatta”.
“Thornett’s ideas are based on the technique of the English Club Leeds.
“He played a major role at full-back when Leeds won the English championship in 1961.
He said yesterday, “The game I plan to develop is based on quick clearance from the rucks.”
“I don’t want the ball passing through three or four forwards. I want one pass straight to the inside backs”
Parramatta prop Noel Dolton moved to English Club Wakefield Trinity, with Dick Thornett the most likely replacement in the front row.
The Club added quality to the side with the signing of Queensland winger Arch Brown, an accomplished goal kicker to solve one of the Club’s ‘nagging problems”.

Arch Brown – purchased for his goal -kicking prowess.

Others to come into the Club were former Wallaby Ted Heinrich, a former Union team mate at Randwick of both the Thornett brothers, and Gerry Edser, a crack five-eighth who had starred for Newcastle in its State Cup win in 1964
There was some talk of the third Thornett – older brother John – joining the Club, but he resisted all overtures to remain as a ‘rah rah’ and led the Wallabies in Tests against South Africa and British Lions, and in all played 137 matches for the Wallabies in a career that lasted from 1955-1967.
The season started with a 9 all draw with Newtown Bluebags, at Cumberland Oval – the team losing Brown at half time with a thigh injury. Both sides scored a try a piece with Arch Brown landing three first half goals before being replaced.
Jim Poulos, in his first grade debut, had a chance to kick the team to victory after the full time siren, but the easy shot swung away at the last minute.
In all Parra kickers missed with seven shots at goal in the second half – all well within kicking range.
The season started gloomily with further successive losses to North Sydney, St George, Souths, and Wests before posting a 19-11 victory over Canterbury at Cumberland to get its first win of the new competition. By then it was languishing in last spot, and fans  were starting to despair.
However that victory started a winning sequence with wins over Manly, Balmain, Eastern Suburbs, Newtown, North Sydney, before going down narrowly to StGeorge 18-10, and 2-0 to South Sydney on a boggy Sydney Sports Ground.

The match report from the loss to Souths.

The Rabbits had a mighty pack which included up and coming stars like Jimmy Morgan, John O’Neill, John Sattler, Bobby McCarthy, Ron Coote and Garry Stevens waiting in the wings
I remember Kevin Longbottom landing a huge penalty kick for the Rabbits just after half time for the only points of the match. Lummy was a big bloke and could kick a long range goal.
The report of the game in the Sunday Telegraph said “In the heat of hard hitting exchanges referee Col Pearce issued 14 cautions”….No sin bin in those days, and no beg pardons in an era which ‘anything goes”…
After the successive losses, the team regrouped winning its final five matches to grab third spot on the ladder just behind second placed North Sydney to claim a spot in the finals for the fourth straight year.
The team went into the semi against Souths full of confidence, but the young Rabbitohs were on the cusp of a great era and won comfortably 17-2. Souths had a welter of outstanding players on the way up – players who would go on and become household names.
Arch Brown set a Club record, becoming the first  Parramatta player since Brian Jones in 1955 (109 points)  to crack the century, posting 131 from 5 tries 58 goals.
Parramatta again made the final of the State Cup, but victory again eluded it, going down to Wests 16-14 at Cumberland. Parra had beaten Western Division and St George on its way to the final.
My passion for the Parramatta Club had me write a Letter to the Editor of the Daily Telegraph
During the season, Cricketer Sid Barnes wrote a column for the Sunday Telegraph, and he was always relentless in his criticism of Parramatta and its results. My letter said:
QUIET CRITIC
Sir,
I note with a great deal of interest that your sports columnist Sid Barnes has been very quiet lately about his biased and uncalled for attacks on the Parramatta Rugby League side.
Mr Barnes was very quick to criticise and ridicule this team early in the season when coach K Thornett was trying to transform from mainly a bash and barge side to a side that plays open football.
This transformation took a few games which Parramatta lost, but now the transformation has been completed and the side has emerged as a distinct premiership threat, Sidney seems lost for words.

Mr Barnes should stick to the topics on which he is more informed and should not blatantly attempt to degrade things about which he knows nothing, or very little –
P C Montgomery
Adah Street Guildford
The Sunday after the letter was published, Sid dedicated the whole of his column “Like it or Lump it”  answering my letter and laying into me..

“Mr P C Montgomery of Adah Street Guildford, and an understandably partisan  Parramatta supporter accused me of being “lost for words”
Never Monty Never.
Your complaint is that I never paid tribute to the recovery staged by Parramatta after having ‘ridiculed the team early in the season.
Ridicule- a piece of derisive mirth or light mockery – that’s what my dog-eared dictionary calls it
There was nothing akin to mirth or light mockery in my early season comment on the split in the Parramatta Club which nearly ruined Ken Thornett’s coaching plans with the Club, with a team playing like a conglomerated spare parts.
Neither was it uncalled for, it was not biased, and it was something I knew about.
I went into bat for Ken Thornett before the season started – when he had won the captain-cpach job with a group of players voting against him
Do you think I just guessed that something was wrong at Parramatta?
Do you think I just made it up or wouldn’t it be more logical to assume that someone with the welfare of the club at heart had enlisted my aid.
Don’t you think that bringing the matter out in the open may have helped eventually to restore harmony between the two very divided cliques which nearly wrecked Parramatta at the start of the season.
He went on to say that he didn’t regard Parramatta as a premiership treat to St George distinct or otherwise, finishing with….
Parramatta couldn’t beat St George, even if it armed its forwards with pick handles, and its backs with pogo-sticks.
No hard feelings I hope….

Age has wearied this old clipping.

The reply holds pride of place in my “Memories”, but the item is in very fragile condition now….lol
Goes to show that bickering and power plays are not just a ‘thing’ of the modern era….

Parra Pete

Images courtesy of Parra Pete and the Internet.

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29 thoughts on “The Sleeping Giant Awakens (Part 4) – Pete’s Parra History

  1. Colin Hussey

    I was not a keen eels supporter at the time, having just starting work in early 64 as 15 year old, I had some freedom and ideas that made RL more a side show of only worrying about when there was nothing else doing. Interestingly though I went to a few games with my mum & dad and had a collection of old programs for some years which mysteriously dissapeared over the year. Certainly there are names there that I recognise. The most interesting point to me is the feeling of bias against the eels by the media, seems not a lots changed in 50 odd years though with some of the reports we read these days from the experts either.

    One of the worst was the well spoken spitting chips lisp man Won Casey, so much love for the club where he declared the Parramatta eels are a disgrace to the game, and along with (forget the other club) should be kicked out of the game and launched a tirade to end all against the eels. As the eels began to rise and be more consistant he lightened up a bit but seemed that every week on the radio or TV he would find something to put the club down with.

    1. sixties Post author

      Being born in 61, I can well recall contested scrums, which by my way of thinking (and without researching) must have occurred more frequently when limited tackles were introduced. I enjoyed the art of scrummaging (I played Union as a kid) and enjoyed watching it. However, by the mid 70s the referees were determining matches via scrum penalties, even after the differential rule was introduced (Don’t get me started on the 76 GF. I wouldn’t want a return to those days.

      1. Colin Hussey

        Mate don’t get me started on revs, they’ve gotten worse over the years and certainly back in those days there were the good and the bad.
        The aspect of placing the ball in the scrum legally meaning rolling it in the middle was the killer and that is where the penalties came in, if the ref deemed it was angled, or the open side prop had a foot in the way, or the hooker struck to early, and that was all in the refs determination it was a penalty.

        I would like to see the rule allowing for contesting in the scrums and play the balls, at least trialed. if not get rid of them from completely, any time a scrum goes against the feed these days, along a strong surge against the other side and the ball is won, 99% of the time its a penalty, Last tackle if ball kicked into touch, hand ball to the opposition 5metres in from the side for a play the ball, or tackled on the last hand over and play the ball.

        1. Anonymous

          I still like having scrums – it gives opportunities to run plays against a shortened defence. Would like to see more adventure from the coaches to exploit this.

  2. Bubbles

    Theres a terribly tragic story that virtually ended Arch Brown’s career and left him a broken man to return home to qld prematurely. I was wondering if you had the article Pete, I don’t like to speak of it but thought you may have a clipping on it.

    1. Parra Pete, Hay

      I will have a look in my 1966 clippings Bubbles. I recall Archie being involved in a car accident, and I think resulting in the death of his wife or a child.
      I will do my 1966 memories in the next day or so,,
      I moved from Sydney to the Bush in 1966, so I was only able to see a few matches that season….
      I received a further transfer to Maitland in 1969, before getting married in May, 1970 and moving back to Hay where I have been ever since…

    2. Parra Pete, Hay

      The only article I have on it Bubbles is a copy of a report by great journo W F Corbett for Sydney SUN that said Arch Brown will miss game against Western Suburbs (hurt in a car accident on Friday night).
      I cannot actually recall the full details, but have it in the back of my mind that it involved a fatality.
      Over 50 years ago..I’m surprised I do not have a record of it..The accident would have happened around April 15 1966, two days before Parra played North Sydney at Sports Ground.
      Archie played through until the end of the 1969 season – five seasons with the Club, and cracked the 100 point ceiling thrice – racking up a total of 460 points from 24 tries and 194 goals…

      1. Bubbles

        Definetly a fatality and i have the feeling it was definetly his wife and maybe his child as well and happened pretty close to leagues club but will stand correction, long time ago !!

        1. parrathruandthru

          You used to be able to access the article on the SMH but they have changed their access to the archives to subscription
          Arch, his wife & baby were travelling along O’Connell St Parramatta and were T-Boned at Hunter St. The baby was thrown into the windscreen and was killed. Horrible thing to happen. His wife was hurt in the tragedy.

          1. Bubbles

            Thanks for clearing that up ,complete tragedy ,pre baby safety carriers and belts , wonder how many lives been saved since thru regulatory safety procedures

          2. Leasa

            Hey guys ~ I’m Archie’s daughter-in-law. I actually came across this website looking for stuff on Arch, as I’m putting together what I can for his wake. He passed away 2 weeks ago from complications due to COPD. I wish I’d found this site before-hand, as he’d have been stoked to see it all. Your memories on his car accident were correct, he lost his 10 month old daughter in the accident. He and his wife went on to have 3 more children, one of which I’m married to 🙂

          3. sixties Post author

            Leasa, thank you for taking the time to get in touch with us. Parra Pete is a regular reader and occasional contributor to TCT. He was literally an Eels historian back in the 60s, such was his dedication. Thank you for your feedback and validation. Please stay in touch.

          4. Leasa

            Hey there sixties (and Parra Pete if you’re reading!). Thank you so much for all this info. I had literally forgotten I’d responded in this blog, then last week I was speaking to his wife and she told me her young grandson Taj had been given some free time at school to Google anything they wanted. He chose to Google ‘Arch Brown’ and came across the ‘Vale Arch Brown’ article by you. Taj was really excited, and when he told his Nan, she called me to ask about it. It was such wonderful thing for him to find, and pass on to my mother in law. Thank you!

          5. Joe Briffa

            Hi Leasa, my name is Joe I am 75 years of age my good mate sixties rang me this morning to in form me about your father-in -law may he rest in peace. Leasa Arch was a very popular player with the Parra supporters he in my opinion was a good footballer very fast and a really good goal kicker. He also was popular with the ladies because of his good looks. When my son was about 4 or 5 years of age a very small puppy wondered into our yard and when my son saw him he begged me to keep him and of course I said yes he was brown and white I said that he has to have a name and he called him Archie Brown when I asked why he said that he liked Archie and that was all he heard his grandfather and I talk about Ian not good at all on the computer but I hope this reaches you.RIP ARCHIE…

          6. Leasa

            Hi Joe! Wow what a wonderful story. Thank you for sharing. I’m going to send this article to the beautiful lady that is his widow. Their grandchildren will be so happy to see how ‘Archie Pop’ is remembered. 🙂

          7. parrathruandthru

            Sorry to hear about your loss Leasa. Some mates and myself have been searching for Arch for ages to get some stuff signed. If you haven’t seen this already Arch features in this footage from the 69 season. For the rest of you check the late hit the Bear gets at 1.50, a player from today would be down and spread out like he had been shot, the Bear just gets his jumper number for later on

            https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gf_vM3U0cs0

          8. Leasa

            Hi Parrathruandthru 🙂
            This footage was actually sent to Arch by an old friend who gave it to him on DVD while he was in hospital. He had a portable DVD player in his room that he would play it often. He was so stoked that someone found it.

          9. parrathruandthru

            Also pretty sure Arch is 3rd on the all time Parra points scorers list on 460 points behind Cronin 1971, Burt 1793 and 1 point in front of Jarryd Hayne who is on 459

  3. sixties Post author

    I have a couple of aspects about the 1960s that I’m hoping either Parra Pete or Bubbles can discuss. I was far too young to remember the unlimited tackle era. Do you think that rugby league benefitted or lost by the change to limited tackles?
    Secondly, even though Parramatta maintained one of the strongest packs through the late 60s, they just couldn’t qualify for the finals. In our interview with Bob the Bear, he said that the quality of the backs dropped off a bit. Would you agree? Of course the other aspect may have been fitness, and he also discussed the impact that Norm Provan had in 1975 with taking conditioning to another level.

    1. Colin Hussey

      My memories of the 6 tackle rule is that it was relatively boring in the actual game play, tuck the ball under wing and run, tackled repeat. Thing that made it different and better depending on ref was the scrums were contested, same as the ruck, good markers could rake the ball, same with the scrum, it added a touch of uncertainty. The problem was that one team theoretically could dominate a game between the scores by very controlled play. Defence had to be strong and there was more forwards especially the props who were ball players, so watchful eyes imperative.

      In saying that, many games, these days are just as boring as I’m not sure we have the ball skill players of those days. There are aspects of the old game that I would like to see brought back though, even in trial matches. The more modern game has shown there will never be another Saint George era, the Cap also makes that hard in keeping the players to maintain any form of continual yearly momentum.

      1. Bubbles

        The limited tackle rule was brought in to end the stg era where they always bought the biggest forwards and the best hooker ,it was known they would let you have the ball for the first 20 minutes just so they could belt you into submission then once they decided to play footy teams could go 30to 40 tackles without touching the ball ,make no mistake limited tackles brought everyone into the game ,stg cheated through that era anyway ,the rules were you had to play in the district you resided in ,stg simply brought common houses in their district and players stayed thier a couple of nights a week listing it as thier residence ,the best thing about footy back in those days was every player was a local kid you knew but if they were really good stg made offers you couldnt refuse and manipulated the system but thiers plenty doing that now so nothings changed really.

    2. Bubbles

      One aspect to that era was parra and i presume all teams were in the hands of 3 selectors not the coaching staff, poor old coach took the bullets though,dont really know what year that stupidity ended but it had a lot to do with parras lack of success

      1. Colin Hussey

        Thats something I remember my late dad constantly going off about with the selectors, and guess what else? The football club officials. Most were ex footballers though but it was very much a boys club of when in you were set for as long as you breathed.

        Sad part was that there were some top players amongst them though.

      2. parrathruandthru

        Interesting when you see old photos of the committee and there are twice as many people in it as the team photo

        1. Colin Hussey

          And????? things have changed?

          There used to be 4 photo’s taken, 1st reserve and 3rd, then a combined team that included all the physio’s and the whole of the footbal club board along with each grade coaches, doctors trainers, and conditioners.

          Following the illimination of the 3rd grade. then the reserves were replaced by the 20’s, with the professionalism that entered the number of players are reduced by around 20, but now there are the coaches, assistant coaches, along with the others, except perhaps the board no longer is part of the team photo. but when you look at the team photo, at least the last one I saw a few years back, I was gob smacked by the amount of extras at the ends, nearly as many if not more than there was players.

  4. John Eel

    The South Sydney team of 1965 was an especially good young side. It contained the basis of the team that won 4 GF’s in 5 years from 1967 to 1971. I went to the GF that year (1965), my first time at a GF, it was an amazing experience.

    78,000 people at the SCG, a record. During the game which was dominated in the end by St George, Kevin Longbottom kicked a lot of goals, 2 from his own side of halfway, which was the only thing that kept the Rabbits in the game.

    The police became so concerned prior to kickoff that people at the front were going to be crushed that they move some of the patrons on to the grass inside the boundary fence. There were no tickets for games then people just turned up and brought a ticket. As a result of complaints from the police the SCG trust put a limit on ticket sales for SCG games and introduced a system of pre booked tickets. This was long before Ticketek or Ticketmaster. I think the crowd after that game was limtied to 60,000. not entirely sure.

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