OUR CLUB HAS SOME HISTORY
In 1955 a group of businessmen led by Frank Blake saw the need to promote junior rugby within Cronulla-Caringbah area. Frank convened the first meeting at Lilli Pilli Public School and subsequently became our first president a position he held for 13 years. He was assisted by Ross Dale, Mrs Law, John Treloar, John Hannon, Eric Houston, Bill Liddlow and many others.
The club was initially known as Caringbah-Cronulla Rugby Club, later to become Port Hacking Junior Rugby Club and finally Burraneer Rugby Club. All home games were played at Captain Cook field No: 3. it was through the efforts of Tom Waters that the club acquired the use of John Dwyer Memorial Field.
John Dwyer was a president of Sutherland Shire for many years and in his memory the Sutherland Shire Council allocated the ground to Burraneer Club. Progress through the nineties towards 2000 continued at a breakneck pace with Keith McPherson gaining council approval to install extra lighting at the field. Friday night football at Burraneer was now a reality. In 1996 the club welcomed the North Cronulla surf club’s subbies team “Sealice” into its ranks.
The early years of the integration were well served by Bill Goldthorpe and Terry Knight amongst others. In the latter part of the nineties the club extended the covered balcony area, re-modelled and expanded the canteen area and built a store room. A telling feature of this time was the decision by the president to remove the existing grid iron goalposts, which had been present since 1970 and purchase the goal posts from Cronulla Leagues Club. An era had ended, no longer was John Dwyer field described as that field with those “funny goal posts”.
One person providing a common thread throughout this era was Neil Swane, Life Member and Secretary. In the late nineties the club decided to enter a team of geriatrics’.“Golden Oldies” into a local carnival run at the field. From this beginning the “Burraneer Disreputables” have grown strong under the guidance of John Mealy, Colin Fletcher and Frank Schreuder participating in many days of “living in past glory rugby”.
Burraneer Rugby Club today has in excess of 350 registered players from U/6 – U/17, Seniors and Golden Oldies. There are over 100 minis, many sons of past Burraneer players, providing the basis for future growth. The Club continues into the 2000’s with the objects present at its formation that teamwork, developing skills and enjoyment of the game and promoting rugby as all important.
Burraneer accepts all players regardless of their experience, winning at all costs is not important.
