Our Club has Some History

 

Burraneer Rugby Club is a living, breathing, growing and vibrant part of our local community. Our club is made up of over 300 local families whom, live, work and play in the shire…all day every day. Burra Rugby is made up of player’s aged 4 through to 63, whom experience the highs and low’s of community rugby every weekend through winter and enjoy the life experiences that are unique to the rugby community network. Our goal as a rugby club is to be an organisation which provides an enjoyable environment which facilitates the involvement and development of good people. Our facilities are the envy of every other sporting organisation in the country and we would love to share them with you. Thanks for taking the time to browse this website which has been created for your enjoyment!
 

​

The Formation of Burraneer Rugby Club

 

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 400 registered players from U/6 – U/17, Seniors and Golden Oldies. There are over 100 minis, many of these are children 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.

​

As members of the Burraneer Rugby Community; Players, Coaches and Spectators, it is our responsibility to champion the Burra FAMILY values both personally and across the community.