Redcap's BRL

A last hurrah and a cry for help

The complete 1953 Brisbane Rugby League season is now live on Redcap’s BRL. See how Souths bounced back from a down year in 1952 and won their fourth premiership since the end of the war in what turned out to be a denouement for this generation of south-siders. A summary of every game, the teams and point-scorers are available by clicking on each round in the 1953 season page.

In 1952, almost everything went wrong for Souths, then the defending premiers. Some key players left, while others were rarely available due to representative commitments, injury or both. They started poorly and never managed to get out of their slump, finishing second from bottom as Wests took premiership honours.

Wests, as they often did, fell away following their success. Alex Watson and Pat Mohr were injured. Col McAllister, Merv Long and Keith McPherson left, though Long did return from the bush in mid-season. Representative hooker Allan Hornery defected to Souths.

And he was just one of a few key recruits for the south-siders (often referred to as the ‘Lions’ at this point in history). Flying winger Don Baker, hard-working forward Bruce Baker and centre Col Senior all joined from Easts, while young half Norm McLean came from Sydney and aggressive back-rower George Clarke emerged in an already formidable pack which included ‘Mick’ Crocker, Tom Tyquin and Jack Veivers.

Suddenly, Souths were a powerhouse again. Veivers was the player of the season. McLean was a revelation at half. The solid Senior was an ideal foil for exciting youngster Norm Mundt in the centres. The two Bakers scored points for fun.

The only issue Souths had was when Hornery toured New Zealand with the Kangaroos in July and August. Reserve hooker Davidson was quickly injured. Utility Fred Harris wasn’t quite up to the job. The semi-retired Kev Coleman filled-in but was no match for wily veteran Charlie Martin of Easts in the Major Semi-Final.

The return of Hornery coincided with a thumping 35-14 win over Valleys in the Preliminary Final, then what eventually became a stroll against Easts in the Grand Final. The game hung in the balance for an hour, before Souths showed its extra quality, blowing away the Tigers with four tries in the final quarter for a 21-4 win.

After the desolation of the 1930s and the war years, Souths had won four premierships in nine years and had rarely not been contenders in that time. But 1953 was a last hurrah for this generation. Souths didn’t win another title for nearly 30 years, until a guy called Meninga came along and helped end a long drought.

Others were rising, most notably at this time Valleys. The Diehards rose to third in 1953 after a few years of struggle. Fullback Norm Pope finished the season’s highest point-scorer. Winger Garry Barnett shattered the single-season try-scoring record (though it should be noted that the season expanded from 14 to 21 games in ’53). The name ‘Mulgrew’ made its first appearance in royal blue in the shape of John ‘Nudgee’ Mulgrew. The next Valleys premiership team was starting to take form.

At the other end of things was Wynnum-Manly who suffered through a dreadful season. There was much discussion before and during the season about the size of each club’s district catchment area and there was some redistribution in an effort to equalise things, especially noting the flight of many middle and working class families from the inner city. But there was no getting away from the fact that Wynnum were trying to compete with less than half of the population base most others enjoyed.

And they played like it in ’53, finishing rock bottom with a points differential (-633) which was far greater than the number of points any other team scored. Their 89-13 humiliation against Valleys in round 16 was the second heaviest defeat in BRL history. Along with the 71-3 thrashing by Norths the following weekend and the 74-7 against Souths in round 10, Wynnum suffered three of eight worst defeats in BRL history – in the same season!

The ‘Seasiders’ needed help, but at least they stuck it out. South Coast showed some promise, beating Wests twice and producing some other solid performances behind captain-coach and former All Black Morrie Robertson and burly prop Bob Golder. Overall though, they struggled again and departed the BRL after 1953. Beyond their on-field struggles, there was no explanation for their departure.

A couple of South Coasters, Brian Hurley and Norm McFadden would go on to taste premiership success at Valleys, so there was some legacy. But still, one wonders whether rugby league on the Gold Coast might’ve been different had they stuck it out and built something in the BRL. Or maybe they were just an early warning that it would never work on the Gold Coast’s indifferent shores.

More complete BRL seasons are coming soon on Redcap’s BRL.