Brisbane Rugby League clubs and historical lineage
To the uninitiated – even to some of the initiated – the connection between the many clubs who inhabited the early BRL and the clubs who went on to become staples of the league (Wests, Souths, Easts, Norths, Valleys, Brothers, Wynnum-Manly and Redcliffe) can be a tad confusing.
There’s nothing like South Sydney or the Eastern Suburbs Roosters who’ve been around in largely the same form since 1908.
There was a curious attempt at establishing districts or catchment areas based on state electoral boundaries (Fortitude Valley, South Brisbane, North Brisbane and Toombul were all electoral districts in 1909) which thankfully didn’t last. There was chaos – some have called the early BRL a ‘wild west’. There was an on-off dalliance between Brisbane and Ipswich. There was even a very loose form of promotion and relegation.
Of the four BRL foundation clubs of 1909, Valleys and Toombul merged after two seasons. North Brisbane don’t have anything to do with present-day Norths Devils but are related to another of the staple clubs. Souths-Logan claim a lineage all the way back to South Brisbane in 1909 – and they’re right to do so; the various south-side clubs are all part of the family tree – but South Brisbane are best thought of as the grand-parent club of the modern Magpies.
Things eventually settled down a bit in the early 1920’s and the club stucture which emerged was formalised through a more sensible form of districting in 1933.
This is how it all fits together.
Valleys
Lineage
Toombul
Valley-Toombul
Railways 1913
Railways 1918-20
Bulimba
Despite being moderately successful, Toombul merged with Valleys in 1911. When Valleys re-appeared after a mysterious hiatus in 1913, the Toombul side of the merger was seemingly no longer, and what was left eventually became part of Norths.
A number of Valley-Toombul players appeared for Railways in 1913 in what may have been a symptom of Brisbane’s industrial unrest at the time. Original Railways looked like a union team. Their latter incarnation was ‘the public service team’.
Bulimba was an electoral district team which encroached on Valleys’ territory and featured some of their players. Bulimba was reabsorbed and apparently remains affiliated with Valleys to this day.
Easts
Lineage
East Brisbane
Woolloongabba
Coorparoo
Wynnum 1931-32
The East Brisbane team of 1910 lasted just one season. Woolloongabba started as an electoral district team in 1912, before a redistribution saw their territory absorbed by South Brisbane.
Despite this, Woolloongabba came back in 1915, taking a few players from the now-defunct South Brisbane team and signalling that the electoral boundaries scheme was on its way out.
Coorparoo started as an offshoot of ‘Gabbas in 1917 and eventually formed the basis of Easts in ’33. The second version of Wynnum was absorbed into the Eastern Suburbs district at the same time.
Souths
This is complicated – very complicated – so let’s continue the family tree theme and do it by generation.
Lineage
Grandparents
South Brisbane
South United
Kurilpa
In the beginning, there was South Brisbane. They wore light blue and weren’t far off success in their short history, most notably losing the first premiership final in 1909. They were joined by South United, a second-wave breakaway from the Souths rugby club in 1911, and by Kurilpa, another electoral district team in 1912.
The district was strengthened by the incorporation of Woolloongabba and the dissolution of Kurilpa, but South Brisbane were not the only beneficiary. Another team had arisen on the south side – the ‘All Blacks’ of West End.
Parents
West End
Wattles
Merthyr
West End had immediate success, winning the 1913 premiership with a team full of former Kurilpa and ‘Gabbas players. But in 1915 they finished dead last and winless and were replaced by Wattles in 1916. Wattles then folded midway through 1917 and there was no representation on the south side in 1918. But the other half of what would become Souths was already in the league. Merthyr had joined in 1917 and were the first foray into the thirteen-man game by the Christian Brothers rugby club.
Offspring
Carlton
While they were in the league, Merthyr affiliated with a then-junior club called Carlton. After WW1, some players went back to union. Those who remained joined Carltons who were subsequently promoted to first grade in 1919.
West End weren’t quite finished – they returned for the 1919 and ’20 seasons, then finally dissolved into Carlton. The new boys won their first premiership in 1921 with a couple of former All Blacks players in their fold and eventually became Souths in 1933.
Wests
Lineage
North Brisbane
Toowong
Westerns
Natives
South United
Wests were formed in 1915 by the merger of foundation North Brisbane (the ‘Red and Blacks’) and the Toowong electoral district team.
Westerns were a promoted junior team based at Paddington who played in 1917 and ’18 but ultimately dissolved into Wests.
But the North Brisbane and Toowong teams were both influenced by two other entities. Natives was started by a group of former North Brisbane players who’d walked out midway through the 1911 season. The defectors initially joined South United who folded after the 1911 season, before forming Natives at Red Hill in 1912.
A few Natives players, including Dobbin Hickey and Charlie Meekin, joined Toowong in 1914 and became part of Wests’ first premiership in 1916.
Norths
Lineage
Grammars
Toombul
The Grammars rugby club joined the league in 1920 with rugby union almost dead after its aborted post-WW1 restart. Grammars eventually became Northern Suburbs in 1933.
There are precious few details, but it seems what was left of foundation Toombul folded into Grammars/Norths, which seems perfectly natural given the proximity of Toombul and Nundah.
Brothers
Lineage
Merthyr
Christian Brothers
Merthyr were refugees from rugby union during WW1, before taking on their true identity (Christian Brothers/Old boys) when they rejoined in 1920. Merthyr partly dissolved into Carlton and there was a bit of movement between Brothers and Carlton in their respective early years.
Old Boys splintered in the late 1920s with union undead, league split, and some old boys, including Kangaroo captain Tom Gorman, intent on forming their own club (Past Brothers, or just Brothers).
Wynnum-Manly
Lineage
Wynnum 1914
Wynnum 1931-32
Easts
The earliest version of Wynnum (1914) was an electoral district team. Present-day Wynnum-Manly are more closely related to the incarnation of the ’30s which came from the district rugby union club.
This may not be popular at Wondall Road or any fowl pens in the vicinity, but what diverged in the early 1950s as Wynnum-Manly was partly a product of Easts.
Leave a Reply