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AUCKLAND UNIVERSITY RUGBY LEAGUE FOOTBALL CLUB
The first Auckland University Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1957. It operated initially on an invitation basis and played in a Sunday friendly competition, layers being drawn from a number of Auckland premier and senior club sides.
The club’s second season saw a shift from an invitation team to a properly constituted Saturday competition side, but possibly because of its affiliation to the Ellerslie club, it seemed to lack an identity of its own. As a consequence the players’ initial interest dwindled and the club died a natural death in 1959.
Some of the players involved in these first two years of the club included Murray Patterson, Allen Gore, Frank Dodds, Bruce Pert, Rex Billington, Kevin and Gerald Ryan, Roger Douglas, Owen Mooney and others.
Paul Deerness, with the assistance and encouragement from Ray Cody, did the groundwork leading up to the formation of the second Auckland University Rugby League Club in April 1967. A sixth grade side was entered in the local competition coached for much of the season by ex Kiwi scrum half Bill Snowden. The original committee was chaired by Bob Dragecevich, vice chairman Jack Reading and included players Bill Bates (secretary), Paul Deerness, Barry Tripp, Brian Gillespie, Matt Robson and John Haynes.
The 1968 season saw two events which played a major role in the initial success and growth of the club. The first of these was the nomination of a senior team and the second was the appointment of Jack Fagan (Kiwi fullback 1961-65) as senior coach. The first of these events bought the club into the public eye, and the second led to a marked improvement in the standard of football.
The club fielded senior, reserve, third and sixth grade sides in the 1969 to 1972 seasons, but relegation from Senior A to Senior B status at the end of the 1972 season saw the loss of a number of talented players, and although the Senior B team acquitted itself well in the 1974 – 76 seasons when coached by Jack Wright, the 1977 – 80 seasons saw only one third grade fielded.
Apart from those already mentioned, many rugby league enthusiasts had assisted the club in coaching and administrative capacities over these years including Leo Mulcare, Bill Hattaway, Les Cherrie, Tim Johnson, Ray Gilbert, Graham Dormer, Don St Bruno, Peter Major, Ron Rainey, Allan Monteith, Rich Boughey and Brian Keane.
With several school teachers in their ranks, the University club took the opportunity in the early seventies to establish an annual secondary schools rugby league tournament. Played initially over a weekend at Cornwall Park, it then became a one day tournament at Sacred Heart College, where finalists in four grades were found to play curtain raisers to senior fixtures at Carlaw Park. The event was funded by the Auckland Rugby League, and was well supported over many years by the Auckland Rugby League Referees Association.
Although the Auckland University Club has not fielded a side in the local competition since 1980, an Auckland University team has always competed at the annual New Zealand Universities Winter Tournament, at which a New Zealand Universities Rugby League side is selected. Auckland University players who have gone on to represent New Zealand have included Kevin Barry, Chris Jordan, Tea and Iva Ropati.
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