Illawarra
Steelers
Sean Fagan of RL1908.com
The first rugby league
competition in the Illawarra region (on the NSW
coast south of Sydney) began just two seasons
after the birth of the game in Australia.
In
1910 supporters of the new game formed clubs in
the Wollongong, Mt Keira and Bulli areas who played
'friendly' games against each other.
A link with Sydney
was immediately established with matches organised
against clubs from the lower grade Sydney competitions.
In 1911 the first
local competition was played, involving teams
from Dapto, Unanderra, Mt Keira, Helensburgh and
Wollongong. The Illawarra competition was suspended
during WW1 but the game quickly rebuilt and began
to thrive over the next few decades.
The first NSW player
selected from the Illawarra was Archie O'Neill
in 1927 from the Wollongong club. He was soon
followed by team mate Fed Buchanan. The first
Australian player was Charlie Hazelton - a pacy
19 year old winger from the Port Kembla club -
who was part of the 1937 Kangaroos.
From 1946 the region
began to play against touring international teams
- initially under the name of 'Southern Division'
before changing to 'Illawarra' in 1974. That first
match in 1946 was against Great Britain at Wollongong
Showground. A crowd of 12,000 provided vocal support
as their side held on to win by 15-12. It set
a trend for following Lions tours and it wasn't
until 1958 that Great Britain were able to defeat
Southern Division.
Illawarra has produced
many Australian representatives including Charlie
Hazelton, Frank Johnson, Kevin Schubert, Noel
Mulligan, Bobby Dimond and Steve Morris. It also
saw some great players join Sydney clubs where
they went on to major fame including Graeme Langlands,
Bob Fulton, Craig Young and Keith Barnes.
The drain on player
talent and the increasing penetration of the Sydney
media into the region saw the local competition
lose status in the mind of the public. Illawarra
sought inclusion in the Sydney competition as
the answer. By the the late 1970s with the F6
Freeway and electric rail-line bringing Wollongong
within easy access of Sydney the entry of an Illawarra
club became imperative.
Thoughts of entry
into the NSWRL competition had first arisen in
1939 after South Coast (Group 7) defeated eventual
Sydney premiers Balmain in the State Cup - the
arrival of WW2 soon put an end to that. The entry
of Manly and Parramatta in 1947 further delayed
any push for Illawarra's inclusion until a serious
attempt was made in late 1954. The bid though
was thwarted by the Country Rugby League which
feared losing such an integral part of its playing
stocks.
Rugby league in the
Illawarra continued to be strong and in the early
1960s had wins over Parramatta, Canterbury, Wests
and Toowoomba under its belt. The CRL repeatedly
vetoed all approaches by Illawarra to the NSWRL
for inclusion in the Sydney competition.
In 1978 Illawarra
won the Country Championship and reached the quarter-finals
of the Amco Cup with wins over Balmain, Valleys
and Norths (Brisbane) along the way. Meanwhile,
the Illawarra Mercury moved to a 'Sydney League'
coverage at the expense of the local game and
the Illawarra Hawks (basketball) and Wollongong
City (soccer) gained entry into national competitions.
When Illawarra again
went to the NSWRL in late 1980 they had a compelling
argument for inclusion - the game's future in
the Illawarra. Headed by Kevin Humphries, Ken
Arthurson and Peter Moore, the NSWRL ensured that
nothing stood in the way of Illawarra's inclusion
in the 1982 Sydney competition.
The Steelers name
was adopted in recognition of the steel industry
that dominated the region and who provided financial
support to the club. The colours of scarlet jersey
and white shorts were reflective of the Illawarra
area's representative sports teams.
The scarlet colour
is thought to have been adopted from the Illawarra
flame tree. Another theory is that soccer was
popular with many of the miners in the late 19th
century - they often arrived at games still wearing
their scarlet coloured work clothing.
The Steelers first
match was on 28th February, 1982 when 9,652 attended
Wollongong Showground to see the Steelers lose
17-7 to Penrith. Brian Hethrington became the
club's first NSW representative when selected
in the 1984 series, despite the club performing
poorly in its early seasons. Alan McIndoe became
the first Australian representative after playing
for Australia v the "Rest of the World" at the
SFS in 1988.
The Steelers failed
to ignite the premiership at all during their
first decade. Their only highlight coming in the
mid-week Panasonic Cup of 1989. Illawarra reached
the Final against Brisbane. Held at Parramatta,
the Broncos raced to a 16-0 lead before the Steelers
hit back.
Illawarra's best
were Brett Rodwell, Rod Wishart, and English imports
Andy Gregory and Steve Hampson. The Steelers fought
back to be behind 16-14 into the final quarter
before Brisbane held on to win by 22-20. Despite
the loss, the Cup campaign had given the club
a new spirit.
In 1990 the Steelers
rose up to achieve a mid-table finish, which it
maintained through 1991. The season also saw Rod
Wishart become the club's first Test representative
when selected for the 2nd Test v New Zealand.
Illawarra won their
only ever trophy after defeating Brisbane by 4-2
in a tryless Tooheys Challenge final at Dubbo
in the 1992 pre-season. With coach Graham Murray
at the helm, the Illawarra side included David
Riolo, John Simon, Ryan Girdler, Paul McGregor,
Dale Fritz, Ian Russell, John Cross, Dean Schifilliti,
Alan McIndoe and Chris Walsh.
The Steelers were
inspired by the win and set about being one of
the top sides of 1992. The club established new
records in home crowds and Origin representation.
It also played against Great Britain and made
the semi-finals for the first time.
Illawarra became
the first club since Cronulla in 1973 to win a
semi-final at their first attempt after held off
St George by 18-16. Late season injuries though
were taking their toll and a disappointing loss
to Brisbane in the next semi-final saw Illawarra
again front St George in the Final.
Illawarra cut St
George open on numerous occasions during the match
but were frustrated by forward pass calls, dropped
ball and close decisions going against them. At
fulltime St George had won by 4-0 to leave the
Steelers bitterly disappointed that they had missed
their chance at a Grand Final.
A spate of injuries
ruined any hopes in 1993 of the Steelers building
on their 1992 success and the club finished outside
of the final five places. Under coach Andrew Farrar
the Illawarra side returned to the play-offs in
1997 after strong wins in the final two games
of the season over Wests (34-10) and the Gold
Coast (28-6).
Facing
the Chargers in the first semi-final at Parramatta,
the Steelers produced a bumbling performance to
lose by 25-14 despite the sparkling work of rising
playmaker Trent Barrett.
In 1998 the Steelers
were well placed for a semi-finals berth until
they lost seven of their last eight games to finish
12th in the twenty team NRL competition.
The club was struggling
financially when the NRL's incentive to reduce
clubs by mergers became too appealing for the
Steelers to continue to stand alone.
An offer to join
the neighbouring St George club in rugby league's
first ever joint venture was accepted at the end
of the 1998 season, forming the St George - Illawarra
Dragons. Through the Dragons, who play half their
home games in Wollongong, first-class standard
rugby league continues to be played in the Illawarra.
In the longer term, the possibility of the region
again providing a home for a stand-alone club
seem remote.
The
Illawarra boasts an economic and population base
comparable to (if not better) than other areas
already in the NRL or mooted as possible entrants
for the future. However, unless a private consortium
is developed from committed supporters within
the Illawarra business community, a return of
the Steelers is unlikely.
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