An afternoon to remember at North Sydney Oval

No matter which rugby league club one supports, there is no better place in Sydney than to be at North Sydney Oval on a sunny Saturday afternoon to watch a match between two Foundation Rugby League Clubs going head to head in a very tight game.

This was the case recently when a Northern Sydney Men of League Foundation group ventured to North Sydney Oval to be part of “Old Bears Day” to watch North Sydney Bears vs Western Suburbs Magpies in the Intrust Super Premiership for the prestigious Jason Taylor Cup. The group joined up with another large gathering of ex North Sydney Bears Oldies and through the generosity of Greg Florimo, General Manager of the North Sydney Bears, an excellent time was had by all.

Ex-players present included current Men of League Foundation NSW State Manager Bruce Walker, Barry Glasgow, Paul Hancock, Bruce Foye, Jeff Simmonds, John Hayes, Norm Pounder, Geoff Squires, Fred Jackson, John Gray, Don McKinnon, John Dorahy and Adrian Toole to name a few.

Before a crowd of about 500 excited spectators, we watched a thrilling game in which the Bears snatched victory with a field goal, that had ex-Bears field goal expert Barry Glasgow jumping, in the last seconds to win 25-24. We were also fortunate to watch a skillful game in the new NSW Women’s Premiership between the Bears vs Wentworthville, in which the Bears proved to be too strong by 48-12.

Once again, a wonderful afternoon was had by all and we eagerly await for next year’s fixture at North Sydney Oval.

Ken Vessey, Men of League Foundation Northern Sydney Committee