Courtesy of Laurie Yeomans. The material below is from records of Oatley Rugby Club.
Club History
The Oatley Junior Rugby Club was formed in 1958 as a foundation club of the junior competition in the St George district. Our first team entered the Under 12 competition. By 1968 the Club had 240 players, 13 teams competing and had also collected 13 premierships.
In 1969 the name of the Club was changed to the Oatley Rugby Club, reflecting a change of direction as senior teams began entering the Sydney Suburban competition. By 1973 the Club had achieved 17 premierships and was an important feeder Club for The St George Rugby Club.
1974 saw the formation of the first Oatley “Open Age” team and entry into the Sub-District competition with immediate success, winning the Walker Cup and remaining undefeated all season. The team followed on to win the Grose Cup in 1975. During the 1980 season the decision was made by the Club to “populate or perish”. Player nos. were low and only a major campaign would keep the Club intact. The hard work was rewarded with a win in the Radford Cup. Steady development through the early 80’s saw the Club build strongly to be a constant force in the 2 nd division of Suburban Rugby.
The Junior Club, which had struggled so hard for nos. throughout the late 70’s and into the 80’s was beginning to see a resurgence, and the introduction of the Rugby World Cup in 1987 was the catalyst for growth in Rugby overall. From 3 junior teams in 1990 the Club has expanded to be a Rugby force south of the harbour. We currently field 12 teams ranging from Under 6’s to Under 16’s. The success of those early years has been rekindled, with many premierships secured in recent years.
The Senior Club currently Field teams in the Under 19’s Rugby Club Cup, Colts (Under 21’s) and 4 Open age teams in 2nd Division NSW Suburban Rugby.
The Club is proud to have four Wallabies don the bottle green and gold of the Oatley Rugby Club. Bruce Battishall, Gary Gainsford, Barry Stumbles and Rob Horne.
1966 Oatley RU U18 Premiers at Hurstville Oval
