BRL grand final day, September 20, 1987. This was the last BRL grand final as we remember them. The Broncos were to enter the NSWRL in 1988, so things would never be the same again. I remember it like it was yesterday; better than I remember yesterday, probably. Southeast Queensland was doing well in the 1980s; the Commonwealth Games in 1982, Jupiter’s Casino had opened on the GC in 1985, Frank Sinatra was coming to open Sanctuary Cove in January 1988 and of course, World Expo was happening in 1988. Yes, “the Moonlight State”, presented by Chris Masters (brother of Roy) had aired on 4 Corners and the Fitzgerald Inquiry was about to happen, but all in all, things were good, although Wally wasn’t the only one with the surname “Lewis” about to make the headlines. I, too, was doing well. As a young, single teacher about to finish my fourth year of full-time work and not owning a car, living in the bush, and with cheap, Education Department rent, I had amassed a personal fortune of, I would estimate, of between $100 and $500. Not that great, I will admit, but I had enough to buy a ticket to the “Grand Final Breakfast” at the Park Royal Hotel in Brisbane.
It was my first experience of such an event. Billy J Smith was the MC. The guest speaker was none other than the great Roy Masters. As is the custom, a former player was sitting at each table, and I had the pleasure of sitting next to QLD and Australian great, Rod Morris. He was great company. Rod and his brother, Des, a legendary QLD second rower, were from Ipswich, where I grew up, and both had very impressive careers, although Des never got to wear the green and gold of Australia. Most Queenslanders regard this as a travesty of justice. Des is regarded as the best QLD player to never represent his country.
For the record, Rod played for QLD in 1976, Australia in the World Cup in 1977, and made his test debut against NZ in 1978. He toured with the Kangaroos in 1978, playing in the third test against GB. In 1979, he played all three tests in the home series against GB. That year, he had moved to Sydney to play for Balmain and represented NSW against QLD.
He played in the first ever Origin game for QLD in 1980. In all, he played 4 Origins and QLD won them all. He returned to Brisbane in 1982 and played in a winning premiership with Wynnum Manly, with Des as the coach. To cap it off, he was selected for his second Kangaroos tour as part of the “Invincibles.” In total, he played sixteen tests for Australia, with a 93% winning percentage. If you look at the highlights of those test matches and Origins, you might not see Rod in the highlights, scoring the tries, or winning the ‘Man of the Match’ award, but he was one of the first names on the team sheet at all levels of the game. A tough, uncompromising front rower from the old school mold.
Roy was not there to talk to us about crooked cops, his charter at the GF breakfast was to talk about the entry of the Broncos into the NSWRL. He had just concluded his last coaching stint with St George in 1987, so he was well qualified to speak on the machinations of the NSWRL. He told a cautionary tale. “Yes, the administrators in Sydney want to see the Broncos do well,” he said, ”but not too well. They do not want them to win the competition. In fact, they will throw up whatever obstacles they can, to make sure they do not. They will get the Referees that do not do well under stress; the draw will do them no favours etc.” It was insightful and proved to be 100% correct over the next couple of years.
There is nothing quite like stepping out into the blinding Brisbane sunlight, half cut, after a few drinks over breakfast. I would not really recommend it, but HH, a few others and I headed off to the dusty, concrete terraces of the Northern Outer at Lang Park to see the finale between Brothers and Redcliffe. History shows that Brothers were far too good, scoring a resounding 26 to 8 victory, a triumph for their coach, Ross “The Rat” Strudwick.
Ross was a great player, having moved north to Valleys from St George in 1973. He won premierships as a player with Valleys in 1973, 1974 and 1979 (as captain coach). He represented Brisbane, Queensland, and Australia. Valleys were also desperately unlucky in 1978, when young Wally Lewis was obstructed after putting in a kick in the last minutes of the grand final against Easts. He would have scored for sure. Unfortunately, Eddie Ward saw it differently. Strudwick had become an outstanding coach and was also a prominent media personality. He had his own column in the newspaper and pulled no punches, often generating controversy. Few, if any, ever did more to promote Rugby League in Brisbane.
His main adversary in the coaching ranks at the time was none other than Wayne Bennett, and “Struddy” had landed a major blow when his great Valleys team of 1979 had walloped Wayne’s Souths 26 nil in the grand final. There was no love lost between the two of them. Ross eventually moved on to Brothers, and his team had almost pulled off a monumental upset in the 1986 grand final against the great Wynnum team, led by his former student, Wally Lewis. Wynnum snuck home 14 to 6, but not before receiving an almighty scare, with Wally scoring, although it was a double movement, according to the Brothers coach at the time.
Strudwick was the architect of the short defensive line or compressed defence. By 1987, he had the cattle to execute his master plan. Fast backs and mobile forwards. Brothers had dominated all year and racked up a huge points differential over the course of the season. The decider was no different. Names like Kilroy, Coyne, Mohr, Gill, Bailey and the boy from Bundy, Tony Rea, who had a “blinder,” (1 try, 2 try assists and three goals, all with the traditional “toe poke” method), were simply too good. Had Brothers been able to keep this team together, it would surely have been a new dynasty in the BRL. However, times were changing. Most of the team would end up in the Sydney competition the next year.
Having had the opportunity, with the PBTS, to archive all Strudwick’s’ memorabilia from his career, it is obvious that 1987 holds a special place in his heart. He gets a glint in his eye when talking about 1987, like a proud parent. I suspect that if it is not the crowning glory of his career, it is certainly close.
This ushered in the Broncos and, ultimately, the NRL era in 1998. The Broncos won their first six games in 1988 but faded to miss the top five. I started strongly at the “Munich Fest Haus” at Expo 88 but also faded. Talk to you next week.
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Prospector, what a pity we missed Roy 39 years later and the pre-Origin lunch!
Some great names from the past in that coverage. The Morris brothers were great servants of the game.