REVELLING in the Riverina
The vintage years
Episode 2
The Cootamundra Wattle ‘Blues’
Cootamundra, NSW (the ‘Blues’, AFL Canberra 3rd division)
Stage 2: Tumbarumba to Cootamundra
Leaving Tumba, we journey along the south-west slopes towards the birthplace of Bradman, at Cootamundra. The 160km route, which passes through Batlow and Gundagai, provides an opportunity to call in at a town that could have been the nation’s capital city, but instead, its future lay in pulp, paper and tourism. That town is Tumut – the ‘town of the falling leaf’. And, it has a lot in common with Tumbarumba.
The palindrome town of Tumut had a footy club that once competed alongside Tumbarumba in the Upper Murray League (UMFL). Tumut was a short-lived club with only 18 years of football history but, importantly, the Tumut Hawks claimed a premiership in that time – the 1982 UMFL flag. Their brief football existence was spread among three leagues – the Central Riverina League (1970-77), the UMFL (1978-85) and the Farrer League Division 2 (1986-87) as Tumut-Talbingo. The Tumut Showgrounds, home of the Tumut Swans, gained the reputation as being one of the wettest grounds in the Central Riverina League during the 1970s. After heavy winter rain it often flooded and soon became known by both the opposition and the home side as ‘Swan Lake’.
When Tumbarumba were forming a committee and preparing to launch a footy club in 1969-1970, Tumut was ready to debut, entering a team in the Central Riverina League. Rugby League had enjoyed a monopoly of the winter sports scene in both towns for decades, but that was about to change as the Australian Rules Football frontier (known as the ‘Barassi Line’) was moving upwards towards the rugby league strongholds of the northern and north-eastern Riverina. Rugby League Groups 9 and 17 were seen as the last bulwarks against the advance of the Australian game beyond the southern Riverina.
Resuming our road trip, we head northwards to Cootamundra but not before an obligatory stop “along the road to Gundagai” at the famed Dog on the Tuckerbox. Many a Sydney, Canberra or Melbourne-bound motorist has made a pit stop and taken a photo at the famous canine monument site situated at Snake Gully, “five miles from Gundagai”. Climbing back into the Ford as we head for Coota, it’s time to tune the radio to John Williamson’s classic, ‘Cootamundra Wattle’.
We have entered Acacia baileyana country, as proudly displayed on the welcome to Cootamundra-Gundagai Council signs. The Cootamundra Wattle species is native to a small pocket of the South-West Slopes in the Temora, Stockinbingal, Bethungra and Cootamundra districts. It is widely planted in Australian backyards and parks where it is a favourite Aussie flowering shrub but has a reputation of becoming a troublesome ‘weed’ in rural areas.
Cootamundra is situated on the Main Southern railway line midway between Harden and Junee. Historically the town prospered as the hub for branch lines to the Riverina and South-West Slopes as well as being a major stop on the Sydney to Melbourne rail line.
The closely linked rail towns of Junee and Harden were rugby league fortresses, but in the early 1960s a new force arrived along the slopes and started to make inroads into the powerful position of the northern code. One nearby settlement, Temora, had already experienced the arrival of the southern game. Others, like Marrar, Ganmain and Coolamon, had adopted the Australian code decades before and could be considered as being firmly beneath the ‘Barassi Line’.
Cootamundra folk experienced a taste of the eighteen-man-a-side game as early as 1913 when an inter-town match was played at Coota between the local team and Wagga. The game, which resulted in a draw, received a favourable report in the Wagga press as to the future of Australian Rules Football in the Cootamundra district. By 1920 there was a local association, the Stockinbingal Football Association, comprising teams from Stockinbingal, Springdale and Cootamundra, but the competition was short-lived.
Upon formation in 1960, the Cootamundra Football Club, originally called the ‘Cats’, joined the Central Riverina League (CRL) where they met clubs from Temora, Junee, Wagga and surrounding towns. The Cats played home games at the Cootamundra Showgrounds and won three games in their first season. In 1963 the club changed jumpers and mascots, becoming the ‘Blues’ and wearing Carlton-style jumpers. In the following year the Blues moved to a dedicated Australian Football ground they named Clarke Oval (after the club’s first secretary, Jim Clarke) and developed the ground at their own expense.
Coota were competitive in the CRL from the outset, playing off for the premiership twice in the mid ‘60s under the leadership of Riverina and Ovens and Murray star John Hawke. After their initial unsuccessful attempts at claiming the silverware, it was only a short wait for a run of four vintage years to be inscribed on the club’s honour board – 1973, ‘74, ‘77 and ‘80. Coach Ron Milthorpe was a tower of strength for the club in that successful period.
The Blues were hot favourites going into the 1973 CRL grand final against East Wagga at Wagga’s Robertson Oval. Superior physical strength gave Coota the edge over the Hawks in a match which produced some fiery exchanges. The faultless ruck work and marking of Robert Fairweather together with Steve Long’s performance in shutting down East Wagga’s key forward, Terry Whelan, were pivotal to their 33-point victory. In 1974 the Blues took out the premiership again with a come-from-behind victory over Barellan in atrocious conditions at Wagga Wagga’s Maher Oval. In 1977 Coota, who were superbly led by Ken Forbes, claimed their third flag with a 30-point win against Marrar. The Blues 1980 premiership winning margin of 84 points, over Marrar, was a CRL grand final record and heralded their move to stronger competition.
After their 1980 triumph the Blues were promoted to the South West District League where they came up against vastly more experienced teams. With the reshuffle of Riverina football leagues in 1982, Cootamundra were drafted into the Riverina District League (later renamed the Farrer League) where they competed for over 20 years, taking out premierships in 1989 and 1992. The new millennium started promisingly for Coota with a finals appearance in 2000, giving no indication of the drought that was about to unfold. After just two wins from 48 matches, and severely stretched for numbers, the Blues hung up their boots in the Farrer League at the end of 2003.
In 2004 Coota transferred affiliation to AFL Canberra where they participated in the league’s Fourth Division until gaining a promotion to Third Division in 2018. The 2014 flag, won under the leadership of Luke Webb from The Rock-Yerong Creek, remains their sole pennant in the ACT-based competition. The Cats now compete against several Canberra clubs, Goulburn, Murrumbateman, Cooma and Yass.
Coota were not alone in making a move to the nation’s capital as the Wagga Tigers had made a similar migration in 2002. Ultimately, travel considerations saw the Tigers return to the Riverina competition in 2007. Now, for the same reason, the Blues have their sights set on a return to the Farrer League. However, their application in 2022 to rejoin former competition foes was turned down by AFL Riverina.
Cootamundra in 2024
Round 1 bye
Round 2 v Eastlake Demons at Kingston, ACT on 4 May
Riverina Spotto
Mark one off each episode.
Episode 1: submarine down and 17 to go
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the last post |
Irish pub |
a slice of pizza |
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faithful canine |
sheep and dog |
the family club |
|
22 yards |
two felines |
31.12.74 |
| truckie’s stop |
submarine |
shearing team |
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all among the wool |
one pub town |
Sherrin |
|
three bees |
square |
footy hub |
Next episode: Stage 3 – to West Wyalong
To read the earlier episodes of Peter’s journey through the Riverina click HERE.
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About Peter Clark
is a lifelong Geelong supporter. Hailing from the Riverina, he is now entrenched on the NSW South Coast. His passion for footy was ignited by attending Ovens and Murray League matches in the 1960's with his father. After years of watching, playing and coaching, now it is time for some serious writing about his favourite subjects… footy, especially country footy, and cricket.
Thanks again Peter – I’ll have to find out more about the lower divisions of AFL Canberra
Yep Cootamundra on the Main Southern Railway. When my grand uncles served in the ‘Great Trade War’ they travelled up to Cootamundra to enlist. Then from there to the ‘Charnel House’ of the Western Front. Post war one chose work on the railways spending a few decades in Tumut.
Pretty place Tumut, famed for their sturdy straw brooms. We need to get back there at some stage. While we’re on Tumut have any VFL/AFL players been recruited from there? In terms of other places mentioned here, I can’t think of any players from Batlow, though with Cootamundra we’ve recently had Isaac Smith who put in 10+ years of quality footy.
I look forward to our next stop(s).
Glen!
My grandfather was also a railway man, residing in Harden, Junee and later at Culcairn. One of his main runs was Culcairn to Corowa in the steam era.
To my knowledge Tumut has not produced any VFL/AFL players. Yes Glen, Isaac Smith was a quality player and a contributor to four premierships, including the 2022 Norm Smith Medal. That raises the question, how many NSW born players have won the ‘Norm’ ? One other that comes to mind is Lenny Hayes (2010).
Hold on, we are off to West Wyalong next.
Never experienced a win over Coota at Clarke Oval, despite using playing in the 1sts and 2nds for the Pigs (Wagga Uni Bushpigs)…
we were ineveriably drawn to play Coota up there in the middle of the uni vacation – 90 kms north of Wagga and way too far for our students from Albury, Deni, Wang, Toc, Wakool and Broken Hill!
And the fearsome bow-legged human wrecking ball Kenny Forbes would on-cue run through one of our better players. Thankfully missed me! The old blind turn meant he only grazed me.
back to The Globe for after-match drinks and then onto the bus for a pub crawl home – best stop was the historic Stock pub! Just 20 minutes out of Coota – but well away from Forbesy and his partner Strop Millthorpe!
Pretty sure Brett Yorgey was originally from Tumut.
After playing in North Albury’s 1980 premiership team he went to South Melbourne under zoning rules.
Then to Collingwood.
When we picked him for NSW’s first State-of-origin team at the 1988 national carnival he was playing for West Perth. I recall him being listed as from Tumut in the team list submitted to the ANFC.
You are on the ball again Riverina Rocket.
Thanks for your Coota memories. I taught with the Forbes brothers, Bruce and Ken. Strongly respect their footy credentials. Chalkies have done their bit for the Riverina footy story.
Forbes bros – originally from Narrandera – were terrific players and both good fellas.
Usually had a drink with Ken after our games.
Remember Bruce playing at Wagga Tigers.
Both represented NSW.
Coota won in a canter in 1980 – then Ken moved to the south coast to teach, Nowra, I think
And champion CHF David “Skid” Rowe, a civil engineer transferred to Canberra in his work.
Coota really struggled in the South West league…