NSW Junior Rugby Union
As part of the 2021 NSW Juniors Archive Project we have updated and named Shields and Trophies for all of our State Championship events. The existing Shields have been updated and we have dedicated some new Shields to some of our wonderful and dedicated NSW Juniors committee folk who did so much to build these Championships.
🏆 Current Holders– Gordon Junior Rugby Union (1998)
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Tuggerah Sports Complex at Tuggerah NSW, hosted by Central Coast Junior Rugby Union (unfortunately the event was cancelled in 2021 due to COVID-19)
🏆Tournament History- The U10 Boys Shield was awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U10 State Championships from 1980-1998. From the 1999 season the U10’s reverted to a Representative ‘Development’ Gala with no finals. In 2019 the U10 & U11 Ages moved to a combined ‘State Gala’ format. From 2021 the Shield will be awarded to the District/Zone that exhibits the best ‘Spirit of Rugby’ over the2 day gala.
The Dr John George Shield is an existing Shield for the U10 Boys State Championships which was missing for 23 years before it was found in the back of a Storage shed at Gordon Rugby Club. Unfortunately we do not know the exact origins of this Shield but it contains results all the way back to1980. It is an amazing Shield and we look forward to getting it cleaned up and updated with recent results.
If you know any of the history about ‘The Dr John George’ –please let us know.
**Footnote – There were not records in our archives referring to this Shield and before its discovery the NSWJRU Committee had decided to name the U10 Shield after A.E.Fisher. Of course Murphy’s Law kicked in and the old Shield was soon found – SJRU then decided it was more appropriate to dedicate one of the Sydney Cups to Tony, after all he is their Life Member #1. Thus the change.
🏆 Current Holders– Manly Junior Rugby Union (2014)
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Tuggerah Sports Complex at Tuggerah NSW, hosted by Central Coast Junior Rugby Union (unfortunately the event was cancelled in 2021 due to COVID-19)
🏆 Tournament History- The U11 Boys Shield was awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U11 State Championships from 1994-2014. From the 2015-18 the U11’s reverted to a Representative ‘Development’ Gala with no finals but remained on the June Long weekend. In 2019 the U10 & U11 Ages moved to a combined ‘State Gala’ format on their own dedicated weekend. From 2021 the Shield will be awarded to the District/Zone that exhibits the best ‘Spirit of Rugby’ over the 2 day gala.
Gary Paton has held a number of different roles at NSW Juniors over his 9 years (& counting) of service. The State Championships has always been a large part of his contribution and his role of State Champs Manager has been an invaluable asset to the success of the Championships for the past decade.
Gary was initially on the NSWJRU committee as SJRU delegate(2013-15), VP State Champs (2016-18 & since 2020) and VP Reps (2019). He is also very active and has a long history with Manly Junior Rugby Union.
🏆 Current Holders– Warringah Junior Rugby Union
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Camden Rugby Park in Camden NSW, hosted by Camden Rugby Club
🏆 Tournament History- The U12 Boys Shield has been awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U12 State Championships from 1980-present.
John Degotardi was President of NSW Juniors from 1980 to1986. With a tenure of at least 10 years, a minimum of 7 of which years as the President makes him the longest serving President on record. He is recorded as serving 7 years on committee in total (1980-1986) but our archive records don’t precede 1980 – so considering John was appointed a Life Membership in 1980 it surely would have been a much longer period of service.
John also held many official roles across NSW Rugby and Australian Junior Rugby Union over this period as delegate NSWRU (1980-86) and delegate AJRU (1981-86)
A true champion of the junior rugby game in NSW it is fitting that we celebrate John's service with this dedication. If you know of any more information on John or his time in rugby please let us know and we can add to his Life Member profile https://www.nswjuniors.com.au/life-members/11-j-c-degotardi
🏆 Current Holders– Western Sydney Two Blues
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Apex Oval in Dubbo NSW, hosted by Dubbo Roos Junior Rugby Club &supported by Dubbo Regional Council.
🏆 Tournament History- The U13 Boys Shield has been awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U13 State Championships from 1994-present.
Ben Gregory has been a long standing member on NSW Juniors committees since 2014. He is stepping down from the role of President of NSW Juniors at the end of the 2021 season (held since 2017) – although he will not be lost to NSWJRU as he will again step up for the role of VP Representative that he previously held from 2014-16. All this makes him the 2nd longest NSWJRU President on our records. He was also a Director of NSW Rugby Union &Waratahs from 2018-21.
Ben has a long history of involvement in various levels of rugby, these roles include;
💥 SJRU – Age Coordinator(2010-13), VP Representative (2014-15)
💥 Hunters Hill Rugby –Juniors President (2011-13), Secretary (2009-10), Referee Liaison (since 2014), Dufficy Cup Coordinator (since 2011), Vice President HH Board (2011)
💥 Northern Suburbs Juniors Committee (2011-13)
💥 Active member of Sydney North Referees (since 2008)
💥 Coaching and Manager roles (since 2007) across Hunters Hill Junior Rugby Union, Northern Suburbs Juniors, SJRU, NSWJRU and Northern Suburbs Rugby Football Club (colts &grade)
💥 Life Memberships - SJRU(2020), Hunters Hill (2014)
💥 Playing history - Wellington Junior Redbacks Rugby Union, Wellington Redbacks Senior R.U.FC, Woollahra Colleagues Rugby Club, Hunters Hill Rugby Union Football Club (Cats)
Ben has devoted many years trying to improve the junior rugby landscape across NSW. Having played junior and senior rugby in both the bush and the city, one of the key aspects of his tenure was improving the pathway for junior club rugby players – particularly the U18 Boys and Girls. He aided in improved relationships with NSW Schools (whom affiliated with NSWJRU in 2020), SJRU & NSW Country which created an alignment and growth in all levels of junior rugby in NSW. Evidence of such was the 2021 State Championships being the biggest on record. Amongst other achievements, Ben was also the driving force behind the NSWJRU Archive Project that collated and saved much of the history of NSWJRU.
Ben has just recently jumped the fence from long term volunteer to join NSWRU as the GM of SJRU.
🏆 Current Holders– Penrith Junior Rugby Union
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Endeavour Oval & Max Stewart Park in Orange NSW, hosted by Orange Emus Rugby Club & supported by Orange City Council. *Note - the U14's have been hosted each year in Orange for over a decade now. On alternate years our host is Orange City Junior Rugby Union Club and the venue is Pride Park - Waratah Sports Club.
🏆 Tournament History- The U14 Boys Shield has been awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U14 State Championships from 1958-present.
The Hawton Trophy is an existing Shield for the U14 Boys State Championships which we found in the archives at NSW Rugby. Unfortunately we do not know the origins of this Trophy but it contains results all the way back to 1958. We look forward to getting it cleaned up and updated with recent results.
If you know any of the history about ‘The Hawton Trophy’ –please let us know
🏆 Current Holders– Western Sydney Two Blues
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Boronia Park Ovals at Hunters Hill NSW, hosted by Hunters Hill Rugby Club
🏆 Tournament History- The U14 Girls Shield has been awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U14 Girls State Championships from 2019-present. Initially contested at an U13 level, in 2020 it moved to U14’s.
A former Killara junior, Phil was a dedicated administrator of the junior game for a total of six years. He joined the NSWJRU Board as the Chairman of Metropolitan Western Zone in 1997 (out of Beecroft Cherrybrook club) and after an extremely short apprenticeship he was elected to the role of President of NSW Juniors in1998 when the then President Wayne Brown stepped down. Phil proceeded to lead the NSW Juniors Board as President for a total of five years until the end of the 2002 season. Over this period of 1998-2002, Phil was also the Juniors delegate to the NSW Rugby Union Board as well as a NSW delegate to the Australian Junior Rugby Union (AJRU).
Some of the highlights of Phil’s contribution to NSW Juniors include the restructuring of the NSWJRU committee in 1999 – which reflected the re-establishment of SJRU in1998 and the Metropolitan Zones being represented by SJRU on the NSWJRU Committee. He also oversaw the naming of the City vs Country trophies in 1998to the names we celebrate today (Gavin, Tuynman, Ella and Brial Trophies). Phil also holds a special place in history as the most recent NSWJRU President to oversee a Wallabies World Cup victory in 1999 and to experience the positive effects this had on the junior game.
Phil has been nominated for Honorary Life Membership of NSWJRU in 2021. https://www.nswjuniors.com.au/life-members/19-p-c-warner
🏆 Current Holders– Manly Junior Rugby Union
🏆 2021 Host Venue– St Lukes Ovals at Concord NSW, hosted by West Harbour Juniors
🏆 Tournament History- The U15 Boys Shield has been awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U15 State Championships from 1994-present.
John Goddard was a long serving committee member of NSW Juniors in the 1980’s and 1990’s spending 6 years on NSW Juniors committees. He began as the VP Sponsorship in 1989 and then took over as NSWJRU President mid-season in 1990 and he stepped down at the end of 1994 season. John also held many official roles across NSW Rugby and Australian Junior Rugby Union over this period as delegate NSWRU (1990-94) and delegate AJRU(1990-93)
John was appointed Life Membership in 1995.
🏆 Current Holders- Gordon Junior Rugby Club Inc
🏆 2021 Host Venue- North Narrabeen Reserve & Rat Park, hosted by Narrabeen Tigers Junior Rugby Club
🏆 Tournament History- The U16 Boys Shield was awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U16 State Championships from 1958-present.
The Chas Hansen Trophy is an existing Shield for the U16Boys State Championships which we found in the archives at NSW Rugby. Unfortunately we do not know the exact origins of this Trophy but it contains results all the way back to 1961. It is an amazing Shield and we look forward to getting it cleaned up and updated with recent results.
If you know any of the history about ‘The Chas Hansen Trophy’ – please let us know
🏆 Current Holders– Penrith Junior Rugby Union & Coomera Crushers
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Boronia Park Ovals at Hunters Hill NSW, hosted by Hunters Hill Rugby Club
🏆 Tournament History- The U16 Girls Shield has been awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U16 Girls State Championships from 2018-present. Initially contested at an U15 level, in 2020it moved to U16’s.
Kerry has the distinction to be the longest serving member of the NSW Junior Rugby administration, holding nearly every position at some stage, over her 14+ year tenure.
Kerry’s roles on the NSWJRU Board include President (2013-15), VP Representative (2010-12), Secretary (2016-present), SJRU delegate(2008-09)
Kerry has also served as Competition Manager for our affiliate Sydney Junior Rugby Union and her present role is Shute Shield Competition manager. There are also many other roles within clubland that Kerry has held over the years – such as Rugby Manager at Eastern Suburbs 2007-2012.
Throughout this time Kerry has shown a great passion for junior rugby and her knowledge is second to none on large junior events such as the State Championships and other Representative fixtures.
Kerry was appointed Life Membership in 2019. https://www.nswjuniors.com.au/life-members/18-kerry-brady
🏆 Current Holders– Randwick Juniors
🏆 2021 Host Venue– North Narrabeen Reserve & Rat Park, hosted by Narrabeen Tigers Junior Rugby Club
🏆 Tournament History- The U18 Boys Shield has been awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U18 State Championships from 1980-present.
The NSWJRU Shield is an existing Shield for the U18 Boys State Championships. We actually found a couple of different versions of this Shield in the archives at NSW Rugby. Probably explained by the fact that over the years it has gone through many changes and has been played at U17, U18& U19 age levels – sometimes a combination of these ages in the same year. The Shield has been replaced and updated to reflect its vast array of historical results.
With the improvements to the U18 pathway and the fact the pathway from club rugby now makes players eligible for the Australian Schools& U18 team, we hope to see continued growth in this age group. The 2021 U18Boys State Championships was the largest number of teams entered for as long as we can remember.
As an added boost to the U18 State Champs program, in 2021 we selected an U18 NSW Barbarians Rep team from only participants who competed at the event. This Rep team had games scheduled against ACT Schools, Victorian Schools, NSW Schools I & II, but unfortunately COVID-19meant these games did not get played. We plan on selecting this NSW Barbarians team again in 2022 – so an added incentive for players to participate at the State Champs.
🏆 Current Holders– Sydney University
🏆 2021 Host Venue– Boronia Park Ovals at Hunters Hill NSW, hosted by Hunters Hill rugby Club
🏆 Tournament History- The U18 Girls Shield was awarded to the winner of the NSWJRU U18 Girls State Championships from 2018-present. Initially contested at an U17 level, in 2020it moved to U18’s to fall in line with the U18 Super W pathway.
J.B.Carroll was our founding father - a long serving committee member of NSW Juniors in the 1950’s and 1960’s. His service is not fully recorded but it appears he was on NSWJRU committee for at least 8-10years. John was a huge part of the forming of NSW Juniors in the mid 1950's and he became the foundation President of NSWJRU.
From what we can glean of his history - John was a tireless champion of the game. After being heavily involved with junior rugby at Northern Suburbs, in 1946 John recognized that Gordon District were not making the most of their junior resources at the time. He advocated the disbanding of Gordon Juniors in favour of the Gordon-Northern Districts Junior Rugby Union which was to establish suburban sides within the district. G-NDJRU maintained its independence till 1972 when it was absorbed back into Gordon District. John is a Life Member of Gordon Rugby also. John was also President of Hornsby Rugby Club.
John B Carroll was appointed the very first Life Membership of NSW Juniors & was an elected Life Member of NSWRU (1966). He also served in WWII.
A true champion of the junior rugby game in NSW it is fitting that we celebrate John's service with this dedication. If you know of any more information on John or his time in rugby please let us know and we can add to his Life Member profile https://www.nswjuniors.com.au/life-members/1-j-b-carroll
