On Friday 31 May, over 375 guests (a record attendance) came together at Dockside Darling Harbour for the Newington College Rugby Association Season Lunch to celebrate ‘150 Years of Rugby at Newington’. Gordan Bray AM and Justin Sampson were the MC’s for the 150-year lunch and hosted three panels of guest speakers reliving the History of Rugby at Newington.

The College is proud to have strong connections to speakers such as Bob Dwyer AM, Phil Kearns AM (ON 1984) and Simon Poidevin AM. They certainly had colourful stories to share about being on tour with the Wallabies. Digging further back into history, Graeme Macdougall (ON 1958) and John Freedman OAM reflected on how tough the game was back in their days of playing for the Wallabies. Scott Bowen (ON 1990) and Adam Byrnes (ON 1999) discussed how the game has changed through the years, and all speakers spoke of the passion and love for the game and how it should be carried on in the future.

The lunch included the launch of the book ‘150 Years of Rugby at Newington’ authored by Barry Ross, a passionate Rugby supporter, past Newington Parent, past Rugby President and sports journalist. Sample copies were available to preview ahead of the official release scheduled for Saturday 3 August at Back To Newington Day.

Copies can be pre-purchased here.
You will be directed to the online portal, use the drop-down boxes to select History of Rugby book and select the number of copies/editions you would like to purchase.

The book includes stories of past players and game results throughout the 150 years. It will make a beautiful addition to the library of any family connected with Newington. The Limited Edition is signed by notable Newingtonians and features an embossed hardcover and slipcase. A standard edition is also available. 

Thank you to everyone that attended as it was a great day to catch up with past, present and future rugby players.

Julie Gigg
Office of Community and Development