Preamble: The season commenced 28 April and concluded after 16 Rounds for Waratahs with the semi-final on 8 September. Six clubs participated in the 1st XV competition: Cootamundra, Griffith, Riverina College of Advanced Education (RCAE), Wagga Wagga Agricultural College (WAC), Wagga City and Wagga Waratahs. Six clubs fielded teams in the 2nd XV: Cootamundra, R.A.A.F, RCAE, WAC, Wagga City, Wagga Waratahs. Thirty players donned the 1st XV jersey and 24 the 2nd XV jersey.
WAC successfully defended their 1972 premiership in the Byrnes Cup and Cootamundra were the premiers in the 2nd XV David Jones Shield.
Photo: taken at the 2008 50th celebrations Naish Storman, Austin Kurrle and Blane Hamilton.
Austin Kurrle is only one of two members who played over 400 games for the Waratahs. Warwick Grant went on to play over 500 games.

After the near crisis year of 1972 and the rebuilding of numbers, 1973 looked considerably more promising. Mike Ashby took the coaching role together with Bob Neich and that year saw the arrival of a large number of Hawkesbury Ag graduates. This included Lyndon Taylor, Trevor May, Chris Barnett, Bob Sampson and Milton Kennedy. Suddenly the club had sufficient players to field a second grade side. Imagine the surprise of needing to acquire a second set of jumpers. The Mike Ashby style of coaching obviously proved worthwhile as new recruit Brian Mansfield in the forward ranks went on to Australian representative level.

More impressive was the arrival to the club of Warwick Grant who was to continue playing for the next 38 years, a club record unlikely to be broken.

Andrew Lees and John “Bags” Moloney also joined during this year. This was clearly the start of a new era for the Waratahs with Bags proving to be one of the great players of the competition. He had previously starred with the Ag College.

During the year, after a send-off for Ken Tyson, Warwick Grant and Austin Kurrle were involved in a serious motor vehicle accident. This resulted in a reshuffling of many positions, and the opportunity arose for newer players to leave their mark on the club.

The 1973 annual committee meeting decided ‘that the club purchase one dozen socks so that all players are in the correct attire’. 

By year’s end Vern Kurrle had played 65 games and Bill Heffernan had played 61 games. 

1st XV: Played 16 games: won 9, lost 6. Lost semi-final to Cootamundra 0-7. 

Players with the highest number of points in 1973:

Brian Mansfield (Best and Fairest), Bill Heffernan (returned to the club for one year after a three year layoff), John Moloney, lan Lamont, Eugene Moloney and Mike Ashby.

EXCERPTS FROM THE MINUTE BOOK 1973

The 1973 meeting decided ‘that the club purchase one dozen socks so that all players are in the correct attire.’ Mike Ashley spoke about ‘being sceptical about entry of two sides at the start of 1973 but the end of the season saw some players being omitted. Fitness was essential to a player early in the season, not halfway through.’

This year the team moved from The Australian Hotel to Romano’s. 

Anthony Paul

‘I was recruited in Romano’s at 10:30am on a Saturday morning, still in my dinner suit from a B&S Ball. I was taken to Forest Hill in my dinner suit, given shorts, boots etc… and played for the rest of the season.’

Source: A History of the Wagga Wagga Waratahs Rugby Club 1959 – 2015

PURCHASE YOUR COPY HERE