Hurlstone Park honour 1960 legendry team
Back in 1960 Hurlstone Park Wanderers was a much smaller club than it is now, but it certainly punched above it’s weight.
The club’s founder Bill Brackenbury was already a stalwart of the Canterbury District Soccer Football Association, and coaching representative sides.
The club’s under 12s side boasted football greats, including Kevin Best, who was in 2018 awarded an Order of Australia for his services to club football, and Jim Fraser who went on to play goalkeeper for Australia and is still a coach educator for Football NSW.
Players from the 1960 u12s teams went on to representative inter-Association football, and continued to play with the club through to All Ages, winning Champion of Champions for the Association, and the Robertson Cup. Some of the players were part of a 1961 Association reps team coached by the legendary “Bracks”.
Football clearly runs through the veins of these men.
On the 12th of May 2018, Hurlstone Park Wanderers was absolutely thrilled and honoured to welcome seven members of the 1960 u12s team back to Ewen Park for a reunion.
The gents were a fit bunch, who truly looked like they might be willing to take to the field with the club’s All Age Men’s Div 1 team, who they came to watch.
It was a very enjoyable day for all, despite the fact that it was the first truly wintry day for football this year.
Some of the 1960 u12s arrived at Ewen Park early in time to watch our u8s and u9s teams and to mingle with committee members and our young players.
Hurlstone Park Wanderers’ younger players were pretty excited to meet Jim Fraser and his team mates and intrigued by the idea that the players had played football with a leather football that would feel like a brick when it got wet.
As the rain set in on this particular day, this probably felt a bit too close for comfort.
Later in the day, all seven players who had gathered for the reunion returned to Ewen Park to watch the AA1 clash between neighbouring clubs HPW and Cooks River Titans.
It was also great to have CDSFA CEO Ian Holmes and Football NSW Coach Educator Oscar Gonzalez at the park to enjoy the occasion with the team.
Gonzalez spoke of the significance such an event held within the football community – a team that still stayed together sixty years later.
“How often do you hear of a football team having reunions from their childhood team some 60 years later.
“It was a moment I could not afford to miss.”
Hurlstone Park Wanderers were very pleased to present the members of the 1960s u12 team with commemorative caps to celebrate their reunion.
They then enjoyed the best that club football can offer with a tightly fought game.
The 1960s gents were particularly impressed by the quality of the refereeing from the Canterbury Referees Association all female referee team for the game.
These gentlemen truly embody the spirit of club football.
They had come together from across NSW – some local to Sydney, but some further away, and many of them are still involved in local football.
They really prove that the love of the beautiful game is a life time commitment, and that the volunteering spirit is alive and well.
These players are giving back to the game even today, and we are delighted that Jim Fraser has offered to provide our coaches with goalkeeper training in the next season.
The club is now looking forward to welcoming the 1960s u12 team back to the club for our centenary in 2024.
