Nostalgia and Memories

[tulley]

The season and the decade is coming to an end not just for Manly but all teams will be finished within a month. After the thread about the heritage round,I have been thinking about the GOOD OLD DAYS which many here were not priveleged to witness so I thought that now is the right time to reflect.    I started taking an interest in 1967 when Cronulla and Penrith were admitted. It was the era of Scanlens cards, the Daily Mirror and the Sun newspaper, Rugby League was king of the sports in Sydneyand St George and Souths were the teams to beat. Manly had a good solid team and was on the rise after just missing out on a spot in the 69 grand final to Balmain who went on to win that year.              Things were about to change BIG TIME. The poker machines at the leagues club must have been spinning off their reels because under the guidence of Ken Arthurson, Manlys CEO, Manly was about to go on a decade of buying top players from Australia and England which took Manly to the top of the tree but the ramifications of that decade live on today.                          I will continue this thread through the off season from a supporters perspective so if any details are not 100% please correct me, I think we can talk this right  through to Sir Les, who came to Manly at the end of the 79 season........ GO MANLY.

 

[Duff]

One incorrect detail is that the decade has only just started.

 

[ManlyBacker]

I remember the Sun and Daily Mirror. I was such a League tragic I bought both editions in the afternoon to get my fix. Plus the coverage of the GGs was exceptional in those days.

 

[Canteen Worker]

MB are you talking about the girls on the page 3 that used to appear in the arvo editions of one of the paper. Like Fred Nile, I never used to look at them but I believe that the bikini clad glamours were a strong selling point to the paper. I wouldn't know of course as I used to read the sport. I never bought the Sunday Mirror either that had the topless lass on Page 3!!!!!

 

[ManlyBacker]

I had forgotten about the bikini-clad lasses CW, obviously you haven't! I was referring to the horse racing coverage. Both papers had huge desks devoted to both League and Racing.

 

[tulley]

Point taken about the decade issue, but we were hearing about the ten years since the olympics all week and it threw me.      It must have been at about the end of the 69 season that an enormous amount of work was completed at Brookvale to modernise it and bring it from an Agricultural Show ground to modern football ground. Before the work commenced there was a trotting track around the football playing area which put the spectators a long way from the action. The rectangular style ground that was created increased the seating capacity and was a huge improvement. The Jane Try stand was constructed in that era but my memory is not exact about when. I think the Manly club made a very signifigant contribution towards the cost of these improvements and when you look at that grandstand today it makes me wonder what sort of money would it take in todays dollars to build?  I would expect that government grants also would have been required to complete those works.

 

[Duff]

Point taken about the decade issue, but we were hearing about the ten years since the olympics all week and it threw me.      It must have been at about the end of the 69 season that an enormous amount of work was completed at Brookvale to modernise it and bring it from an Agricultural Show ground to modern football ground. Before the work commenced there was a trotting track around the football playing area which put the spectators a long way from the action. The rectangular style ground that was created increased the seating capacity and was a huge improvement. The Jane Try stand was constructed in that era but my memory is not exact about when. I think the Manly club made a very signifigant contribution towards the cost of these improvements and when you look at that grandstand today it makes me wonder what sort of money would it take in todays dollars to build?  I would expect that government grants also would have been required to complete those works.

See, the ground's already been modernised.

 

[Canteen Worker]

In RLW in 1974 Brookvale was awarded The Best Suburban Ground.

Since then the now Menzies/Fulton stand has been built, the Arko Stand has been erected along with a new entrance way, the Western Hill has been cut down (there used to be a tunnel over the Southern end) and lights and the scoreboard have been upgraded.

Compare that to all other grounds and you can see we have been short-changed and now deserve the Worst Suburban Ground award!!!

 

[Duff]

In RLW in 1974 Brookvale was awarded The Best Suburban Ground.

Since then the now Menzies/Fulton stand has been built, the Arko Stand has been erected along with a new entrance way, the Western Hill has been cut down (there used to be a tunnel over the Southern end) and lights and the scoreboard have been upgraded.

Compare that to all other grounds and you can see we have been short-changed and now deserve the Worst Suburban Ground award!!!

Are you going to Kogarah CW?

After having been there just a few weeks ago, it's not better than Brookvale. It's not bad, just a little less well set out. Cronulla & Penriff are straight sh1t. Need I go on?

We could do with some funding but it should be used to ensure the clubs bills are paid.