Reviewed by Richard Tutin
Rugby League legend, the late Jack Gibson, possessed a large overcoat made of kangaroo fur. He wore it to many a football match and then it mysteriously disappeared, its whereabouts unknown.
For the purposes of this book Glen Humphries has used the legend of the missing coat as a starter to this collection of stories surrounding the game of Rugby League in Australia. One has to be careful about saying this because a lot of them centre on the state of New South Wales where the game began to be played. Most of the teams that form today’s National Rugby League organisation are centred on Sydney in the areas and suburbs in which they were founded.
Every sporting code has its myths and legends, and Rugby League is no exception. Jonathan Thurston’s headgear comes instantly to mind. Anyone who saw a North Queensland Cowboys match during his time with the team knew that he would be wearing his headgear. It appears that he didn’t hang on to this piece of his kit for very long because he gave them away as fast as he put them on his head.
Humphries reminds us of the rich history that Australian Rugby League possesses. We might think that the NRL women’s team are a recent addition to the game, however that competition began in 1921. These days it is no longer under the radar but very much out in the open where its games are as popular to the sporting public as the games of the men’s competition.
While it tells and retells tales of times past and present the stories that Humphries has gathered show that when it comes to sport, as in all things in life, no one is perfect. This includes teams, coaches and officials. Referees, for example, have copped more than their fair share of criticism over decisions that some believes have cost teams the match. Coaches have made poor decisions when picking the lineup for a particular match especially during the final’s season.
Players have got up to interesting and often scandalous escapades that have caught the eye and imagination of the media and gossip thirsty public. For every story that Humphries tells in this book that are, no doubt, many that are just waiting to be told or have even slipped through the cracks.
Anyone who is interested in rugby league will enjoy these tall tales and true of the game’s legendary past and present. In reading what Humphries presents that is one question that remains. What did happen to Jack Gibson’s fur coat? The answer to that question will probably rate a book of its own.
Glen Humphries is an award-winning journalist with the Illawarra Mercury had has well over two decades’ worth of experience in newspapers. As a writer and author he has won several awards including Beer Writer of the Year (2016) and the 2019 Rathbone History Prize for Night Terrors. He is also a lifelong rugby league lover.
Jack Gibson’s Fur Coat
by Glen Humphries
(2023)
Gelding Street Press
ISBN 9780645207132
$29.99; 224pp