Boom, bust, beer and glory: This is Woden Valley Rams
Woden Valley Rams have been broke, lost a licensed club and had a 22-year finals drought. They've also won four grand finals while 23 Rams have played NRL/NSWRL. This is the little bush that could.
Rugby league in Canberra in the 1960s was primitive, according to foundation Woden Valley Rams man and current chairman, Peter Cox.
“It was real, old bush footy; last man standing stuff. If you live in a country town toughness is the byword. It gets you through socially, that’s where you get your respect from.
“Our ball skills were rudimentary to say the least. The main criterion was ability to stay upright.
“It was unscientific at best.”
There were 40,000 people in the bush capital and one first division footy club playing in the old Group 8 against Queanbeyan, Captains Flat, Yass, Goulburn and Crookwell.
And each year the Canberra club would call themselves something new “so they didn’t have to pay players,” Cox says.
“They’d be Canberra Dragons one year, Canberra United the next.
“They were the Canberra Everythings! They’d run out in the same jumper just with a different name.
“But it seemed to work quite well as a business model. The players kept turning up. They never lost anyone.
“There was nowhere else to go!” Cox says.
A player called Gordon Moffat wanted something else. He called a public meeting in the Hughes Community Centre. On the agenda was a new football club to compete in Canberra second division. There was a show of hands. Woden Valley Rams were born.
Within three seasons, a premiership. Undefeated! The coach was a bloke from Junee, Bernie Fraser,whowould become Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia.
Cox, though, puts the first premiership down to the law.
“We had an influx of coppers! We had half the Canberra police force playing for us. They were all relatively fit and, shall we say, ‘physical’ sort of guys.
“It made an enormous difference on and off the field – it helped us get out of trouble if the boys played up!” Cox says.
Fraser gave coaching away for banking while Queanbeyan Blues lobbied for the Rams to be included in first division. The Queanbeyan Leagues Club offered to pay for a captain-coach. The Rams accepted. Roger Tait, an 11-Test Kiwis fullback was flown in from Auckland.
Others came from the big smoke: Peter Fardell was recruited from Balmain. Graham Gardiner, a Canberra local, came back from the Roosters. Trevor Barnes came from Souths. There were sporadic semi-final appearances – '74, ’78, ’80.
“And that was the end of our glory years for a while,” laments Cox.
Boom, bust, repeat
By the end of 1980 the Rams were broke. Barnes, their "big name" recruit from South Sydney had been paid big overs. Cox bears him no ill will.
“He was a great bloke and great footballer. But he was pricey. And we didn’t have enough money to pay anyone else because of it!
“So we said to the players, ‘We’re not going to pay any more players until you fellas get paid’,” Cox says.
In the three seasons following, the Rams paid their debts to their past players - and paid new ones with beer.
“After a game each player got six beer tickets. It improved the social environment enormously! They’d come back to the club, enjoy six grogs and be primed up for the rest of the night. And we had some fantastic nights because they were all full of ink,” Cox says.
There followed a slow burn: Semi-finals in ‘84 under Jamie Mathieson, recruited from the Blues. Semis in ‘85, ‘86 and ‘87 under Richard Cooke, a foundation Canberra Raiders front-rower. Fardell came back to coach in ’88 and the club won the premiership. The glory days were back.
The Rams made the next three grand finals but lost each time to West Belconnen. In 1996 the club won its second top grade premiership. Coaches across the period included Gary McDonnel, Jamie McInnes, Darrel McDonald and Jeff Cox, son of Peter.
The nucleus of the 1996 premiers came from an U/19s team that played together for eight years.
“We poked our head up occasionally to win something then someone would come and knock it off.
“So then we’d grow another one!” Cox says.
The club would reach the semi-finals once in the next 22 years.
Closure
The Woden Valley Rams’ licensed club closed in 1995 after 20 years in business.
They could fill it on a Saturday night. Big name bands would get there and the club would be packed. But they’d still lose money because the bar was too small to serve grog to everybody.
Even with poker machines, the premises had rarely made a profit. “Rams” was a pokey little joint. And the giant Southern Cross Club was right next door. The ’96 premiership was celebrated in a local bowling club.
Cox won't blame the licensed club’s closure for their finals drought.
“Fact is we weren’t good enough. The Blues and Kangaroos had better players. We didn’t have the players because we didn’t have money to pay.
“And to be honest we weren’t that interested in buying new ones. We’d get the odd one in to jack up the locals.
“But we wanted local blokes who’d play for the jumper,” Cox says.
And so into another slow burn.
Coach Cam Hardy instilled a professional work ethic. Ash Barnes polished it. And in 2018 the club knew glory again - a grand final win over Tuggeranong Bushrangers.
After leading 31-nil at half-time, the Rams “brained ‘em”, according to Cox whose tongue is rarely far from his cheek.
“We ended up winning 31-30.
“We were always going to win, though. It was just how we were going to do it.”
Comparing the premiership sides of 1996 and 2018, Cox says there was “nothing flash” about either team.
“Not many imports. All Rams blokes or fellas who’d just wandered in.”
It’s how it’s always been at the Rams. They're born and bred to it.
Or they just wander in.
Players
The most famous Rams player would be Larry Corowa, who turned up at training in 1976. Corowa came with another brilliant footballer in Percy Knight. Knight came from Condoblin. Neither man had any football pedigree.
“Percy came to town and played a season for East Canberra. We got onto him, sweet-talked him and he came and played for us.
“Brilliant player, beautiful hands, ball skills. But at the time he was just an unknown young bloke; he didn’t have any reputation.
“And Larry, he'd never played rugby league before. He didn’t need to have! When you’re that fast you don’t need to know anything other than run fast. And he did that! He was just super, lightning quick,” Cox says.
Cashed-up Queanbeyan Kangaroos pinched Knight and Corowa from the Rams though didn’t get much value, according to Cox.
“There was a bit of sweet justice for us because Percy and Larry were so often tied up with rep games. They only played three games for the Roos which we found hilarious.
“Then they both went to Balmain,” Cox says.
Big Sam Backo played for the Rams U/18s before he was poached by the Statesman Hotel’s Monaro league pub team.
In 2009 Brenton “BJ” Lawrence wandered in from Adelaide. He’d come over to play in Raiders junior sides but couldn’t crack the top grade. He captain-coached the Rams for one season and “basically got us into the semis single-handedly,” according to Cox.
Lawrence went on to Gold Coast Titans before playing 85 games for Manly.
All told 23 Rams players have played in Sydney (NSWRL) or National Rugby League, including 12 Rams juniors.
“That's not bad for a little bush club,” Cox says.
Too right. Particularly one without any money. How do they do it?
Cox laughs. “We brainwash our juniors! These kids come out of juniors not knowing any better! And some of these young blokes, they’d die for the Rams jumper. There’s blokes go up to Mounties, to Raiders U/20s and they still want to come back and play for us. It speaks volumes for the joint.”
Cox says the ethos has been the same at the club for 54 years.
“It’s the same as the motto for the Coronavirus: we’re all in this together. It’s always been our way.
“We’re not in it for the bloody money, that’s for sure!”
Loved it ( but I am a bit biased)
Anthony Seibold played for Rams to Matt did you count him?