Visiting Dragons Legends’ Walk at Kogarah Oval
BY JAMES SMITH
One of the truly fantastic corners of the rugby league world is the Dragons "Legends Walk" at Kogarah Oval in Carlton, Sydney.
Opened back in March 2004, it currently recognises the footy
heroics of 18 of the greatest and most famous players to have ever adorned the
Red V, be that in the St George era or since the club's joint venture with
Illawarra.
This place is magic. Simple in design, the Walk stretches
from the corner of Jubilee Ave and Park Street, right up to the main admin
entrance of the famous old suburban ground.
I didn't go for this reason, but when your author last
rocked up to the monument, Norm "Sticks" Provan had just departed the
world and the roses had begun piling up on his particular part of the display.
"The Finisher" immortalised at Kogarah Oval. |
I've always been fascinated by the names of the great players who were wowing crowds in the decades before I arrived on planet Earth.
One player whose name I knew, but who I didn't really know
anything about, was the winger Eddie Lumsden.
Like all of them, Mr Lumsden, nicknamed "The Finisher", sounds like he was a colourful character, but Larry Writer offers an
interesting insight into the player's main on-field strengths. Off the field, by all reports, Eddie was an astute businessman.
"On St George's right wing, Eddie Lumsden was like a
cat on burning tiles," Larry wrote in his classic 1995 book "Never
Before, Never Again".
The Dragons' Legends Walk, a beautiful corner of the rugby league world. |
"Though big, gangling and fast, he was an edgy player, hyperactive and tense, who seemed to take three steps to other players' one.
"His scampering running style made him a nightmare to
tackle and he combined elusiveness with a good fend and a hip-pump," Mr
Writer continued.
Thank you Mr Lumsden, thank you Mr Writer and thank you to
whoever is responsible for the installation of the Dragons' Legends' Walk - a
real rugby league treasure in suburban Sydney.