MORE than 50 past players and officials returned to Nar Nar Goon on Saturday for the launch of the football club’s Days of Goon Glory events.
The club kicked the concept off by celebrating the 90th anniversary of its first flag back in the Central Gippsland league in 1924.
Guest of honour was long-time secretary and life member Ray Coombs, whose family involvement with the club dates back to the 1920s and the 1974 fourths’ premiership was also celebrated on its 40th anniversary year.
Among those returning were former VFL/AFL stars Jack Cunningham, who played in Hawthorn’s 1961 premiership side, Matt Cunningham, who played for Fitzroy and former president Dale Evans, an ex-St Kilda player.
Coombs told guests about his family’s connection with the club, dating back to the formative years.
Ray and his father Ernie Coombs hold the distinction of being life members of both the Nar Nar Goon club and the West Gippsland Football League.
Ernie was the league’s first vice-president and Ray also served for many years on the league executive.
The first record of Nar Nar Goon playing competitive football dates back to 1910 and it played spasmodically for the next decade before officially forming as a club in 1921 under president Jack Spencer.
Ernie Coombs joined the committee in 1922.
In those early years, the racecourse was situated on the Coombs land and the football club used that site initially, before moving to its present home at Spencer Street, where again the Coombs family played a major part. As road contractors, Ernie and his father Harry did a lot of the earth-moving work to get the ground to a playable condition.
Ray himself has given 55 years of continuous service to the Nar Nar Goon club. He was secretary for 15 years in the 1980s and ’90s and still marks the ground for each home game.
He says the only job he has not done at the club is president – but jokes that it doesn’t impact on his record of service because he made a few presidents look good along the way!
Coach Les Fleming reflected on the memorable win of the Goon fourths in 1974, the first official year of the fourths competition.
He said the team that year finished fourth on the ladder, yet comfortably beat Cora Lynn in the grand final.
He was joined by his wife Dawn, the team manager, and a number of players including Brian ‘Mishy’ Dore, Paul Keysers, Gerard Cooper, Rod and Neville Palmer, Damien North and Andrew Weatherhead.
Club president Adrian Scott paid tribute to two great people recently lost to the club – long-time worker June Stephens and former player, president and life member Terry Kennelly. A minute’s silence was observed before the start of the senior game.
Next year the club plans to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the much celebrated 1965 senior premiership, the 20th anniversary of the club’s first fifths’ flag in 1995 and the thirds’ and fourths’ double in 2005.
