While most people were switching off over the Christmas break, Sarina rugby league historian Neil Campion was doing the opposite, spending hours at Mackay City Library piecing together 100 years of Sarina Senior Rugby League history. He tracked down old records, revisited the names that built the club, and pulled together the moments that shaped Sarina’s rise through the decades.
For a century, Sarina has been a breeding ground of champions, built on family ties, hard work and pride in the local jersey.
Sarina entered the Mackay Rugby League competition in 1925 with the early years shaped by families whose names still echo around town. George Parrott and Stan Nolan were part of those beginnings, alongside surnames like Phillips, Bell, Coleman and McLeod.
“These people should be remembered as they have produced players for the club through generations,” Neil said.
That sense of continuity sits at the heart of Sarina’s story. Few families illustrate it better than the Places. Arthur Place played in the late 1920s and 30s, followed by his son Rodney through the 1960s and 70s, and then Rodney’s sons Mark and Ryan through the 1980s, 1990s and into the 2000s.
The Wright family also spans decades. Gilbert Wright’s son Paul played through the 1960s and 70s, before Aaron, Liam and Dane Wright carried the name forward. A special connection appears on the Under-18 honour board, with Liam Wright winning a premiership in 1999, 36 years after his father Paul achieved the same feat in 1963.
Not every chapter has been easy, and Neil’s research doesn’t shy away from that. From 1970 to 1980, Sarina competed as East Coast after the club owed money. Once the debt was cleared, the club returned as Sarina in 1981, reclaiming its identity and familiar white jersey with the red V. Even under a different name, success continued, with the Under-19s premiership in 1973 coached by Rodney Place, and a Reserve Grade premiership in 1976 captain-coached by Paul Wright.
Sarina’s first major top-grade breakthrough came earlier, in 1951, when the club claimed its first A Grade premiership under captain-coach Vince Simmons.
“Cedric Bishop, who was part of that 1951 team, is a life member and is still alive today,” Neil said.
Another premiership player, Tom Morphy, became a cornerstone off the field, serving on committees and managing teams through the 1980s and 90s.
As the club rebuilt, leadership behind the scenes remained critical. Neil highlights life members like Treasurer Mervyn McKenzie and long-serving president Ron Tandy.
“Ron, president from 1982 to 1991, oversaw four A Grade premierships, four Reserve Grade premierships, three Under-19 premierships and two Under-17 premierships.”
That era included one of Sarina’s proudest achievements. In 1983, the club won premierships in A Grade, Under-19 and Under-17 in the same season.
Across the decades, volunteers helped hold everything together. Alf Abdullah, known as “King Crocodile”, became one of the club’s most influential figures, managing Sarina and Mackay teams and supporting generations of players. Maisie Abdullah and Mavis Keating also played vital roles behind the scenes.
Family legacies continued through names like Keating and Goode, while other families, including the Bellas, Filosies and Hazels, also helped shape Sarina’s teams and club culture across generations.
On the field, Sarina’s A Grade record reflects both patience and persistence. The club waited 32 years between premierships in 1951 and 1983, then another 21 years between 2000 and 2021. Across its century, Sarina has now won eight A Grade premierships most recently in 2024.
Sarina’s influence also stretches well beyond local competition, producing Queensland and Australian representatives including Dale Shearer, Martin Bella, Wendell Sailor, Kevin Campion, Brianna Clark and Reuben Cotter.
For today’s juniors, those names are proof of what is possible.
A century on from 1925, Neil is now pulling his research into a book, ensuring Sarina’s century of rugby league is preserved for the next generation.
“For the next 100 years, I hope Sarina still remains the greatest club in North Queensland,” he said.
