Tom Brock Lecture
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The Tom Brock Lecture is an annual scholarly lecture organised by the Australian Society for Sports History at the
bequest A bequest is property given by will. Historically, the term ''bequest'' was used for personal property given by will and ''deviser'' for real property. Today, the two words are used interchangeably. The word ''bequeath'' is a verb form for the act ...
of Australian sports historian Tom Brock. The topic of the lecture is the history of rugby league football. It has been given by leading writers and academics every year since 1999, at the
New South Wales Rugby League The New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory and is a member of the Australian Rugby League Commission. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was ...
's headquarters at
Phillip Street Phillip Street is a street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. While the street runs from King Street in the south to Circular Quay in the north, the present street is effectively in two sections, sepa ...
in the Sydney CBD. David Rowe, an academic, caused some controversy when he used his 2006 lecture to question football's prospects in the future following negative off-field media coverage.
Shane Webcke Shane Webcke (born 28 September 1974) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer, who spent his entire club career playing for the Brisbane Broncos. Webcke represented Queensland in the State of Origin 21 times and also captai ...
was set to become the first player to give the lecture when he was invited to do so in 2007, but this did not eventuate. In 2010, the
Australian Society for Sports History Australian Society for Sports History (ASSH) was formed in July 1983. The aim of the Society is to encourage discussion on the history of sport in Australia through research, publishing and events such as conferences and workshops. Background Th ...
and the Tom Brock Bequest Committee published ''Tales From Coathanger City: Ten Years of Tom Brock Lectures''. The book includes the Tom Brock lectures delivered from 1999 to 2008, an essay considering 10 years of lectures and study of the game, a biography of Tom Brock and some information on the Bequest Committee.


List of lectures

#29 September 1999 - Dr Andrew Moore: '' Jimmy Devereux's Yorkshire Pudding: Reflections on the origins of
rugby league in New South Wales Rugby league, in New South Wales, is the most popular participation and spectator sport. It currently has the highest attendance and television audiences of the various codes of football in the state, far outstripping any other competitors. The ...
and
Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...
'' #30 November 2000 - Ian Heads: ''"Gang-gangs at one o'clock" … and Other Flights of Fancy; A Personal Journey through Rugby League'' #20 September 2001 - Alex Buzo: ''Sydney: The Heart of Rugby League'' #22 August 2002 - Alan Clarkson: ''The Changing Face of Rugby League'' #4 July 2003 - Tony Collins: ''"Ahr Waggy":
Harold Wagstaff Harold Wagstaff (9 May 1891 – 19 July 1939), also known by the nickname of "Waggy", was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s, 1910s and 1920s. He played as a and was nicknamed the ''Prince of Centres''. A c ...
and the making of Anglo-Australian rugby league culture'' #22 September 2004 -
Tom Keneally Thomas Michael Keneally, AO (born 7 October 1935) is an Australian novelist, playwright, essayist, and actor. He is best known for his non-fiction novel '' Schindler's Ark'', the story of Oskar Schindler's rescue of Jews during the Holocaust, ...
, AO: ''No more bloody bundles for Britain: The Post-World War II tours of the British and French Allies'' #21 September 2005 - Roy Masters: ''The Great
Fibro Asbestos cement, genericized as fibro, fibrolite (short for "fibrous (or fibre) cement sheet") or AC sheet, is a building material in which asbestos fibres are used to reinforce thin rigid cement sheets. Although invented at the end of the 19t ...
versus Silvertail Wars'' #21 September 2006 - David Rowe: ''The Stuff of Dreams, or the Dream Stuffed? Rugby League, Media Empires, Sex Scandals, and Global Plays'' #27 September 2007 -
Sean Fagan Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán ( anglicized as '' Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angli ...
: ''Nothing But a Nine-Day Wonder: The founding of rugby league—Australia’s first professional code'' #6 November 2008 - Lex Marinos, OAM: ''From a Federation Game to a League of Nations'' #23 September 2009 - Terry Williams: ''The Lost Tribes of League – the fate of axed and merged clubs and their fans'' #23 September 2010 - John Fahey, AC: ''Tries and Tribulations'' #15 September 2011 -
Debbie Spillane Deborah Elizabeth Spillane (born 25 December 1955) is an Australian sports journalist and commentator. Early life and education Spillane was born in Sydney, and was educated at Bethlehem College, Ashfield and received a Bachelor of Arts from ...
'The view from the ladies stand' #6 September 2012 - David Hill: ''Can Rugby League Survive the Twenty-first Century?'' #18 September 2013 -
Frank Puletua Frank Puletua (born 8 May 1978) is a former Samoa international rugby league footballer who played in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. A , he played his club football in the National Rugby League for Australian clubs the Penrith Panthers and the Sout ...
: ''The Chocolate Soldiers – The emergence of western Sydney’s new league of players'' #8 October 2014 - Tom Harms: ''People, Stories and Meaning in Rugby League'' #16 September 2015 - Ross McMullin: ''Retrieving Ted Larkin (1880 – 1915): Outstanding Footballer, Acclaimed Organiser, Original ANZAC'' #20 September 2016 - Dean Widders: ''My Game, My People'' #5 July 2017 -
Raelene Castle Raelene Castle (born 30 September 1970) is a sports executive who has worked in Australia and New Zealand. She was chief executive officer of Rugby Australia from 2017 to 2020, before becoming chief executive officer of Sport New Zealand. Ear ...
: ''Leadership insights from the National Rugby League and Australasian Sport'' #19 September 2018 - A panel discussion featuring Roy Masters,
Tracey Holmes Tracey Holmes, an Australian journalist, is a presenter on ABC ''NewsRadio'', since January 2014, with an extensive career in television and radio, specialising predominantly in sport. She currently presents The Ticket at 11:00am every Sunday ...
and Brian Canavan" ''How has rugby league progressed in the past 20 years?'' #24 September 2019 - Braham Dabscheck ‘Big Artie’s Most Important Offload; Forty Years of the Rugby League Players’ Association’


External links


Tom Brock Lecture
at Australian Society for Sports History website


References

{{reflist Brock History of rugby league Rugby league in Sydney