2011
A highlight of the awards evening was the induction of three new Legends of Wellington Sport. Keith Quinn and Sir Peter Leitch presided over the induction of Rugby League legend Colin O’Neil, who won Wellington Sportsman of the Year in 1969, whilst Sir Brian Lochore helped to induct Rugby legends Graham Williams and Ken Gray. Sadly Ken Gray passed away in 1992, but his wife Joy Gray accepted the accolade in his honour.
This award recognises Wellington Icons of Sport who have made an outstanding contribution as an athlete. The 2011 inductees are:
Ken Gray
Colin O'Neil
Graham Williams
Previous inductees of this prestigious award are:
2010
Waimarama Taumaunu
Wynton Rufer
Stewie Dempster
2009
Ewen Chatfield
Arthur Donald Duncan
Meda McKenzie
2008
Ted Morgan - Boxing Ross
Collinge - Rowing
Trevor Manning - Hockey
Alan McIntyre - Hockey
2007
Ron Jarden - Rugby
Jack Tynan - Hockey
Andy Leslie - Rugby
2006
Bill Massey - Softball
Harry Kent - Cycling
2005
Eric Tindill - Rugby/Cricket
Billy Wallace - Rugby
Dick Joyce - Rowing
Marilyn Marshall - Softball/Soccer
2004
Barrie Devenport - Distance Swimming
Rebecca Perrott - Swimming
John Reid - Cricket
2003
Onny Parun - Tennis
Wellington has produced many great rugby league players over the years including Colin O’Neil, otherwise known as the ‘sleepy fox’! Colin had his first taste of senior club football in 1959 playing for Marist at the age of just 16, making his first Wellington provincial appearance in 1963. He was selected as a hooker for the Kiwis in 1967, went on to captain the team in 1969-1970 and toured with the Kiwis in 1971 to Great Britain and France, retiring at the end of the season. His achievements included not only long tours overseas, including Australia, but also two World Cup campaigns. In 1969 Colin was awarded the NZ Rugby League “Player of the Year” award and that same year was also awarded the Wellington Sportsperson of the Year title. Colin was the first recipient of the Steve Watene Memorial Trophy. Each year Wellington Rugby League presents a prestige award, it is rightly named the “Colin O’Neil” trophy for the “best and fairest player”.
Universally known as “GC”, Graham Charles Williams is synonymous with the game of rugby in our province and New Zealand. As a player for the Wellington Football Club, coach and administrator Graham has contributed immensely to the game. Graham was selected for the Wellington ‘A’ team straight from Rongotai College and went on to play a record 174 games for the union between 1964-72 and 1975-76. In 1967 Graham was selected as an All Black going on to play 18 games, scoring 16 tries, which for a flank forward was an incredible strike rate. After retirement from playing top level rugby Graham went on to coach at various club and representative levels in Wellington, including an assistant coaching role with the Wellington Lions. He was made a Vice President of the union in 2004/05 and President in 2006.
Ken Gray is and will always be the colossus of Athletic Park. Ken’s rugby career began in 1951. Ken played for both Petone and Paramata clubs and was captain of Wellington in the 1960s. When we did lift the shield from Auckland, the party continued on the Sunday overnight train [lots of guitars and singing], supporters, team, and partners all travelled back together. We were met on the Wellington Station by the Mayor, Sir Francis Kitts who made the speech we all knew by heart. “Win or lose, rain or shine, I shall always be here to greet you”. In those years there was great support from Wellingtonians, when the province was playing home hames, Dick Evans and his Brass Band led the C’Mon Wellington Supporters Club and Procession through town, playing “When The Saints Come Marching In” followed by floats, with people on the back of the trucks waving and cheering, and the Wellington Team waving to the crowds from the Grand Hotel, Willis St, balcony.
Ken was selected to play for the All Blacks in 1963 and after a career spanning 18 years he retired from top level rugby at the end of 1969, with nothing left to prove after winning the two test series against Wales. In the seven years Ken played for the All Blacks he toured the British Isles, France and Canada playing 24 international games alongside giants such as Meads, Tremain and Lochore. Ken possessed incredible scrummaging power and technique and also displayed outstanding mobility, fearlessness, intelligence and acumen. He was a man of integrity and composure who had nothing to prove against the young and inexperienced, freely offering advice from his broad experience. The Ken Gray Academy was established in 1995 in Ken’s name to assist in the development of the best young players to help them through club to representative level.
“Wai”, as she is universally known, was only in her mid-teens when she entered representative netball and by 1981, she was in the national team. Through the 80s, she formed an accomplished defence pairing with goal keep Tracy Fear, a combination that greatly contributed to New Zealand’s world championship win in 1987. Captain from 1989 to 1991, Wai was physically imposing on the court and had instinctive flair combined with a great appreciation of strategy. Her final international was in what was regarded as one of the best international netball matches, a one-goal loss to Australia in the 1991 world championship final. Wai is still strongly involved in netball in the Wellington Region at club level with PIC and nationally as the Technical Advisor for the ANZ Haier Pulse franchise and Silver Ferns Assistant Coach.
When the great football players of New Zealand are being discussed, one name unanimously is thrust to the fore. Wynton Rufer burst on the national consciousness when the national team, the All Whites, qualified for the World Cup finals in 1982 and it wasn’t long before he was recognised internationally as well. He played for clubs in Switzerland before he moved to Werder Bremen in the Bundesliga in 1989. There, he became a household name, one of the celebrated superstars of European soccer. In his six years with Werder Bremen, there was league and cup success and he scored one of the goals in Werder’s 2-0 defeat of Monaco in the 1992 European Cup Winners’ Cup final. He also played in Japan, returned for another winner’s medal with Kaiserslautern in Germany before returning to New Zealand. He was player-coach of New Zealand’s first professional team. He was voted Oceania Player of the Year three times and was named Oceania Footballer of the Century. He is a Fifa ambassador, serves on two Fifa committees and is personal advisor to the president of the Oceania confederation.
To look for the quality of Stewie Dempster as a test batsman, it’s only necessary to look at the all time best averages. At the top is D G Bradman with his unmatchable 99.94 and next comes C S Dempster with 65.72. It may be said that it is an inflated average because he played only 10 tests, but who’s to say the consistency Dempster displayed in those tests could not have been carried on? Dempster without question was one of the best batsman to come from New Zealand and at his best, was among the finest in the world. He scored 2165 runs on the 1927 tour of England and in the match against Warwickshire, he hit one bowler for five fours in an over. In the first series in New Zealand, against England in 1929-30, he scored 136 in Wellington in the second test to become the first centurion for New Zealand and he and Jack Mills put on an opening stand of 276, which remains a record against England. Dempster’s dominance continued on the 1931 tour of England, during which he scored his highest first-class score, 212 against Essex. Dempster later returned to England and played for Warwickshire and Leicestershire, for the Gentlemen against the Players, and also for Scotland.
