Monty Porter
Encyclopedia
Montague 'Monty' Porter (1935–2011) was an Australia
n premiership winning and state representative
rugby league
footballer of the 1950s and 1960s. He was a second rower with the St. George Dragons
during their eleven-year premiership winning run from 1956 to 1966, playing in six grand finals. He was the inaugural captain of the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in that club's foundation season of 1967. After football he had a successful career as a Sports Administrator.
in the central north of New South Wales
, Porter grew up in Werris Creek where his father, a country schoolteacher was posted. He played schoolboy rugby league at Tamworth High and later for East Tamworth, where as a nineteen year old he turned out against the touring 1954 Great Britain side
. He played for Thirroul and Wests in the Southern Division. After an obligatory period national service
he arrived in Sydney in 1955 getting a start in the NSWRFL Sydney competition with Western Suburbs
. He spent the season in reserve grade making just four first-grade appearances that year. He left the club in 1956 after spending the first six games of that season in the lower grade. He trialled with Thirroul in the Southern Division
using a false name to circumvent the residential qualification rules of the time and spent the rest of the 1956 season in their top grade.
He moved to the St. George club
in 1957 and was called into the first-grade team during the 1958 finals series at prop-forward, helping the side to their 3rd successive premiership. He cemented his spot from 1959, enjoying great success as a second rower. The club won the premiership every year he was at the club. In 1966 he signed for the newly formed Cronulla club and became their foundation captain in their inaugural year in 1967.
He made one representative appearance for New South Wales
in 1960.
He won a job managing the New South Wales State Government
's sports administration arm Sports House which during the 1970s and '80s provided free administration facilities for amateur sports. He progressed to the role of Assistant Director of Sport in New South Wales which he held for four years. In 1983 he became a member of the first ever NSWRFL Board of Directors. That same year the NSWRFL found itself administering the Cronulla Sharks when the club ran into financial difficulties; Porter accepted a post as President of the club from 1984 to 1988.
In 1994 he accepted a caretaker role as acting General Manager of the Sydney International Aquatic Centre
s at Homebush. The facilities were built ahead of the Sydney 2000 Olympics and required management prior to the appointment of full-time operators.
and David Gillespie
are examples of those whose playing and later coaching careers were forged entirely on their defensive capabilities with playing styles similar to Porter's.
During the Australian Rugby League's 2008 Centenary Year a college of the game's historians were asked to retrospectively give a Man-of-the-Match award for each of the 32 Grand final
s held between 1954 and 1986 before the official Clive Churchill Medal
s came into existence. Porter was the winner of the 1960 award for his grand final performance against Easts.
Since 2008 the Cronulla club has awarded the Monty Porter Medal to its first grade Player of the Year.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n premiership winning and state representative
New South Wales rugby league team
The New South Wales rugby league team has represented the Australian state of New South Wales in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1907. Administered by the New South Wales Rugby League, the team competes in the annual State of Origin series against arch-rivals, the...
rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
footballer of the 1950s and 1960s. He was a second rower with the St. George Dragons
St. George Dragons
The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,...
during their eleven-year premiership winning run from 1956 to 1966, playing in six grand finals. He was the inaugural captain of the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in that club's foundation season of 1967. After football he had a successful career as a Sports Administrator.
Footballer
Born in Peak Hill, near CoolahCoolah, New South Wales
Coolah is a town in the central northern part of New South Wales, Australia in Warrumbungle Shire. At the 2006 census, Coolah had a population of 798....
in the central north of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, Porter grew up in Werris Creek where his father, a country schoolteacher was posted. He played schoolboy rugby league at Tamworth High and later for East Tamworth, where as a nineteen year old he turned out against the touring 1954 Great Britain side
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
. He played for Thirroul and Wests in the Southern Division. After an obligatory period national service
Conscription in Australia
Conscription in Australia, or mandatory military service also known as National Service, has a controversial history dating back to the first years of nationhood...
he arrived in Sydney in 1955 getting a start in the NSWRFL Sydney competition with Western Suburbs
Western Suburbs Magpies
The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia...
. He spent the season in reserve grade making just four first-grade appearances that year. He left the club in 1956 after spending the first six games of that season in the lower grade. He trialled with Thirroul in the Southern Division
Group 6 Rugby League
Group 6 is a senior Rugby League competition in New South Wales, Australia, run under the auspices of the Country Rugby League.The geographical area covered by Group 6 takes in much of the Southern Highlands and southern Macarthur regions of New South Wales, extending from Moss Vale, New South...
using a false name to circumvent the residential qualification rules of the time and spent the rest of the 1956 season in their top grade.
He moved to the St. George club
St. George Dragons
The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,...
in 1957 and was called into the first-grade team during the 1958 finals series at prop-forward, helping the side to their 3rd successive premiership. He cemented his spot from 1959, enjoying great success as a second rower. The club won the premiership every year he was at the club. In 1966 he signed for the newly formed Cronulla club and became their foundation captain in their inaugural year in 1967.
He made one representative appearance for New South Wales
New South Wales Rugby League team
The New South Wales rugby league team has represented the Australian state of New South Wales in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1907. Administered by the New South Wales Rugby League, the team competes in the annual State of Origin series against arch-rivals, the...
in 1960.
Administrator
He retired from playing in 1968 and became the Club Secretary of the Cronulla-Sutherland club until 1970. He remained actively involved with the club as chairman of selectors and under-23s coach until 1973.He won a job managing the New South Wales State Government
Government of New South Wales
The form of the Government of New South Wales is prescribed in its Constitution, which dates from 1856, although it has been amended many times since then...
's sports administration arm Sports House which during the 1970s and '80s provided free administration facilities for amateur sports. He progressed to the role of Assistant Director of Sport in New South Wales which he held for four years. In 1983 he became a member of the first ever NSWRFL Board of Directors. That same year the NSWRFL found itself administering the Cronulla Sharks when the club ran into financial difficulties; Porter accepted a post as President of the club from 1984 to 1988.
In 1994 he accepted a caretaker role as acting General Manager of the Sydney International Aquatic Centre
Sydney International Aquatic Centre
The Sydney International Aquatic Centre is a swimming venue in Sydney, Australia. For the 2000 Summer Olympics, it hosted the swimming, diving, synchronized swimming, the medal events for water polo, and the swimming portion of the modern pentathlon competitions...
s at Homebush. The facilities were built ahead of the Sydney 2000 Olympics and required management prior to the appointment of full-time operators.
Accolades
Writer describes Porter's role in the elite Dragon's side as "a tradesman in a team of stars, a self-described 'plugger' who did his job each game with minimum fuss and maximum efficiency" whose primary job was to "tackle, tackle, tackle" and whose dependability was highly prized by his teammates. Writer suggests that such specialists hadn't come into vogue in the 1960s in Australian rugby league but by the 1970s at least one such second-rower was a critical for every successful side and players such as Steve FolkesSteve Folkes
Steve Folkes is a former Australian rugby league test footballer and former coach of the Bulldogs in the National Rugby League...
and David Gillespie
David Gillespie
David "Cement" Gillespie is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer of the 1980s and 90s. A sturdy forward, he played for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, Western Suburbs Magpies, Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, New South Wales and for the Australian national side...
are examples of those whose playing and later coaching careers were forged entirely on their defensive capabilities with playing styles similar to Porter's.
During the Australian Rugby League's 2008 Centenary Year a college of the game's historians were asked to retrospectively give a Man-of-the-Match award for each of the 32 Grand final
Grand Final
Grand Final is a predominantly Australian sport term used to describe a match that decides a league champion.It originated in Victoria and South Australia and has become specifically significant Australian culture...
s held between 1954 and 1986 before the official Clive Churchill Medal
Clive Churchill Medal
The Clive Churchill Medal has been presented to the man-of-the-match of the National Rugby League's annual Grand Final match ever since the 1986 season. The award was created to honour Clive Churchill, one of the greatest rugby league players in Australian history, following his death in 1985...
s came into existence. Porter was the winner of the 1960 award for his grand final performance against Easts.
Since 2008 the Cronulla club has awarded the Monty Porter Medal to its first grade Player of the Year.