Crushers reunion honours 1971 Souths rugby league premiers

Nambour First Division side wore classic black and white Souths strips for their match against Maroochydore.

War horses… old Souths players relive the glory days of 1971 at the reunion at Crusher Park on Saturday.

Nambour past and present players marked 50 years since Souths Magpies won the Sunshine Coast Rugby League premiership in 1971.

The reunion at Crusher Park on Saturday featured Nambour First Division side donning classic black and white Souths strips for their match against Maroochydore.

Nambour sides dominated the Sunshine Coast competition in the 1970s with local teams Souths and All Whites winning seven of the 10 titles.

Souths used to drink at the Royal George Hotel which was owned by gun player Ray Laird while All Whites drank across the road at the Club Hotel.

“Footy in Nambour was just a good time,” said Paul Rutledge who played in the 1971 grand final and the son of George, after whom the Crusher Park main field is named.

“It was great to drink at the Royal George, with the cane line in between, you could yell cheek at All Whites from the doors to the bar.”

The clubs amalgamated in 1985 to form the Nambour Crushers. 

The 2021 Crushers are not going quite as well as the gun side of ‘71, currently running second last on the table. 

They lost to a polished Maroochydore 48-20 yesterday. 

Women’s Div 1 lost 32-22 while Div 2 Men’s lost 38-22.

Modern Premierships 

Since forming, the Nambour Crushers have won five Sunshine Coast/Gympie Rugby Football League premierships in 1987, 1988, 2003, 2004 and 2005.