| Full name | Brother Rugby Club (Inc) |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Fish-eaters, The Fish, The Butcher Bhoys, The Brethren, The Filth |
| Founded | 1905 |
| Region | Brisbane (principally alumni of Christian Brothers Colleges) |
| Ground(s) | Crosby Park |
| President | Jim Frayne |
| Most caps | B. O’Connell (230)[1] |
The Brothers Old Boys are an Australian rugby union club, based in Brisbane, Queensland. The team currently competes in the Queensland Premier Rugby competition against nine of the states best Rugby Union clubs. The club was established in 1905 and has won 27 premierships since. They have produced over 209 Queensland and 75 Wallaby players over the years.
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The Brothers Old Boys Rugby Union Club was formed at a meeting held in 1905 by old boys of Gregory Terrace, Nudgee College and St. James' College who wanted a Rugby club that 'old boys' (past students) could all play for. It was further decided at this meeting to "play in the school colours, blue and white hoops". These were the St Joseph's College Gregory Terrace colours of the time. In 1905 the team played in plain hoops but the Scottish supplier incorrectly sent navy and white irregular stripes ("butcher stripes") for the 1906 season and the club has maintained this jersey ever since.
In 1907 after only the second year in the Brisbane Premier Rugby competition, Brothers won their first premiership defeating Valleys 18 - 8. Brothers next string of success was titled the "First Golden Era" when they won Premierships in 1911,12,13,15, and 1919. During this period the club was so strong that in 1914 they fielded two teams in the competition Brothers 'A' & 'B'. The end of the 1919 season saw the demise of Rugby Union in Queensland, Rugby League became the 'code of choice' and Brisbane Premier Rugby came to a halt.
Rugby Union was re-introduced in Queensland in 1929 and Brothers returned to the QRU in 1930, but it wouldn't be until 1945 that it tasted success. They secured their first trophy in the senior competition since the recommencement of competition with a 13 - 6 victory over University in the final of the mid-season Tom Welsby Cup in 1945. Brothers went on that year to contest the premiership final but went down to none other than arch rivals University. It was the start of a bright period for the club, a "second golden era" that saw premiership wins in 1946, 1949, 1950, 1951 and 1953.
Brothers become the first club in Brisbane to have their own ground at Crosby Park, Albion. The original arrangement began with the QRU as lease holder in 1949 but Brothers took over the lease in their own right in 1951. Prior to the move the players would train under lights at the local public New Farm Park.
The success of the late forties and early 1950s was not repeated for more than a decade, except for a premiership win in 1959. Following the 1959 premiership win things reached possibly the lowest point ever for the club. The year 1963 saw the club struggle to field a competitive team but things began to turn around in 1964 with Premierships in 1966 & 1968.
The 70's marked the start of a "third golden era" for the club as "A" Grade premierships continued in 1971, 73, 74, 1975, 1978 and then an unbroken record of 5 in a row from 1980 to 1984. This gave the club 10 premierships in a 14-year period from 1971 to 1984. The resurgence of Brothers in this period contributed greatly to the Queensland Rugby revival. Brothers only other success in the 1980s came in 1987.
The Premiership successes had been missing from the club since 1987, and the first and only grand final appearance in the 90's came in a loss to rivals University in the 1990 Grand Final. Brothers continued to produce quality players such as past Wallaby captain John Eales, former Queensland Reds captain and Australian Vice Captain Elton Flatley and fellow current Reds players David Croft and Sean Hardman along with the recently retired Glen Panoho. In 2005 the club celebrated its Centenary and the following year after a long 16 years absence reached the Grand Final, losing 23-22 to Wests in the 2006 Grand Final. Once again in 2008, Brothers would lose another Grand Final, this time to Easts by the bearest of margins falling short 21 points to Easts 22. The defeat would not last long in the memories for the club as they made back-to-back grand finals and in September 2009, after a long awaited 22 year drought, Brothers won their 27th premiership by defeating Souths 26-19.
The long tradition of clashes with University (nicknamed 'The Red Heavies') first began in senior competition on June 8 1912, with Brothers running out victors 24 - 0. The tradition of hard, close fought games between these two clubs remains a feature of the Brisbane club scene and there have been many memorable tussles over the years, particularly in grand finals. The most famous being the 24-all draw in 1979 that resulted in a rematch where Brothers lost 16-13 in a tight match. The latest bragging rights are still with University after a 19-10 win in the 1990 final, the last time the teams have met in a grand final.
(* Brisbane Rugby League)
(1) Brothers played in the BRL under the name Merthyr Football Club
The Australian Club Championship is a challenge match between the Brisbane and Sydney club premiers. Brothers have won played in the fixture eight times, winning it on four occasions (1974, 1984, 1985 and 2010).
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