St John's Eagles JRLFC INC PO BOX 336 Punchbowl, 2196, NSW Secretary Contact: 0410 653 475 www.stjohnseagles.com.au 2007 Annual Club Magazine Editorial St Johns Eagles is a club that has strong his- this 2007 magazine and everything you have tory, commitment, heart and spirit. That is a done for the club in the past and your guid- true meaning of an Eagle. ance this year. The last couple of years associated with St To the rest of the committee, George Bakhos, Johns Eagles, I have viewed how much work Mark Brown, Elias Tarchichi and George Saab, and effort goes behind the scenes, how much thank you for your hard work to the St Johns work teams, coaches and managers accom- community, the support and suggestions this plish to get the results they want. From the year. development of a team to winning or losing, the passion of football is alive in everybody It has been a great honour to be part of the associated with our football club. St Johns Eagles journey. I have learnt a lot as a coach, being part of the Where Eagles Dare To the volunteers that do the different roles (WED) reports, the passion in our club, and to assist the club. A big thank you. the introduction of our new excellent web site www.stjohnseagles.com.au, this is Congratulations St Johns Eagles, winners of just the beginning. the Club Champions in the Canterbury Bank- stown Junior Rugby League District. We also Enjoy reading the 2007 magazine. See you won the International Champions. A sensa- all in 2008 for a bigger year. tional effort. Alan Nowfal From strength to strength, ten teams in the semi-finals, six teams to the Grand Final and three teams winning the Grand final. An awe- some effort for St Johns. To the committee. Ciaron Burns, our club President, you truly lead us by example. We also love your singing abilities. To Fady Ghanem, we appreciate your hard work and commitment to the magazine, presentation videos and St Johns. Your heart is in the right place. Thanks for assisting with 1 Patrons Report Dear Parents, Players and Club Members, 2007 has been an extraordinary year for the St John’s Football Club. The level of success can be best judged by the ten teams who made the Semi- Finals and the six who made the Grand Finals. It is a wonderful testament to the Club, Players and the Coaches. In my role as Principal of Holy Spirit College I am enormously appreciative of the opportunities the St John’s Club provides our young people. Anyone who has worked with young people knows the importance of giving boys in particular well organized activities that engender a sense of belong- ing. It is clearly evident with so many of the boys at St John’s that they learn much more than just “footy” as members of this great Club. Most impressive is the manner in which the boys learn to value the inherent benefits of self discipline. A St John’s player learns from his elders that the “ef- fort of discipline” is a far better proposition than the “pain of regret”. To actually motivate oneself to achieve something leads to a richer life. To avoid a task or activity inevitably leads to questions in one’s mind such as “I wonder what if …?” or thoughts prefaced by “If only I had…..”. I believe the St John’s Club teaches young men to live life as God has intended. St Irenaeus is one of the great Saints of our Church and an early Father of Christianity. He wrote in the Third Century that “The Glory of God is Man fully alive!” How true this is when we consider the work of this Club. Coaches give their time happily and enthusiastically to provide enjoyment for boys. Mums and Dads work in the Canteen or behind the scenes in administration or on the BBQ. Families organise their weekends around the football matches. Mums work tirelessly to make sure all the gear is clean and ready for each game. To list all the examples would be impossible but the message is clear. We believe Jesus taught us to be people for others. A Club like St Johns can only exist if it is brimming with people with this attitude. Congratulations to everyone involved in the Club this year. May you all enjoy a happy off season and return in 2008 energised to make the Club even stronger. As I am leaving this year I take this opportunity to say farewell and thank you to every one involved with St John’s. Your warmth, hospitality and commitment to our young people are great gifts to our Catholic and Rugby League Communities. Frank Malloy Principal of Holy Spirit College Lakemba. Patron. 2 Presidents Report Well here we are again at the end of another fantastic year for St. Johns. Season 2007 has seen our club continue to reach great heights both on and off the field. This year saw 10 teams make the preliminary final of their respective competitions with 6 going on to the grand final and 3 teams winning premierships. All of the teams in our club were incredibly competitive this year and it was a pleasure to watch them all play. To the players, thank you and congratulations on your Season. Your efforts are the sole reason that St. Johns are once again the Senior Club Champions and the Overall Club Champions of the C.B.D.J.R.L. Well done to you all. This year I would like to make special mention of all our Bulldogs representative players who are named in the back of this magazine. Congratulations to you all, especially our six Harold Mathews players who were part of the premiership-winning Bulldogs team for the first time ever in that competition. It would be remiss of me not to mention our Under 13’s who this year managed to win their sixth consecutive premiership. Great effort to everybody involved with that side. To all our coaches along with their managers, trainers and other assistants, thank you for all the time and effort you have put in to both the club and the teams you coach. The one down side to this year was the passing of our Treasurer and club stalwart George Habib. George was St. Johns through and through, he loved this club and worked extremely hard to ensure its success. I think it is fitting that the team he sponsored, the Under 14’s won the competition this year. We will always remember George through the newly named George Habib Memorial Scoreboard At Begnell. This year the committee banded together and shared the load of work in Georges’ absence. These boys are so dedicated to this club it makes me proud to be involved with them. I would like to make special mention of Fady Ghanem. While already putting in more hours to the club than anybody, this year he took on the added role of treasurer while also becoming a first time dad. Outstanding. Two highlights this year have been seeing A grade player and 2007 Club captain Sean McGrath become the first St. Johns player to play 300 games for the club, well done Sean. The second is the announcement of Pauline Brown as the newest life member of the club. For your years of dedicated service Pauline we thank you Once again to all of our fantastic sponsors thank you. We hope you can all stay with us for years to come especially now that we have moved into the 21st century with our great web site www.stjohnseagles.com.au thanks to Alan Nowfal and his brother Mario. To our major sponsor Punchbowl Ex Services and Community Club thank you once again thank you for your on going support and great facilities. I hope 2007 has been an enjoyable time for you at St. Johns. This year really had a good feeling about it, lots of old St.Johns people back at the club and a lot more new people who really got involved. I look forward to seeing you all in 2008. I wish you all and your families a safe and Happy Christmas and New Year. Ciaron Burns ( President) 3 Secretary’s Report Seasons come and gone and what a season it was. 2007 saw St Johns come together as a club like never before. This year saw the club achieve many outstanding results both on and off the field. I think the reason the club gelled so well was due to the unfortunate death of our treasurer George Habib. I believe he was looking over us all year, and every time one of us was confronting a difficult situation we would sit back and think, how George would deal with this. As our scoreboard says, “Gone but never forgotten”. As a club this year saw us field 18 teams from Under 6s to A Grade, had 286 registered players and some 80 team officials. 10 out of our 16 competitive teams made semis and the worst result for these teams was to make it to the final. Six teams made it to the Grand Final under 11s, 12s, 13s, 14s, First XIII and the 16s, with the 13s, 14s and 16s winning their Grand Finals. Congratulations to all teams at St Johns we are proud of EVERY team in our club. There where many highlights this year and I would like to mention a couple.