over 60 years of saturday mornings

It started with a teacher who noticed a gap. Charles Owen, sports master at Penshurst West Public School, saw that the students had no organised sport on weekends — and decided to do something about it.

He called a meeting at the school on a Tuesday evening in February 1965. Twenty to thirty parents showed up. They didn’t know each other, so they nominated volunteers for committee positions by going clockwise around the room. From that single meeting, the Penshurst West Youth Sporting Club was born.

What was decided that night shaped everything that followed: a club run by the community, for the community — governed by parents who simply wanted their kids to play sport on the weekends.

It was also decided that if the Youth Club was ever to fold, all equipment would be donated to Penshurst West Public School. Sixty years later, the club is still very much alive.

In 1965, Rugby League was the dominant winter sport in the St George area. It seemed the natural choice for the new Youth Club — and so Penshurst West’s first season was played in the oval ball code.

Registration fees were set at 5 shillings to join and 2 shillings per match to cover the cost of jerseys. Three teams took to the field in that first year: the Under 10s, Under 11s, and Under 12s.

The code had a strong following in the area. Penshurst West Public School entered three teams in a St George Knock-Out competition, and one team went through the competition undefeated. Mr Frank Facer from St George Leagues Club came to the school to present the shield for Champion School.

But the tide was already turning. As the years went on, soccer’s popularity grew rapidly. By 1968, there were simply not enough players to field Rugby League teams — and the game was never played by the Youth Club again. Some players moved on to the newly formed Peakhurst Hawks club; others went to Penshurst RSL. The future of Penshurst West lay with the round ball.

At the Annual General Meeting in February 1966, a parent raised the idea that many boys in the area were interested in soccer. The committee agreed to give it a try. Soccer commenced in the winter season of 1967 with four teams registered in the 8s, 9s, 10s, and 12s — all placed in the B division of their respective age groups.

The first Secretary of the Soccer Section was Mr Ken Chapman. Registration fees were 60 cents per player; match fees 25 cents. Small sums, but meaningful beginnings.

The sport grew quickly. By 1969, seven teams were registered — and three of them were premiers, winning the 7C, 9C, and 11C divisions. The Soccer Section also won the St George BMC Trophy for Club Championship that same year.

By 1971, there were 14 soccer teams registered. A letter from Hurstville Council confirmed the relocation of cricket nets at Olds Park to make way for a soccer field — the ground that would become the club’s permanent home.

A working bee in May 1972, organised with the Penshurst West P&C Association, erected the first goal posts at Olds Park. Council completed a full soccer field in 1974 — the home that generations of Penshurst West players would grow up playing on.

The early 1980s marked a period of extraordinary expansion and achievement for Penshurst West. The club was growing fast — and breaking new ground.

1981 brought two landmark moments. The first was the opening of a proper canteen building at Olds Park — a $20,000 structure approved by Hurstville Council, jointly used by Little Athletics in summer and Soccer in winter. The second was historic: 1981 was the first year a girls team played for Penshurst West Youth Club. In that debut season, three teams — the 9E, 12B, and 16A — were all premiers. Not a bad way to arrive.

In 1982, the Under 17s pulled off something the club had never achieved: they won the “Champion of Champions” state title — the first Penshurst West team to reach that pinnacle.

By 1983 and 1984, the club fielded 24 teams — making Penshurst West one of the biggest soccer clubs in the entire St George Association. The 12As were premiers in 1984; the 8Bs in 1985; the All Age Reserves in 1986. In 1987, the 15Bs went through the season undefeated premiers. By 1988, three Penshurst West players had earned representative selection.