🐇 Dave Watson | Rabbitohs Coach #7

Full Name: David William James Watson
Nickname: Grand Old Man
Born: 1901 at Richmond (Melbourne), VIC
Died: 21/12/1980 at Redfern (Sydney), NSW [aged 79]
Club Playing Career: South Sydney 1920-31 (premiers in 1925-29 and 1931)
Representative Playing Career: Possibles 1924; Combined Second Grade 1925; Probables 1928; Combined City 1929; City Seconds 1929-30; NSW 1929 (three games)
Club Coaching Career: South Sydney 1935-36 and 1947-49
Administrative Career: Rabbitohs Selector 1935-42 and 1946-47; Rabbitohs Deputy Chairman 1953-58; NSWRL Judiciary 1958-59 and 1965-74; NSWRL Metropolitan Selection Committee 1958-60 and 1963-69; NSWRL State Selection Panel 1956 (as Deputy), 1957-59 and 1963-69; NSWRL Vice-President 1958 and 1963-75; Australian Board of Control 1963-69
Awards and Accolades: Rabbitohs premiership winner 1925-29 and 1931; Rabbitohs Life Membership 1963

Dave Watson Jnr was born in Melbourne and moved to Sydney when he was about two years old because his father Dave Watson Snr was transferred to work at the Australian Glass Manufacturers (AGM) Co. Ltd. at Redfern. His father, Dave Snr, played first grade Australian Rules football for Richmond Tigers between 1896-1902 (65 games), and was bestowed with Life Membership by the Richmond Tigers in 1902. Three of his brothers also played australian rules football in Melbourne: Tom Watson played first grade for Richmond in 1902 and Melbourne in 1904; while Joe Watson and William Watson (Dave Seniors twin) both played lower grades for Richmond. All four brothers were born in Dunedin, NZ, and migrated with the family to Melbourne when they were still young boys.

Dave Snr started captain-coaching the Redfern Australian Rules club when he moved to Sydney and after retiring as a player got involved with the Rabbitohs, where he became a vice-president of the South Sydney Football Club between 1923-27, and sat on several committees at Souths and the NSWRL. When Dave Snr passed away on 24 June 1927 (after septic poisoning from injury at the glass works) the NSW state team wore black arm bands in game one of the inter-state series against Queensland, in honour of his passing, which indicates how highly respected he was in Rugby League circles. Dave Jnr was a Souths junior who also represented Souths’ Presidents Cup side in 1920. He was a member of the South Sydney District Club since 1920 and gave great service to the district in many roles. He played for the Rabbitohs during their golden era of the late 1920s (12 seasons between 1920–31), in 153 grade games during his long career and made his first grade debut in 1923 against North Sydney at the Sydney Cricket Ground, in round nine. He played in six premiership-winning seasons with the Rabbitohs (1925-29 and 1931), was a try-scorer in the 11-5 win over Sydney University in the 1926 final.

He married Gwendoline Alexandra Creber in 1924 at Rockdale, and his representative career started with the Possibles side in the same year, Probables in 1928, City Seconds in 1929-30, Combined City in 1929, and he was also selected to play for New South Wales on three occasions in 1929. He was considered unlucky not to have toured with the 1929-30 Kangaroos, after showing good form throughout the premiership season and representative games. Despite captaining the club during the 1931 season he did not play in the grand final that year. He was an engineer all his life, leaving school to get apprenticed at the Australian Glass Manufacturers (AGM) Co. Ltd. He remained working at the glass factory for 44 years.

Watson took over as coach at Souths on two different occasions, firstly in 1935–36 and then 1947–49. The Rabbitohs were losing grand finalists in the first and last year of his coaching reigns, 1935 and 1949 respectively. During a long administrative career at the Rabbitohs he was also Vice-President of the Club from 1933 until he resigned on 11 March 1958. He also served on the General Committee in 1928-32, Deputy Delegate to the League in 1951-58, Deputy Chairman in 1953-58 and on the Private Members’ Reviewing Committee in 1956-58. He was also the Metropolitan, NSW and Kangaroos’ selector, the Vice-President of the NSWRL and he served on the NSWRL Judiciary. Dave famously didn't vote for Bob McCarthy to be selected on the 1967–68 Kangaroo Tour, after McCarthy had a stellar season and scoring the famous intercept try in the 1967 grand final. Watson was inducted as a Life Member of the South Sydney Football Club at the 55th Annual General Meeting held at Redfern Town Hall on 5 February 1963. He died at Redfern in 1980, aged 79.