Des Lea at Horseshoe Bay
Des Lea looked to have the rugby league world at his feet when he cemented the halfback spot in the 1969 Wests Panthers’ team, which had emerged as the big drawcard of the booming Brisbane Rugby League competition.
One of 15 children, 19-year-old Lea was promoted to first grade mid-way through the season, and played a key role in the club qualifying for the finals, after finishing second last in 1968.
But, at the age of 25, he called it quits as a player, although he returned to Wests in 1986 as an assistant coach and manager of an exciting under-20s side, coached by former Newtown (Sydney) and Wests’ halfback, Peter Foreman.
In 2006, after 40 years in Brisbane, Lea returned to Bowen in North Queensland, the town he has always called home.
“I was born in Rockhampton, but grew up in Bowen,” Lea said. “I am one of 15 kids, with 10 born in ‘Rocky’ and five in Bowen. Mum’s side of the family is from Vanuatu, but there is Indigenous and Irish blood on the Lea side, with Thomas Henry Lea emigrating from Limerick in Ireland, during the Gold Rush, and heading to Gympie.”
At Bowen, Lea would sometimes play three matches in a day, and displayed enough talent to gain selection in a North Qld Under-15s team, which beat a touring Cronulla-Sutherland side, 29-12.
In 1966, he made the move to Brisbane and lived with his brother, Tom ‘Buddy’ Lea, one of the heroes of the Battle of Long Tan in Vietnam.
“He was shot three times in Vietnam while trying to pull a mate to safety, but in the end, it was cancer that got him,” Lea said. “He died at Hervey Bay in 2014. Buddy’s son is Barry Lea, who played on the wing for the Wallabies, and spent a bit of time at the Newcastle Knights and Canberra Raiders.”
Des played under-17s for Wests, before graduating to the seniors, who were looking for a new halfback after the departure of Test star, Barry Muir. Englishman, Col Wills wore the number seven jersey for the first half of 1969, but when he was injured, coach, Kev Lingard did not hesitate to promote Lea, who was a dedicated trainer, and quick off the mark.
In Lea’s debut game, against Brothers at Lang Park, Wests’ Richie Twist scored two tries, one from a set move started by Lea at the scrum base, while Twist set-up the match winner, for co-second rower, Ian Robson, who had just returned from Australia’s tour of New Zealand.
“Brothers’ spindly legged winger, Peter ‘Stickman’ Skerman and Wests’ new young halfback, Des Lea drew most applause from the crowd of 16,000,” wrote ‘The Courier-Mail’s Jack Reardon, after the Panthers’ 18-16 win.
A week later, injury hit Wests were thrashed 32-10 by Wynnum, but Des Lea starred again, and gained two points in ‘The Courier-Mail’ Best and Fairest award. Back at full strength the following week, Wests beat Souths 27-11 and Reardon wrote that they had played like premiers.
“Wests appear to have a find in new halfback, Des Lea,” Reardon wrote. “Lea is a knowledgeable player, despite his youth, and although he does not appear to be fast, he is never far away from the action. This lad follows the ball closer than anyone I have seen for a long time.”
Lea maintained his form into the finals, with Wests beating Easts 23-13 in the knock-out semi at Lang Park, with Lea starring again, and scoring one of the Panthers’ three tries, with lock, Terry Haggett and centre, Rob ‘Yogi’ Thompson also crossing the line. Exciting young winger, Wayne Stewart kicked five goals.
North Sydney’s Welsh coach, Roy Francis watched the match from the Frank Burke Stand, and in an interview with Reardon, said the two backs to catch his eye were Lea and Easts’ indigenous five eighth, Alan Currie.
“I think we thought we just had to turn up to beat Valleys in the preliminary final,” Lea said. “When we led 14-5 well into the second half, we became a little lax, and Valleys fought back to win 17-14, and reach the Grand Final, where they lost to Norths.”
Reardon rated Lea the Panthers’ best against Valleys.
At the end of 1969, Lea played in a charity match at Barcaldine, in an All Blacks side, which included future state reps., Graham Lena and Ian Thinee.
Lea experienced racism during his football career.
“Some players would give cheek, and say ‘get that black so and so’, but more often than not my white teammates would sort them out,” he said.
In following seasons, Lea played his share of first grade and particularly enjoyed clashes with the likes of Norths’ World Cup halfback, Johnny Brown; Wynnum’s State rep., Gary Dobrich and Brothers’ wily Johnny Smith. Lea represented Brisbane in the Trades and Labor Cup second tier representative competition, with future Test player and inaugural Australian Rugby League Commission chairman, John Grant a teammate.
One of Des’s coaches in Wests’ reserve grade was Sunshine Coast Men of League Foundation stalwart, Don Oxenham, who would go on to coach Wests’ first grade.
“Don was a great influence on me, and convinced me I still had something to offer,” Lea said.
At one stage, Lea shared accommodation with future State forward, Peter Luppi and talented back, Wayne Douglas.
“We were like the three musketeers,” he said. “(Wests’ prop) Max Williamson lived just down the road, and he would come up and eat us out of house and home.”
By 1972, future Test halfback, Greg Oliphant had arrived on the scene, and Lea’s first grade appearances became fewer and fewer. When he broke his arm early in 1975, he decided to call it quits, giving away his footy gear, and taking up touch.
“I only played footy because I enjoyed it, not for the glory,” he says. “That’s probably why I didn’t push to go higher in the game. I was actually embarrassed to be paid to do something I loved so much.”
For nine years, he coached Brisbane City Azzurri Soccer club age teams, in which his son, Aaron played. But in 1986 Des returned to his first love, rugby league, with Wests Colts. He still gets emotional, when he reflects on that season, and the progress the players made as footballers and young men.
“The players were rough diamonds,” Lea said. “They wouldn’t always do as they were told early on, and we lost six games in a row. But they went on to make the grand final, where they beat Brothers 20-18 at Lang Park. (Future Queensland Origin star, Mark Coyne scored two tries for Brothers).”
That Wests’ under-20s side included the likes of Graham Strutton, Gavin Duncan, Paul Childs, Scott Tye, Peter Taylor and North Queenslander, Dean Sammut, all of whom who would go on to have successful first grade careers, with Childs signing for the Broncos.
In 2006, after 40 years in Brisbane, Des had had enough of the rat race, and headed back to Bowen, where he lives to this day, happy to keep fit; stroll the area’s beautiful beaches and enjoy a coffee at Horseshoe Bay. In Brisbane he had worked in logistics in the Defence Department; local law for Brisbane City Council and then in the security business.
Bowen, the port town famous for mangoes, and as the location for the 2007 Baz Luhrmann film, ‘Australia’, was once a hotbed of rugby league, boasting clubs such as Wharfies, Port Denison, Railways and Brothers, and providing a host of players for Whitsunday’s Foley Shield representative sides.
Queensland State of Origin forward, Mike McLean comes from Bowen, his family owning the Grandview Hotel for nearly 100 years, until it was sold in 2018. The walls of the pub were adorned with photographs depicting local history, as well as Mike’s rugby league achievements for Queensland; Easts Tigers in Brisbane; Easts Roosters in Sydney; Newcastle; Gold Coast Seagulls and Halifax (England). The Bowen Seagulls Junior Rugby League Club is thriving and ….
“I’ve always called Bowen home,” Lea says. “I came back for weddings and funerals, when I lived in Brisbane. I was never really a city person, but I made a lot of good friends there.”
FOOTNOTE: When I moved to Brisbane to live in August 1975 and people referred to ‘Des Lee’ the halfback, it was confusing for me, because Des Lee from Murwillumbah had been my under-18 coach at Murwillumbah Brothers in 1969 and he had moved to Brisbane to play for Wynnum-Manly. So, there was the white Des Lee and the black Des Lea. I had never heard of Des Lea, but got up to speed with things as time went by. I interviewed Des Lea for the Men of League (now Family of League) magazine in 2021. We enjoyed a coffee at Horseshoe Bay, where I took a photo of Des on the beach. I told him it wasn’t great quality. He had a look and showed me how to lighten and crop the picture. That’s how dumb I am when it comes to technology. My daughter, Melanie, posts stories on this website for me, because I wouldn’t have a clue.
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