When Phil Mahoney watches the women's grand final between the Newcastle Knights and Parramatta Eels on Sunday, he'll be thinking of a match held 50 years ago.
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In 1972, he was a coach in a unique event - a women's rugby league match with the same rules as men, including heavy tackles and collisions.
Phil's team, the West Rosettes, won the match against the Leichhardt Wildcats at Kentish Oval in Lambton.
As Phil told Topics in 2017, it was "the toughest game I've ever seen".
"One of the Wildcats grabbed one of our girls by the ponytail, as she raced for the try line," Phil said.
The next time this ponytail puller ran with the ball, two Rosettes "got this woman in a sandwich tackle and flattened her".
Phil will proudly barrack for the Knights to win their first women's grand final.
"I've watched all the Knights women's matches this year and been really impressed with how skillful and tough they are. They deserve to be in the grand final and I hope they win against Parramatta."
To help honour the women's team, Phil is holding an eBay auction.
The winning bidder will receive a framed jersey signed by all the Knights NRLW first grade team, plus a Knights football, cap, water bottle and a set of player cards.
Money raised from the auction will go to Camp Quality, a charity Phil has supported since 1987.
Phil released his biography Try a Little Kindness last year, with all sales also being donated to Camp Quality.
To bid for the Knights signed jersey pack, visit philmahoney.com.au. Bidding ends on October 8.
Heralding a New Era
Speaking of looking back fondly on the past, Adrian Roach posted this on social media this week.
"Today something amazing happened. But first, let me tell you why I love the iconic old Newcastle Herald building [in Bolton Street].
"Arguably one of the most recognisable buildings in the CBD, the Herald building became my father Stewart's office when he started his first job out of school at the Herald on January 10, 1966.
"It was while working here that my father met my mother, Effie, in this very office when she started working in advertising at the Herald front desk four years later in 1970. Over the next four years they fell in love, married and had a wonderful son ... me!
"My mother carried me while working in this building and only left full-time work when the baby bump got too big. My father worked as the Herald's sports editor in this office for 41 amazing years. I was a regular visitor over those years and loved watching the changes in the methods that the newspaper was put together and printed in that time.
"The Herald has since moved out, the walls have a fresh coat of paint and today a new chapter in the building begins.
"In a totally independent and exhaustive process over the last few months, the federal government evaluated a number of vacant offices in Newcastle, Lake Macquarie and Maitland to be the new NSW electoral office of my boss, newly elected Senator Ross Cadell. Theyve chosen the old Newcastle Herald building for us, meaning 56 years after both my father and mother started work in this office, today the office fitout should be complete."
Adrian is looking forward to settling into his new office, where he'll work "in between parliamentary sitting periods, where we work out of our suite at Parliament House in Canberra".
"Today when my flight home from Canberra touches down, I get the keys and a new era begins. It's like it was meant to be!"
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