The Perth Bears kicked off their existence in the West with a board-hosted dinner for 100 guests this week and PETER ROWE was there to listen and catch up with some of the club’s key players.
An image of the legendary North Sydney winger Ken Irvine stared out a guests as they gathered in Perth to recognise the first ever board meeting of the Perth Bears at HBF Park this week.
‘Mongo’ still holds the Australian record for the number of club tries in a first-class career – 212 – that saw him become the darling of North Sydney Oval from 1958 to 1970.
Irvine made 176 appearances for the Bears in their famous red and black colours, as well as 31 caps for the Kangaroos and 24 appearances for NSW.
Now, 35 years after he passed away, his image is being used to announce the return of the brand.
Not a ‘rebirth’, chairman Ben Morton insisted.
“The Perth Bears are not a relocation, not a merger, not an amalgamation, not a takeover, not a successful bid with developed and approved plans, and not an existing club being granted an NRL licence like the Dolphins,” Morton told the 100 specially invited guests at the event.
“We are brand new. We are more like a start-up company.”
And this ‘start-up’ is preparing to become the 18th franchise of the National Rugby League.
A ‘new’ team perhaps, but one with so much history.
And one that spans coast to coast, “ocean to ocean” as new director and former Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey said, in an exclusive interview.
“I grew up under that fig tree,” the lifelong North Sydney fan and member said.
In the 1996 Federal election Hockey bought a bus which he painted in the colours of the Bears and parked it across the electorate to raise awareness.
Meet the Perth Bears Board
One wonders if Joe will help fund a bus to raise awareness in Perth.
It didn’t take too much arm-twisting to persuade him to jump aboard this journey.
The concept of having a team that stretches from ocean to ocean is compelling,” the former Ambassador to the USA said.
“I spoke to a few people here in the West about what they wanted and it was totally in sync with the Bears who I have supported since I was knee-high to a grasshopper.
“I have red and black flowing through my veins.
“This is an incredible opportunity for Western Australia to be part of the most watched sport in Australia.”
And did the inaugural board meeting go well, was it easier than politics?
“Oh, for sure, everyone is on the same page. We all came away incredibly enthusiastic about what we are looking to achieve.
“We want to create a Bears family that stretches across the country.”
This coming together dinner of so many league people – from across the country and from those who work in the game professionally to the large number of grassroots volunteers who have kept the game alive on the west coast for decades – was, as new chief executive Anthony DeCeglie declared, like being at the start of a very short runway.
A runway that will see the Bears run out on to the field at HBF Park in little more than 18 months time.
And a short take-off here in the West that has already had a knock-on effect.
The NRLWA has already received calls from schools asking about adding the sport to the curriculum for 2026.
“It means rugby league will be exposed to more boys and girls and that will feed directly into the junior club system,” NRLWA chief executive John Sackson told local radio the morning after the event.
WA Premier Roger Cook, a former local player, whose influence has made this franchise a reality, said it could see a massive increase in participation.
“It’s great to acknowledge this first meeting of the board,” the Premier said.
“And it is also great to acknowledge the great history of rugby league in WA.
“Perth is a new club with a great history, we can really savour this moment.
“We know there is a huge supporter base here and we know people will come to Western Australia to watch games, so it has tremendous economic impact.”
“We are there to support wherever we can to put a competitive team on the field in 2027.”
MC Ollie Peterson, an outspoken advocate for the Bears on his 6PR radio show, managed a Q&A session with head coach Mal Meninga, former North Sydney hero Greg Florimo and former Western Red Matt Fuller.
Meninga joked that if the media was to be believed every Kangaroo and Origin player was about to become a Bear.
So how did it all happen for Meninga, a giant in the game?
“I was just having a conversation with the chairman of the commission really, (Peter V’Landys) about the Kangaroos and he mentioned the Bears opportunity,” Meninga said.
“We had a chat about where the game was heading and he asked me if I would be interested.
“All of a sudden I was having interviews with the committee and I got the job.”
For Meninga it’s a massive job with work just starting.
“We’ve got to get our foundations right, understand what our identity is, once we get all that done we can move forward,” he said.
“The board members are very instrumental in setting that up.”
And players? Is work already under way?
“Well we can’t do anything until November.”
But the coach admitted a lot of work had already be done to check on players coming off contract who might be available.
“Yeah, we’ve already done that, it’s now a matter of waiting until we can officially approach anyone.
Strategic planning behind the scenes is already happening and there’s a lot of work to be done in so many areas.
It doesn’t daunt Meninga.
“We’ve got to put a roster together – top 30 – plus development players. A lot to do.”
One piece of the jigsaw already in place is assistant coach Ben Gardiner.
The current Penrith assistant will not start in the West until next year, but is already planning the move.
Currently the Samoan national coach, Gardiner has premierships under his belt and an impressive resume that includes coaching roles at the Roosters, in New Zealand, the Sharks, the Rabbitohs and the Tigers.
He was also head coach of the Bears in the NSW Cup, so there is a link already.
Looking out on to the floodlit HBF Park, he told Peter how delighted he was at the opportunity – one that came out of the blue.
“I got a call I wasn’t expecting from the ARL Commission asking me if I was interested,” he said on a whistle-stop trip west.
Signing a five-year contract, Gardiner is keen to make a big impression early. He plans to move with his partner to the city and wants to be involved in the game from grassroots up.
Meninga has previously called Gardiner one of the best and brightest young coaches in the game.
“And he has Bears DNA as well,” the coach told the NRL upon his appointment.
For Ben, it’s an exciting time ahead.
After receiving that call from the ARLC, Ben had a conversation and a meeting and one thing led to another.
From a strength and conditioning coach to high performance to football manager to coach and his current role assisting Ivan Cleary at the Panthers, it’s been a long journey.
“I coached the Bears for three years, so know the structure and fabric,” he said.
He’s coached defence in New Zealand and is currently responsible for Penrith’s free-flowing attack.
“What we would like to do here at the Bears is develop young guys from Western Australia as we grow the club,” Gardiner added.
“A lot of business early will be on the eastern seaboard and I will be here in WA full-time from mid-next year.
Most NRL clubs are looking at somewhere between three and six players, we are looking for 30. That’s our challenge.”
Chief executive Anthony DeCeglie has hit the ground running. He has his hands full building the foundations of the club, and he was fully aware of the task ahead when he spoke to round out the evening.
A media executive and former newspaper editor, he acknowledged his world had changed.
“They say in media if you want a friend, get a dog,” he joked.
There were no dogs present at HBF on Monday evening – only Bears – and friendly Bears at that.
“I have seen what a great family this is and I would like to see this family grow,” he said.
One very big family, and as Joe Hockey succinctly put it, “from ocean to ocean”.
The Perth Bears kicked off their existence in the West with a board-hosted dinner for 100 guests this week and PETER ROWE was there to listen and catch up with some of the club’s key players. An image of the legendary North Sydney winger Ken Irvine stared out a guests as they gathered in
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