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NRL 2024: Son of Panthers co-founder Roger Cowan accuses club of burying his fathers legacy
The son of legendary Panthers co-founder Roger Cowan has written to the club’s board, claiming there has been a deliberate attempt by club administrators to expunge his father’s legacy.Dean RitchieExclusive
@BulldogRitchie
3 min read
September 4, 2024 - 6:00PM
News Sport Network
https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/s...95fdbf6d64a0394990426ba02e5cf?amp#share-tools
The son of a legendary Penrith co-founder Roger Cowan has written to the club’s board asking why the Panthers have a “desire to smear and damage” his late father’s reputation, while insisting “steps (taken) were clearly aimed at burying Roger from the annals of the Panthers.”
And Max Cowan added: “I don’t think it is an oversight.”
Roger died in 2017 with Max claiming there has been a deliberate attempt by club administrators to expunge his father’s legacy.
Max is seeking recognition from the club, and city of Penrith, for Roger, a former club CEO who has been described as a “colourful visionary.”
At the time of Roger’s death, then club chairman Dave O’Neill said: “His entrepreneurial spirit and vision grew Panthers into the business it is today.”
The son of Panthers co-founder Roger Cowan (pictured) claims there has been a deliberate attempt by club administrators to expunge his father’s legacy. Picture: David Hill
A former Penrith marketing manager, Max emailed club directors following a Daily Telegraph story last week where Panthers Group CEO Brian Fletcher called on club legends Greg Alexander and Royce Simmons to be included in rugby league’s Hall of Fame.
Max’s letter, obtained by this masthead, said: “There are a huge number of rugby league players who might be nominated for (Hall of Fame) honour, Greg and Royce among them. Their time will surely come.
“However, by anyone’s reckoning – even the most rusted-on Panthers fan like myself – these players would not be considered for inclusion in The Immortals. Those in contention for the Immortals stand well above the group of players warranting Hall of Fame inclusion.
“Now, in the pantheon of the Panthers organisation, there is one name that stands way above all others – on the top floor of the tower – in the position of an Immortal.
“Roger Cowan. Yet, Roger remains missing from all honours.
Max Cowan has written to the Panthers board, calling on the club to acknowledge the contributions of his father
“While understanding the conflict that arose in the early years of this century was driven by a desire to smear and damage Roger, the real beginning of the absence was in 2010.
“In this year at the annual presentation night, (then) chairman Don Feltis took some steps that were clearly aimed at burying Roger from the annals of Panthers.
“One of those actions was to take the time to recount a history of Panthers that left the name out – perhaps I should have written ‘rewrite’ rather than ‘recount’ there.
“The other was to elevate the names of a couple of people whose contribution may have been significant but does not stand up to objective comparison. The burial started there but did not end there. It has continued through to this day.”
Friends claim Roger has been pushed aside through jealousy, controversy, political issues and a desire during Super League to merge Penrith with Parramatta. One friend said Roger was “innovative” and his ongoing snub at the club was a “conscious decision to keep his name buried.”
Max Cowan believes former chairman Don Feltis (right) took steps to bury Roger from the Panthers’ history books.
“There is no comparison between Roger’s contribution, influence, impact, dedication and longevity and that of any of those currently honoured. Indeed, his influence reaches well beyond the Panthers organisation and into key areas of the local community, the club industry and NRL,” Max wrote.
“The gap between Roger and those whose contributions have been recognised is huge. A gap possibly even larger than the gap between players in contention for the rugby league Hall of Fame and those destined to be Immortals.
“Yet, the omission prevails – and, if the absence of Greg and Royce from the rugby league Hall of Fame warrants attention, then so does this. I don’t think it is an oversight.
“It makes me wonder whether anyone at Panthers has an eye on Panthers history beyond the most cosmetic, it doesn’t seem so.
“The telling of the stories of those who have built Panthers requires effort, passion, talent and diligence – a combination that is, perhaps, a barrier. But the telling of those fantastic stories makes for a rich, dimensional and resilient history.
“After all, at one stage, Panthers implored us to: ‘Respect the past, create the future’.”
Max Cowan believes the attempts to bury the legacy of Roger has continued to the present day.
Former Panthers forward and Sydney developer Lou Zivanovic said: “Roger Cowan built Panthers. If it wasn’t for Roger, there’s no way that licensed club would have been built.”
Cowan and Merv Cartwright have been credited with helping Penrith enter the NSWRL competition in 1967.
Fletcher could not be contacted on Wednesday but said in a return email to Cowan: “I will pass your thoughts onto the board.”
Roger has been acknowledged for moving Penrith Leagues Club from the city’s CBD to its current location opposite the stadium on Mulgoa Road in 1984.
Club CEO between 1965 and 2005, Roger’s final years at the club were engulfed in drama at the now infamous Temby Inquiry. He was cleared of any wrongdoing. Max Cowan preferred not to comment any further.
