The Tom Brock Lecture is an annual scholarly lecture organised by the Australian Society for Sports History at the

bequest A bequest is property given by will. Historically, the term ''bequest'' was used for personal property given by will and ''deviser'' for real property. Today, the two words are used interchangeably. The word ''bequeath'' is a verb form for the a ...

of Australian sports historian Tom Brock. The topic of the lecture is the

history of rugby league football The history of rugby league as a separate form of rugby football goes back to 1895 in Huddersfield, West Riding of Yorkshire when the Northern Rugby Football Union broke away from England's established Rugby Football Union to administer its ...

. It has been given by leading writers and academics every year since 1999, at the

New South Wales Rugby League The New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory and is a member of the Australian Rugby League Commission. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was ...

's headquarters at

Phillip Street Phillip Street is a street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. While the street runs from King Street in the south to Circular Quay in the north, the present street is effectively in two sections, separ ...

in the

Sydney CBD The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or city centre is often refer ...

. David Rowe, an academic, caused some controversy when he used his 2006 lecture to question football's prospects in the future following negative off-field media coverage.

Shane Webcke Shane Webcke (born 28 September 1974) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer, who spent his entire club career playing for the Brisbane Broncos. Webcke represented Queensland in the State of Origin 21 times and also capt ...

was set to become the first player to give the lecture when he was invited to do so in 2007, but this did not eventuate. In 2010, the Australian Society for Sports History and the Tom Brock Bequest Committee published ''Tales From Coathanger City: Ten Years of Tom Brock Lectures''. The book includes the Tom Brock lectures delivered from 1999 to 2008, an essay considering 10 years of lectures and study of the game, a biography of Tom Brock and some information on the Bequest Committee.

List of lectures

#29 September 1999 - Dr Andrew Moore: '' Jimmy Devereux's Yorkshire Pudding: Reflections on the origins of

rugby league in New South Wales Rugby league, in New South Wales, is the most popular participation and spectator sport. It currently has the highest attendance and television audiences of the various codes of football in the state, far outstripping any other competitors. The ...

and

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

'' #30 November 2000 -

Ian Heads Ian John Heads OAM (born 15 February 1943) is an Australian historian, journalist, commentator and author. He is described as "Australia's foremost rugby league historian" by the National Museum of Australia. In the reconst ...

: ''"Gang-gangs at one o'clock" … and Other Flights of Fancy; A Personal Journey through Rugby League'' #20 September 2001 -

Alex Buzo Alexander John Buzo (23 July 194416 August 2006) was an Australian playwright and author who wrote 88 works. His literary works recorded Australian culture through wit, humour and extensive use of colloquial Australian English. Biography Ea ...

: ''Sydney: The Heart of Rugby League'' #22 August 2002 - Alan Clarkson: ''The Changing Face of Rugby League'' #4 July 2003 - Tony Collins: ''"Ahr Waggy":

Harold Wagstaff Harold Wagstaff (9 May 1891 – 19 July 1939), also known by the nickname of "Waggy", was an English professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s, 1910s and 1920s. He played as a and was nicknamed the ''Prince of Centres''. A ca ...

and the making of Anglo-Australian rugby league culture'' #22 September 2004 - Tom Keneally, AO: ''No more bloody bundles for Britain: The Post-World War II tours of the British and French Allies'' #21 September 2005 - Roy Masters: ''The Great Fibro versus Silvertail Wars'' #21 September 2006 - David Rowe: ''The Stuff of Dreams, or the Dream Stuffed? Rugby League, Media Empires, Sex Scandals, and Global Plays'' #27 September 2007 -

Sean Fagan Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angliciz ...

: ''Nothing But a Nine-Day Wonder: The founding of rugby league—Australia’s first professional code'' #6 November 2008 -

Lex Marinos Alexander Francis Marinos (born 1 February 1949) is an Australian actor. Notable for his acting role as Bruno, the Italian son-in-law of Ted Bullpitt, on the 1980s Australian comedy television series '' Kingswood Country'' and as host of ''Lat ...

OAM OAM may refer to: *Oamaru Aerodrome, New Zealand * Object access method *Observatorio Astronómico de Mallorca, an observatory in Spain *U.S. Office of Alternative Medicine, whose duties have been taken over by the National Center for Complementary ...

: ''From a Federation Game to a League of Nations'' #23 September 2009 - Terry Williams: ''The Lost Tribes of League – the fate of axed and merged clubs and their fans'' #23 September 2010 - John Fahey, AC: ''Tries and Tribulations'' #15 September 2011 -

Debbie Spillane Deborah Elizabeth Spillane (born 25 December 1955) is an Australian sports journalist and commentator. Early life and education Spillane was born in Sydney, and was educated at Bethlehem College, Ashfield and received a Bachelor of Arts from t ...

'The view from the ladies stand' #6 September 2012 - David Hill: ''Can Rugby League Survive the Twenty-first Century?'' #18 September 2013 - Frank Puletua: ''The Chocolate Soldiers – The emergence of western Sydney’s new league of players'' #8 October 2014 - Tom Harms: ''People, Stories and Meaning in Rugby League'' #16 September 2015 - Ross McMullin: ''Retrieving Ted Larkin (1880 – 1915): Outstanding Footballer, Acclaimed Organiser, Original ANZAC'' #20 September 2016 -

Dean Widders Dean Richard Widders (born 25 October 1979) is an Anaiwan Indigenous Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 2000s and 2010s. He works with the National Rugby League as an Indigenous Pathways manager. He is coa ...

: ''My Game, My People'' #5 July 2017 -

Raelene Castle Raelene Castle (born 30 September 1970) is a sports executive who has worked in Australia and New Zealand. She was chief executive officer of Rugby Australia from 2017 to 2020, before becoming chief executive officer of Sport New Zealand. Earl ...

: ''Leadership insights from the National Rugby League and Australasian Sport'' #19 September 2018 - A panel discussion featuring Roy Masters,

Tracey Holmes Tracey Holmes, an Australian journalist, is a presenter on ABC ''NewsRadio'', since January 2014, with an extensive career in television and radio, specialising predominantly in sport. She currently presents The Ticket at 11:00am every Sunday ...

and

Brian Canavan Brian Canavan is the current NRL Head of Football as of 17 May 2016 and was the former CEO of the Australian National Rugby League team, the Sydney Roosters from 2003 to 2013. In 2010, Canavan was appointed to forensically investigate the on-and- ...

" ''How has rugby league progressed in the past 20 years?'' #24 September 2019 - Braham Dabscheck ‘Big Artie’s Most Important Offload; Forty Years of the Rugby League Players’ Association’

External links

Tom Brock Lecture
at Australian Society for Sports History website

References

{{reflist Brock History of rugby league Rugby league in Sydney