Bondi player pays homage to super coach

BY PETER McCALLUM
Grant Hedger grew up in Francis Street, Bondi and rose to play first grade in 1975 when Easts won their second grand final with Jack Gibson as coach.

Last month he was among the many Eastern Suburbs supporters, whose first grade team Gibson had coached to two coveted grand final victories, who mourned the much-loved coach when he passed away.

Hedger shared his recollections with The Bondi View.

‘My father took me to Easts games when I was young in the late fifties.  I was a great fan of Jack’s when he was a player, so being picked and playing under him was a real buzz!’ he said.

‘He chose me for first grade when other coaches hadn’t.’

Hedger’s respect for Gibson turned out to be mutual for his coach later wrote he had picked Hedger for his stamina and his determination. Asked where Gibson’s reference to his ‘Olympic standard’ had come from, Hedger explained:  ‘He saw me swimming butterfly for 200 metres in a hotel swimming pool and seemed to have been impressed.’  It was only later that he learned Hedger had competed in the Australian finals!

Gibson was known for packaging his advice in cryptic terms, leaving his players to decipher the message. On a very rare occasion Hedger responded to deliberate fisticuffs on the field, raining some blows on the perpetrator. The coach ‘ always against illegalities in the game ‘ simply asked Hedger:

‘Have you had some experience in the ring”

‘No, Jack.’

‘I didn’t think so!’

Gibson’s one-liners were legendary among the players.
‘Never be the last one out of the pub!’ was a favourite according to Hedger.

There was also a tremendous loyalty between the coach and his players.
‘You didn’t want to let him down once he’d picked you,’ Hedger said.

But Gibson was also concerned that his players be able to manage the pressures on their social life as first graders. ‘Jack worried about your life off the field as much as your playing on the field. He’d give players plenty of advice on how they needed to conduct themselves in their own time. He really cared about his players ‘ he was a real teacher!’  

When Gibson moved on to another team, the Leagues Club in Forbes contacted him seeking advice on finding a player-coach. Hedger was recommended without hesitation.

Archives director Christine Yeates will reveal crimes and misdemeanours from the Sydney Archives at the Waverley Historical Society’s meeting at 4 pm on Monday, July 14 on the 1st floor of Club Bondi Junction (the RSL) in Gray Street.