Rory Miles – The Morton Bay Fig: Opinion

“Rory Miles is a Morton Bay fig, an institution, an icon.”

These words were spoken by Charles Waterstreet on the steps of Town Hall as he protested Council’s decision to place management of the Rushcutters Bay Tennis Centre out to tender.

Much has been said about Council’s changes to the tennis facility and the demolition of the caretaker’s cottage.

Regular readers of our paper will no doubt be very familiar with the claims by residents and the counter claims by members of Council.

I know enough to know I’m not an expert on heritage, or Rushcutters Bay or even tennis in fact.

I haven’t been in the area long enough to know if Council’s decision was right or wrong. We aim to report on the events and claims accurately, which is all a paper can strive for.

But I will claim to know people.

In a former life I managed restaurants, and cafes, then a gym. I’m reasonably familiar with the reality that most people will do the bare minimum not to be fired and most employers will do the bare minimum not to have them quit.

Which is why Rory Miles is different.

And it’s the reason I have decided to write my first opinion piece for the paper.

Because things need to be said and it’s easy to forget Rory – he isn’t the sort of man who will shout about his actions and achievements, to fight for himself.

He is too busy fighting for others.

“If it is too much to say he is the heart of the community, it is not too much to say his heart beats for the community.”

Another protester said this to me in passing. And he wasn’t alone. I have said to anyone who would listen that in my opinion the real tragedy of the whole episode is the loss of Rory Miles.

And it is a loss. It’s a loss of expertise from a man who has been recognised internationally as an outstanding tennis coach.

It’s a loss of a man who devoted his time to the community, for free, for decades. A man who gave his time to disadvantaged children and showed them someone cared – who didn’t have to – even if it was only tennis coaching, and that’s a powerful lesson. That lesson can change lives.

And he didn’t ask to be recognised for it. In fact he doesn’t even readily acknowledge it. And that’s rare too.

Once again, I am not claiming to know more about the tender process than Council. There are claims and counter claims on both sides about the legitimacy of the tender and about motives behind offers, and refusals.

But what I do know is a man like Rory Miles is unique. A man like that does not come along often and losing a man like that from any position makes everyone poorer.

Perhaps Council did everything they could, perhaps not. But I think the loss of Rory Miles from that position deserves wreaths and tributes, and to be mourned as much as the loss of any building.

By Simon Black