Sydney Roosters Juniors

The Sydney Roosters Juniors is officially known as the Eastern Suburbs District Junior Rugby League (ESDJRL). It is an affiliation of junior clubs in the Eastern Suburbs area, covering the Woollahra and Waverley local government areas (LGAs), the northern parts of the Randwick LGA and also the eastern areas of the City of Sydney LGA. The district currently boasts the following clubs;
*Bondi United
*Clovelly Crocodiles
*Paddington-Woollahra Tigers
*St Charles Waverley

These clubs play in a combined junior competition with the clubs in the South Sydney District Junior Rugby League.

Some former Eastern Suburbs junior clubs include;
*Paddington (Paddo) Colts (became affiliated with South Sydney shortly before folding)
*Coogee Dolphins (formed under the auspices of the Eastern Suburbs Junior League but now affiliated with the South Sydney League)
*Dunbar United (Paddington)
*Nelson Hotel (Bondi Junction)
*East Randwick
*Rose Bay Rams
*Woolloomooloo Warriors
*Brothers
*Darlinghurst Devils Police
*Paddington CYO
*Brighton Hotel Jets (Darlinghurst)
*Coogee Bay Hotel

Some notable players who have played in the Eastern Suburbs district as a junior include;
*Luke Ricketson (Bondi United)
*Bryan Fletcher (Paddington Colts)
*Ryan Cross (St Charles Waverley)
*Craig Salvatori (Nelson Hotel)
*Shaun Kenny Dowall (Clovelly Crocodiles)
*Anthony Cherrington (Paddington-Woolahra Tigers)
*Jim Dymock (Paddington Colts, Wooloomooloo Warriors - before moving to Zetland in Souths juniors in his late teens)
*Craig Field (Paddington Colts - before moving to Zetland in Souths juniors in his teens)
*Ian Rubin (Bondi United)

Some Roosters juniors that have been earmarked as future NRL talent include;
*Luke Towers (Bondi United & Clovelly): with Sydney Roosters Under 20's
*Tom Symonds (Bondi United): with Sydney Roosters Under 20's
*Mark Talanoa (Paddo Tigers): with Sydney Roosters Under 20's
*Sandor Earl (Paddo Tigers): with Sydney Roosters Under 20's
*Blake Ayshford (Paddington-Woollahra): with Wests Tigers Under 20's
*Daniel Ezekiel (Clovelly Crocodiles): with Cronulla Sharks Under 20's

Turf wars

When the Sydney Roosters first entered the NSWRL competition as Eastern Suburbs in 1908, the tricolours would become neighbours to fellow city counterpart, the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Anzac Parade separated the territories for both inner-Sydney clubs when the boundaries were first established the previous year. Souths' boundaries were based on the municipalities of Redfern, Botany, Alexandria, Mascot and Waterloo, while the Roosters' boundaries were those of the eastern municipalities of Paddington, Woollahra, Vaucluse, Randwick and Waverley. Many of these councils had then amalgamated, as demographic changes affected the inner and eastern suburbs of Sydney. Randwick Council has a western boundary of Anzac Parade and incorporates all those eastern suburbs east of Anzac Parade, and these suburbs like Randwick, Coogee and Maroubra were all part of the Roosters' territory from 1908 to 1929. [http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/news/the-rivalry-that-will-never-die/2008/03/08/1204780126220.html]

The areas would remain unchanged until 1929 when the NSWRL decided to re-allocate club boundaries. In 1929, S.G. Ball in his capacity as the President of the NSWRL transferred those parts of the local government area of Randwick south of Alison Road, Coogee-Randwick, from the Eastern Suburbs District Junior Rugby League to the South Sydney Junior District Rugby League. These suburbs are now represented by the Coogee Dolphins, Coogee-Randwick Wombats and Maroubra Lions.

Rabbitohs stalwart S.G. Ball was a dual administrator within South Sydney Rabbitohs and the New South Wales Rugby League at the time. The Rabbitohs were in a highly successful period and had established South Sydney Juniors Leagues club in Kingsford, Roosters territory in recent times. Debate still continues amongst rival fans as to how and why Eastern Suburbs territory was given to South Sydney.

This was not to be the end of struggle for junior territory between the two inner-city clubs. In the 1980s some junior clubs such as Paddington Colts that were within Roosters territory became dissatisfied with Roosters management and affiliated with South Sydney.

After the Newtown Jets were expelled from the NSWRL in 1983, their junior district was eventually absorbed into the South Sydney junior district in 1987. Eastern Suburbs at this time then made unsuccessful attempts to regain the suburbs lost in 1929.

References

"The rivalry that will never die" - Sydney Morning Herald, Phil Gould, March 9, 2008 [http://www.leaguehq.com.au/news/news/the-rivalry-that-will-never-die/2008/03/08/1204780126220.html]