Past players and members of the Sydney Roosters community met at Waverley Bowling Club last week for what was another successful Arthur Beetson Memorial Reunion day.
Old Boys Arthur Beetson Memorial Day
Originally known for being a casual get together for the 'Roosters Old Boys', the annual event became known as the Beetson Memorial Reunion from 2012 and has been held every year since.
Always remembered as a great afternoon of celebration, Waverley Bowling Club was once again the perfect location for the occasion.
In the center of the room was a table filled with old magazine clippings and posters from the 70s, predominantly featuring team photos and old stories revolving around the golden era of Easts.
Though the event was predominantly past Roosters players from the 70s and 80s, there were a number of members of the wider rugby league community in attendance to pay tribute to the Club Legend.
Organised by Club great Russell Fairfax, former Easts players in attendance included Bernie Gurr, Ian Mackay, Ian Schubert, Royce Ayliffe and much more.
Russell Fairfax discussed the importance of the afternoon and the Club Legend they were honouring.
It's a day for us to celebrate, and first and foremost we celebrate Arthur Beetson
Russell Fairfax
"Everybody's positive, nobody's growling and everybody has a great time.
"Everyone is here for him, because if you ever played for him or with him, you know just how great he was on and off the field."
Another former teammate of Beetson, Easts forward Ian Mackay further discussed the meaning of the day.
"It's great to get together with these fellas.
"It feels like we only saw them yesterday, and we talk about everything from footy to life in general.
"It's good to do it in the Eastern Suburbs too, we spent a lot of our time around places like Coogee and Bronte over those years."
When asked about Beetson, Mackay made his thoughts and feelings about him as a player very clear.
I should start a petition, because Artie was so great, I feel he was the best to ever do it.
Ian Mackay
The event concluded with a number of former Roosters saying some kind words about Beetson, followed by the traditional toast and cheers to the Club legend.
