The Betoota Dolphins Rugby League Football Club is one of the Foundation Members of the Channel Country Rugby League, and one of the pillars of our town. Over the years plenty have pulled on the jersey across both First and Reserve Grade, and in our perennial overachieving Under 18s. While plenty of local players deserve recognition, which they often get at the Leagues Club, here is a list of the Greatest 17 to ever lace up for the club.
Starting Team:
1. Clinton Schifcofske (2010): Phonetically one of the greatest names in Rugby League History. Clinton played a season for the might Betoota Dolphins after he called time on his NRL career, and set the Channel Country Rugby League on fire at the ripe old age of 34.
2. Matt Sing (1992): One of Queensland’s greatest, and the highest ever single-season try scorer for the Betoota Dolphins. He’s impossible to leave out. Sing came out to the Channel Country in between school and the NRL and tore the competition to pieces. He famously scored 5 against the Bedourie Bulldogs in Round 5 that year.
3. John Hopoate (2006-07): Manly icon, and the most suspended player of all time, John Hopoate put in a couple of stints for our foundation club. Thanks to Frank Lloyd-Wran Nissan’s wheeling and dealing we were able to get John out as an enforcer for a couple of seasons.
4. Arana Taumata (2013-17): The man with the title, the “Ultimate Bad Boy Of The NRL,” Arana played for 7 different NRL clubs in a career spanning 14 first grade games. After a number of different incidents, he found a home out in the Channel Country, scoring 15 tries in 52 games.
5. Anthony Don (2006-07): Down on the Gold Coast, the 100 or so people who follow the Titans say ‘Is Don, Is Good,” in reference to the cult hero. The hard-working winger who made his first-grade debut at 25, played a couple of seasons up here after he was scouted from the Grafton Ghosts down there in the Northern Rivers. Nothing flashy, Don put in big stints and scored a handy 4 tries in 22 games on the Wing.
6. Cliff Lyons (2004-06): Another icon of the game, Cliffy Lyons will likely go down in history as the greatest signing in Dolphins history. The great man brought it all, from his on-field efforts in his forties to his off-field exploits that help build the amazing team culture we have now. Cliffy will fondly be remembered for the time he broke Keith Carton’s Wizard stick record after the Derby win against the Boulia Bandits.
7. Todd Carney (2018): Only played one season, but what a season it was. Understandably a Dally M winner tends to tear some bush-league amateurs apart, but he managed to do it off the field too. Before heading to Byron Bay, Carney put in a good shift that lasted the perfect amount of time.
8. Willie Mason (2014-15): Big Willie, one of the most devastating ball carriers to ever play the game. A man who reminded me a lot of myself before the injury. He came out on a big paycheque and certainly delivered, taking the team to back to back grand finals and a Premiership in 2015.
9. Michael Ennis (2001-2): Ennis the Menace, fuck me he earnt that name before he set foot in the NRL. Playing for 5 different clubs in the NRL, he showed off his mercenary traits up her in the Bush League. He might not be the biggest bloke but he certainly makes up for that with ticker. What he did to that Bulldog prop in Round 13 of 2001 still makes me sick. You want him in your team.
10. Danny Wicks (2014): He went hard. Real hard. The NRL wouldn’t take him for a little period of time after the whole jail thing, which is when we swooped. It was the chequered season, but his best was dizzying up here – particularly for opposition halves.
11. Lolesio Prince (2015-19): aka “The Man Too Bad For The South Of France,” Lolesio is one of the hardest running backrowers you’ll ever see. You’ve gotta be pretty hectic to not get a crack over in the South of France, and we had a hard time keep a lid on him, but he was inspirational in that 2015 Grand Final. What he did to one of the Reserve Graders and the Club House afterwards certainly weren’t but, that’s what makes this the greatest game of all.
12: Les Boyd (1984): As you may have garnered, we don’t care too much what you’ve done on the field before you come up here, and we certainly don’t listen to the NRL, so when Les found himself with a season to spare after breaking the Big Marn’s jaw in Origin, we said come on up Les. He was an ox and he terrorised opposition packs all year.
13: Clancy Overell (C) (1965-71): There’s always a bit of debate around self-selection, but I don’t care. The stats speak for themselves. 42 tries in 103 games for the Dolphins in a Premiership winning era. Could sting like Victory Radley and drank Beers Beers Beers just as hard. You can only think about what could have been if it weren’t for that Compound Fracture.
Interchange:
14: Wally Lewis (1991): A lot of people don’t know that the King came out here in 91. Following an illustrious career, he played a brief but memorable season for the Dolphins. He was certainly the king of the yarn, but Carney and Cliffy were the standout halves in our club’s history.
15. Beau Ryan (2017): Beau came out of retirement for a single season for the Dolphins, and his solid is a lot better than some of the other blokes that get round, so he makes the cut.
16. Kieth Carton (1970-82): The town’s current mayor and one of the greats. You don’t get respect around here unless you earn it, and Keith certainly did that. His honest 12-year career of head knocks set him up perfectly for a life in public office.
17. Leon Bott (2007-10): One of the best value signings in history. After falling out of favour following 2 good years at the Bronz, Bott came out to pasture in Diamantina. He ripped up, and scoring tries for fun, finishing with 42 in 39 games.
