The Australia Day Ambassador for Harden Shire this year is Rugby Union great Jeff Sayle OAM.
Jeffrey Leonard Sayle OAM is a Randwick stalwart and a distinguished member of that district’s sporting community. Sayle was awarded the Centenary Medal in 2001 for services to Rugby, and in 2006 received the Order of Australia Medal for services to Randwick Rugby and Coogee Surf Life Saving Clubs.
He is the patron of the Randwick Rugby Club and the Jeffrey Sayle Pavilion at Latham Park, Randwick’s training ground, is named in his honour. A respected and long-serving player (backrower) and coach, Sayle was capped three times for the Waratahs in 1967 (later becoming a state coach) and reached the pinnacle with a Test cap in the 1967 Bledisloe Cup at Wellington’s Athletic Park.
Jeff has had more than 60 years of involvement with rugby starting from the tender age of eight. Jeff played in the junior teams, both under 8s and the under 21s. A great achievement for Jeff was that he played 382 games of senior level rugby from the year 1961 to 1980. In his rugby career Jeff has represented: Sydney and NSW Juniors, Sydney and NSW Seniors, Australia 1967, Australian Barbarians.
He has also coached Sydney and NSW Juniors, Sydney and NSW Seniors, Australia under 17s, Australian Barbarians and Randwick (which took out seven premierships) Jeff was president of the Randwick Rugby Club for seven years and has been a part of the Coogee Surf Life Saving Club and the Australian Reserve Champions surf boat at Coogee Surf Life Saving Club.
