Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

THE LIFE AND TIMES OF REG TORRINGTON
in Rugby and the Navy



I was born on the 9th April, I920 in a private hospital in Avoca Street just up from Peter's corner in Randwick, the home of the galloping greens and this left me with a life long love of Rugby. My first four years were spent in Epping, good Eastwood Rugby Territory. The family then moved to Bondi, good Eastern Suburbs Rugby Territory. On the 9thApril, I924 along with many other Sydneysiders, my parents took my brothers and me to see the Royal Navy special services squadron entering Sydney Harbour. It consisted of two battleships, Hood and Repulse and five cruisers. This gave me my second life long love "The Navy".

I started primary school at Bondi in I926 and finished secondary school at
Sydney High School in I936.

In I935 the family moved from Bondi to Lindfield, still good Rugby Territory,
this time Gordon, and have remained in this area ever since.
My Rugby career began at Sydney High School playing in the Ist XV in I936 in
both the GPS and CHS competitions. We finished last in the GPS competition
but were runners up in the CHS . I played two years at Sydney University,
I937 I938 in the 5th grade. ( As there was no 5th grade competition we played
in the district fourth grade competition as the University 4B team. In I939 I
went to Gordon, 3rd Grade team where we finished 5th in the competition. In
I940 I made the Ists with Gerry Gerrand as captain. Despite beating Randwick in
the second round, who went on to win the competition, we just missed out on the semis.
On I3th July I940, I joined the Royal Australian Navy and for the next six years
was to play for a variety of Royal Australian Navy and Royal Navy teams
against an even greater variety of opposition teams from the three services and
established clubs in Australia, South Africa, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), England,
Scotland, Gibraltar and Bermuda.

In the Navy I saw service; first on destroyers, then in I943 went to fleet air arm,
being commissioned in October, I943 as a Sub Lieutenant observer.
In August I945 on my way out to join British Pacific Fleet, I had just arrived in
Ceylon ( Sri Lanka) when the Atomic Bomb was dropped. I am one of those
people who fully supported President Truman's decision to drop the bomb. I
had survived five years of war and I reckoned I had already used up most of my
luck.

In rugby, it was back to Gordon in I946 in third grade where we finished fifth. I
now had to take a break from Rugby as I was back at work in the day time in
the Department of Main Roads and study at night at the Sydney Technical
College, resuming a Civil Engineering Diploma Course. There was also the
responsibility of a growing family.

At the end of I950 I completed my Tech course and became a Civil Engineer. I
then worked in the Main Roads Department, Sydney City Council, Maritime
Services Board and Pioneer Asphalts as an engineer mainly on construction
works. In I95I besides working as an engineer, I went on the naval reserve,
while in Rugby, my playing days being over. I spent the 50's as a spectator.
At the beginning of the 60's I joined the Rugby Club. What a great move! Here
it is 1997 and I consider it was one of the best moves I had ever made, as in the
Club there is everything a rugby person could ask for. As for the friends I have
made over the years there, what a lucky bloke I am. It was not too long before I
joined the Board and was pleased to serve on it until I992, when at the age of
72, it was time to go.

The biggest challenge during that time was in 1971 when the Club was
damaged by fire. First there was the almost immediate reopening of the Club
with the very limited services provided to the members. Secondly there was the
decision to take whether we should repair and rehabilitate the Club on the same
site or sell it and redevelop on a new site. After much consideration it was
decided to rehabilitate on the existing site. I was pleased to carry out the
supervision of that work on behalf of the board. The refurbished Club proved a
winner.

In the 1970's I began to be actively involved again, coaching Macquarie
University 2nd XV in the 2nd Division Competition for two years and then the
Navy team in Sub District competition for a further two years. By now I was
ready to go back to being a spectator, a role I have continued to this day and
hope to continue for many a long day. In my role of spectator, I love watching
Sydney High, Sydney University, Gordon, NSW and Australia.

My naval career on the reserve was further enhanced when I went to work in the
Commonwealth Department of Works and became their resident Engineer on
Garden Island. Garden Island is only ten minutes from the Rugby Club. As a Naval Reserve
officer attached to the HMAS Kuttabul I was able to be a member of the
Wardroom Mess. Belonging to both the Rugby Club and this Mess I have been
pleased to see over the years a friendship develop between them, but this is not
surprising as they both compliment each other.

Finally, there came retirement from both work in the Commonwealth Public
Service in I985 and from the Rugby Club Board in I992. The commonwealth
gave me a pension and the Rugby Club made me an honorary life member for
which I feel greatly honoured.


But life has not ceased to be busy, instead it has got busier. Home and family get more attention, but as for Rugby and the Navy I am still busy with both trying to put down on paper my memories of them over the last sixty years. I am also very much into history and being an engineer makes the industrial revolution a ‘must read’. This makes the 19th Century a period to look at very closely. This period also included the development of Australia which is fascinating reading. Also Rugby started in the second half of the I9th Century while at the same time the navy changed form sail to steam, and from wooden to iron or steel ships. So life is enjoyable in retirement and made even more enjoyable by at least one visit to the Rugby Club every week.