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Jack was the second son in his family, born on the 5th March 1918 and raised in Kadina, a town central to the copper mining industry and part of the historic ‘Little Cornwall’ settlements which included Moonta and Wallaroo, as well as being an important farming area. His parents were Michael James and Margaret Hoey with two brothers, Leonard Verdun (Len) and Hubert Max (Max). Jack was just seven when his 44-year-old father died in July ’25. As a mark of respect for their late trainer, the Rovers football team wore black armbands, as a token of sympathy on Michael’s passing. He was buried that day, with four members of the team acting as pall-bearers at the funeral. Businesses and individuals in the community immediately and very generously swung behind the widow and young family, establishing a ‘Mrs Hoey Benefit’.
All three boys attended the Kadina Public School. As a ten-year-old in Grade 4, Jack won an end of year award for being the most improved scholar and also winning at the Kadina Show that year a prize for his manual work. From an early age, Jack showed his natural athletic skills in a variety of sports, including cricket where he played for Oddfellows, football and cycling. In the latter, as a fifteen-year-old he travelled to Adelaide to compete in the 15 miles Junior Cycling Championship against 14 other youths. He was a leading rider from the start but was unfortunate to fall at a tight corner. Despite remounting and catching the field, he was unable to then sustain the lost pace. In the ensuing years Jack competed in Three Mile Scratch races, again marked by spectacular falls and back slides and extremely close finishes. At Mundoora, he finished second in the Maiden Wheel Race and third in the One Mile. During the half time entertainment of football in Wallaroo over 1 ½ miles Jack finished third in an entertaining race. Riding with the Kadina Cycling Club, Jack set the fastest time of 8mins. 52seconds, riding from scratch over 3 miles. His competitiveness in this sport resulted in several crashes and a collision as well as a fine for rule breaches in an 11-mile road race when he was 17. He and brother Max scored an unusual double win in ’35 with Max taking out the 3 ½ mile Colts race starting at the Wombat Hotel around the Avenue course and Jack the Open 11 mile Race from the Hotel to Wallaroo and back.
In football, playing for Kadina East, Jack was similarly talented and frequently listed in the best players. However, it was in boxing that Jack excelled and probably enjoyed the most. He travelled quite extensively for matches, honing his skills, strategies and reflexes. By ’36 amateur boxers were putting on a tournament at Moonta where Jack was being hailed as ‘another aspirant for championship honors’. Jack achieved this distinction in June ’37. The Advertiser reported that 'The selection of J. Hoey of Moonta in the middleweight boxing section, marks the first occasion that a country competitor has been chosen in a South Australian boxing and wrestling team. To obtain selection Hoey defeated A. Nagel, of the same town, but only after five hectic rounds.’ Jack was to compete against a Victorian team in a special match programme at the City Baths in Adelaide (now home to the Festival Theatre). In February ’38 he successfully competed at Berri in the Riverland, then in September for the middleweight championship of the Peninsula where he competed at Port Lincoln and received a special mention in the Port Lincoln Times for his ‘sportsmanship in putting aside all personal considerations and helping us as he did by meeting Mr. Tobin in the heavyweight division, was splendid. The 16 boxers are as fine a body of sportsmen as it has ever been my good fortune to meet.’ This was the inaugural tournament run by the Port Lincoln Local Club where Jack (State Amateur Heavyweight Champion) agreed to a bout against Tom Tobin (Police Heavyweight). The West Coast Recorder summarised the bout. ‘The two heavy weights, Jack Hoey and Tom Tobin, provided a willing fight. The former was out of condition and had to use his ring experience on several occasions to get him out of severe trouble. Although the amateur champion made Tobin miss on several occasions the latter scored well with both hands and won the decision.’
In a return match at Whyalla the following year, with the eventual aim of forming a West Coast Boxing Association, the feature of the programme was an eight-round contest between Jack Hoey (ex-amateur heavyweight champion of South Australia), this time representing Port Lincoln, and Al Nagel, of Iron Knob in an eight round contest. Jack fought well and his hitting was both hard and accurate. He scored often with a short right to the head. The contest went the full eight rounds, was a clean, scientific fight and resulted in a draw.
From there, three months later, Jack represented Whyalla competing against Port Augusta in May with the bouts being described over the air on radio 5AU. The Transcontinental reported that ‘The final match was between Jack Hoey (Whyalla) 12.0 and L. Melville (Iron Knob) 11.10. This was to be an eight-round contest, but during the first round Hoey placed a hard blow to Melville's solar and put him down for the count.’ By May ’40 a title fight was anticipated between Jack, former amateur light-heavyweight champion, and ‘Dasher’ Dan, middleweight and light-heavyweight champion, lauded as one of the most popular boxers in Australia.
Jack’s brother, Len, was also involved in boxing, including a welter weight bout at Mount Barker ‘38 a four-round bout at the Colley Reserve, Glenelg and the Camden Motor Drome on Anzac Highway in January ’39. In May that year Jack represented the Whyalla Amateur Boxing Club where he defeated his opponent who ‘took the count’. He continued with the sport into ’40 with a win in the Welter final at the Grenfell Street Stadium in aid of the Adelaide Children’s Hospital and the following year with proceeds going to the Cheerup Society. While competing and pursuing his boxing career, Jack also worked as a rigger until the outbreak of WWII.
His older brother, Leonard (Len) enlisted on the 8th August ’40, just prior to his 24th birthday, becoming signaller S15835. He was discharged in February ’42. Younger brother, 21-year-old Hubert (Max) was the second of the three brothers to enlist on the 15th April, ’41 in the 2/27th Battalion as SX12283. The following month Jack followed suit, just prior to his 23rd birthday, on the 13th May ‘41 becoming SX12741 initially in the 2/43rd Battalion, then two months later with Max’s 2/27th Battalion. This put an immediate stop to Jack’s career as an elite boxer. By October, Jack had established a propensity for being absent without leave and absent from parade, beginning a run of fines or punishments that accompanied him throughout the war.
At Jack’s farewell in May ’41, particular reference was made to Max. ‘None are better known, perhaps, than the Hoey family. Max is as well-known as any of the lads in and around the town, and now, as another contribution to the war, Max and the other lads go forth to duty.’ At the Kadina council’s July ’41 meeting, the Mayor specifically mentioned Jack being home. He reported that “Pvte. J. Hoey was also home on brief leave, but as there was no time for a formal gathering, I wished him well on behalf of the town and the usual parcels were presented."
Country towns were innovative in their efforts to both support their young men who had enlisted, but also to keep their decimated local sporting teams viable. To this end, Kadina established a local Patriotic Football Club in September that year, designed to ‘raise funds for war purposes; to raise the morale of the public; to keep our lads healthy and physically fit; and to keep our national game going.’ Clarrie Stewart SX7508, Jack Hoey SX12741 Ian McLeod Larwood SX7893 and Rayner Stagg SX7311 from the 2/48th were each praised for their pride in the national game and who had fought hard for the game to continue through their roles as players and secretaries. Through the Kadina and Wallaroo Times in September ’41 the challenge was made “Are we, at home, doing justice to these men? We should keep the game going while they are away by supporting those who are trying to do so. I appeal to the public to give their assistance to our club, and to the good women who are helping us, the ladies of the Comforts Fund, the Red Cross,' V.S.D's, and V.A.D's.’
Jack arrived in the Middle East in February ’42 where his early days were smattered with breaches of discipline and on-going fines. In April that year he experienced a painful, inflamed abscess in his knee for which he had several weeks of hospitalisation. It was at this stage that he joined the 2/48th Battalion but soon after a bout of dysentery followed, culminating with him being wounded in action, receiving a gunshot wound to his right hand and left foot. Jack was fortunate to serve with VC recipient, ‘Diver’ Derrick in 8 Platoon A Company , with mention being made in Derrick’s diary of Jack’s wounding on the 14 October ’42. This news was received by Jack’s mother and reported in the local paper the following month. An article, written by the local minister gave an insight into the effect of those back home. ‘As the war progresses everywhere, we are more conscious than ever the conflict has struck very deeply into our community. One has only to meet people and talk with them to note that the strain is on. Coming nearer home, Jack Hoey, Loveridge, Cross, Rhys Roberts, are among those who in the course of their duty are now among those on the casualty list. As I meet the parents of these boys in and about the town, although they know what it is to get that unwelcome news, yet they have said to me: "We can only hope for the best;" and I can assure our friends that we are just as anxious as they are to hear any news for the better in regard to their boys.’
Jack had been used to ‘being his own man’ at home, so Army discipline continued to be an ongoing challenge. In the Middle East in January ’43 he was first charged with being drunk, resisting an escort, then breaking two windows, for which he had to pay. It was a very lean time for his pay packet.
John Glenn in his book Tobruk to Tarakan wrote of the 2/48th being finally on their way home in March ‘43 and passing the Addu Atoll 3,000 miles from Australia on their way to Freemantle, Western Australia. ‘Housie housie was played in every nook and corner; the nights rang with the cries of the callers. Sporting events were arranged, boxing providing the most popular. Jack Hoey of the 2/48th was “cock of the walk” in this department, but the 2/48th tug of war team went down to the 2/7th. Running, jumping, debating, even a short story competition, were organised, and the troops were kept occupied as much as conditions allowed.’ Celebrations continued once Jack reached Kadina. In March he was one of seven soldiers invited to attend the Soldiers' Relatives Club at their monthly meeting where they were entertained with items and a much-appreciated afternoon tea. Two were from Jack’s Battalion, Clarrie Stewart and Len Loveridge and the other from their sister battalion the 2/43rd. The members were grateful to show their appreciation of the many sacrifices made by these boys for the safety and freedom of those back home.
Whilst on leave and with minimal fanfare, Jack married Phylliss Eileen Chapman at Wallaroo on the 9th March ’43 and at a similar time was charged with being absent without leave.
Following leave, Jack’s battalion reassembled at Springbank. Murray Farquhar in his early book Derrick V.C. wrote “The very next day Adelaide did them proud. They marched through enormous cheering crowds from North terrace down King William street and continued through the suburb of Unley to the camp. They were feted.” John Glenn described how for a week the soldiers lived in trains travelling all the way from Adelaide around the eastern seaboard to Cairns, then up to the Atherton Tablelands with a day’s leave in Brisbane. ‘The night had its moments’ in a Hall normally used by American servicemen. ‘Jack Hoey, a more than useful heavyweight (Arch Bryson declares he had the making of a world champion) and twenty or thirty of his mates, had butted in and rather taken charged of proceedings. It was much ado about nothing By the time the two officers arrived, everything had sorted itself out.’
Training in Queensland followed to prepare the 2/48th Battalion for the totally different conditions they would experience in New Guinea. Jack arrived in Milne Bay in August ‘43 to serve in the region but almost immediately was charged with the use of insubordinate and threatening language for which he was heavily punished - again. Over the following months, Jack contracted a high fever and malaria several times, plus added further to his conduct offences.
His description of conditions in New Guinea were published in the Kadina and Wallaroo Times in June ’45.
‘In the first wave to hit the Tarakan beach on the assault landing on May 1st, was Pte. Jack Hoey, son of Mrs M. Hoey, Kadina. Since then, Jack and his mates have been having a busy time, for the conquest of the island has been no easy task. The Japs encountered there were seasoned and well-trained troops, frequently fighting tenaciously to hold strong positions, and displaying their familiar penchant for infiltration. But, as ever, our boys proved too good for them.
‘After taking part in vigorous attacks in the early part of the campaign, Jack's platoon later found itself more occupied with patrolling. To realise what this means requires some picture of the country in which all but the initial fighting took place. There are no high mountains on Tarakan, the tallest feature being only about 300 feet above sea level. But the hills, which cover much of the island, are formed with devilish ingenuity. Sharp, razor-back spurs twisted crazily to malformed ridges; sharply cut gullies perform bewildering intricacies; tracks wind apparently at random, branching off to dead-ends or leading endlessly on into the unknown; and overall is a thick mat of tangled jungle. It is country which would test the talents of the most experienced bushman, and to add to ordinary difficulties, there is no piece of cover which may not conceal a lurking Jap.
‘Into this territory, patrols go out every day, probing for the enemy, sometimes to find and kill him, more often to observe his movements as a prelude to bombardment or to larger scale ground attacks. It is hard work: it is often tedious, for a thousand-yard patrol may take several hours; it is hazardous and nerve-wracking. Such is warfare on Tarakan.’
Inevitably, Jack contracted malaria in July ’44, followed by badly spraining his ankle. Probably frustrations at the conditions, caused Jack to be charged with the offence of again ‘using threatening language to an officer’ for which he was further fined.
Jack survived those conditions and was discharged in November ’45, returning home to a huge welcome afforded to sixty-seven personnel. His brother Max had been discharged in December ’44. A massive civil welcome was organised in the Kadina Town Hall with a huge ‘Welcome’ banner displayed in the front while in the evening this was brilliantly illuminated with colored lights. The local band played outside while the interior was described in the local paper as ‘nicely arranged with Allied flags displayed around the hall, and on the stage, pot plants in bloom, with hydrangeas and begonias interwoven with fern, made a delightful scene, and with the happy feelings, a cheerful atmosphere prevailed the whole evening. The seating accommodated about 500 people in the hall, which still left a large area for dancing, while the dress circle was taxed to its capacity, and the only standing room available was soon taken up. At 8 o'clock Girl Guides and Boy Scouts formed a guard of honor from the hall entrance to the stage and the guests moved slowly through headed by two diggers of World War I.’ Allied flags were displayed around the hall, and the stage featured colourful, flowering pot plants, with hydrangeas and begonias interwoven with fern. The National Anthem was enthusiastically sung before the returned men and women were introduced and ‘welcomed them back to Kadina, all receiving the gratitude of the audience with applause. A summary of the role of the local men included ‘we fought on, our men never yielding or giving away until they had to. Then Tobruk and the Middle East and at last, a glimmer of hope when word came through "We stopped them,"' and the turning point was reached in Europe. The Jap treachery at Pearl Harbour, North of Australia, and then their menace to Australia when so many of our noble boys gave their best and all, to save us, and now we are a free country and people for which we thank them. We are here to pay a tribute to the boys who came home and to those who gave their lives that we live in freedom." The assemblage then stood in silence for those who paid the supreme sacrifice. The evening concluded with all present singing "For they are jolly good fellows."
Jack moved to live in Whyalla, the booming town based on the success of BHP and shipbuilding and where he had experienced such support as a boxer. He used some of the recreational skills learned during his time in the army, but in civilian life resulted in a fine when police raided a ‘Two Up’ premise in October ‘46. The Whyalla court was told “There was a table in the centre covered with a grey rug. He estimated that there were between 35 and 40 men present. There was dice on the table, also a £1 note and 5/- in silver. He picked up the silver and Constable Marker dived for the dice and box. Witness went on to say that the light went out and he stepped back to the door to prevent the men from escaping that way. A scuffle took place, and he called out "stand back or I'll shoot." Jack and his fellow ‘unlawful game’ players were fined £4-0-0 with 10/- court fees.
Eight months later Jack pleaded guilty to a charge of having carried on the business of a bookmaker at the Spencer Hotel. Jack claimed he was not peddling at the bar but was running the card among a restricted circle of his work mates. He was fined £25 with 10/-costs, in default six weeks' imprisonment.
Jack, still fit, also turned his hand to playing football for West Whyalla in the forward lines with the team proving to be a slick, fast, hard-bumping outfit, where he appeared in the best player list and also took out the Club trophy for the B Grade team in ‘47. By ’51 a new coach, ex-interstate and Glenelg player, Clarrie Window was appointed with Westies experiencing increased success. By ’51 Jack was playing in the B team’s grand final against North Whyalla. In frustration, Jack was found guilty of ‘interfering with the umpire and attempting to strike a North player’. His suspension for nine matches was believed to be the severest ever given in Whyalla. He did return to the game, eliciting praise for his solid ruck work and good defence but also trod a fine line with his attitude of disputing the umpire's decision and having used abusive language. That charge, brought the following year attracted a strong caution. None of these incidents detracted from Jack scooping the West Adelaide Trophy pool in ’53 taking out the Clark Trophy for Best and fairest, Lord Trophy for Mots Effective and the Edwards and Rehn Trophy for the Best Utility. He was also the runner-up for the Whyalla News Medal for B grade. Tennis was also a sport in which Jack excelled in the "A" grade handicap singles.
Other Kimba men who served with Jack in the 2/48th also moved to live in Whyalla, including Henry Aubert and Clarrie Stewart.
Jack and Phylliss had six children, Judith, Sandra, Paulette, Michael, Lance and Janet. Aged 53, he died in Whyalla on the 6th September, 71. Phylliss lived to be a remarkable 101. She died in Whyalla on the 29th May 2016 and is buried with Jack in the local cemetery. A photo of the two, with Jack in his army uniform adorns the grave.
Researched and written by Kaye Lee, daughter of Bryan Holmes, SX8133, 2/48th Battalion.