Former Test centre Tony Currie will deliver the 2023 Ross Livermore Memorial Lecture at the Queensland Rugby League’s head office on Saturday, April 22.
Currie, who played seven Tests for Australia and 14 games for Queensland, will be the first Indigenous speaker at the annual event, which was first staged in 2010.
A product of Kelvin Grove High School, Currie played for Wests and Redcliffe in Brisbane, as well as having a stint with Leeds in England, before making the move to Sydney in 1986 to play with Canterbury-Bankstown.
He won a NSWRL Premiership with Canterbury in 1988, and then claimed another title with the Brisbane Broncos in 1992. He finished his playing career with a BRL Premiership with his beloved Wests Panthers in 1993.
He gave his heart and soul to Wests, first as secretary manager of the Leagues Club in 1994, and from 2007 to 2012 as president and benefactor of the senior and junior clubs. Currie had a successful coaching stint with London Broncos, from 1996-98, before returning to Brisbane to establish his own tyre business at Morningside.
Currie's grandfather, Stokel Currie was a star centre on the North Coast of NSW, described by 1937-38 Kangaroo, Jack Reardon, as one of the best attacking players he had ever seen.
Currie's uncle, Alan was a formidable lock forward for Brisbane Easts, winning the Rothmans' Medal as Brisbane's best and fairest player in 1977. Currie did the same in 1982.
In delivering the 2023 lecture, Currie will touch on his family tree and the influences on his career, as well as making observations about the modern game, and the role played by Indigenous footballers. Currie has been heavily involved with Indigenous rugby league carnivals and teams in the past decade.
Last year's lecture was delivered by former Jillaroo Jo Barrett, who followed in the footsteps of league greats Wally Lewis, Wayne Bennett, Michael Hagan and John Lang, as well as former referee Geoff Mines and noted authors / historians Adrian McGregor, Hugh Lunn and the late professor Max Howell.
The lecture is conducted by the Queensland Rugby League History Committee, under the auspices of the QRL. The committee is made up of volunteers, who give their time to help keep alive the heritage of the code.
Former sports journalist Steve Ricketts is chair, and delivered the 2011 lecture. Other Committee members to have delivered the lecture are former commentator John McCoy, author and former television journalist Steve Haddan, and North Queensland historian Greg Shannon.
The other members of the committee are archivist Paul Hayes, former QRL chairman Peter Betros, councillor Greg Adermann, retired QRL executive and Maroons manager Michael Pease, NRL.com journalist Colleen Edwards and former QRL office manager Rebecca Trimble.
Admission to the lecture is free (doors open at 10am) with the function to conclude at noon. The lecture will be livestreamed at QRL.com.au.
The lecture is named in honour of former QRL managing director Ross Livermore, who died in April, 2013. It was previously named after another legendary administrator, Harry Sunderland.
To register your attendance, you can email here or phone 07 3367 6000.
