Pendle Hill Junior Soccer Club - Founded in 1966

Our History

Pendle Hill Junior Soccer Club began as a breakaway movement from Toongabbie Junior Soccer Club. This happened as a result of discussions between parents of the children wishing to change clubs.  Bob and Shirley Doherty approached Mr and Mrs Kerry Packer who at the time were President and Secretary of Granville & Districts Association and asked how a junior Soccer Club could be formed.

The first step was to find a ground to play on and luckily new playing fields were ready on Binalong Road, behind Toongabbie Public School.  With support and guidance from Granville & District Soccer Football Association a meeting was held at the home of Bob and Shirley Doherty, 111 Binalong Road.  Attending this meeting were Mr and Mrs Packer, Shirley and Henry Waters, Kit and Les Fields, Hazel and Bruce Sternbeck, Roma and Bob Carrett and Pat and Ron Lawson.  It was agreed to apply for the use of the new playing fields at Binalong Road, Toongabbie and the application was approved by Blacktown Council.  Binalong Park No.1 was the first field leased in 1966.

An advertisement for players was placed in the local newspaper; Bob and Shirley Doherty’s garage was used for sign on day.  By the end of the day there were 8 registered teams, which was enough to form a Junior Soccer Club.  Further meetings were held and with good support from parents the first committee was formed.

President – Bob Doherty
Vice President – Henry Waters
Secretary – Shirley Doherty
Treasurer – Les Fields

So was born the Pendle Hill Junior Soccer Club.  Now the work began.  This was an exciting time; fundraising began and sponsors sought. Esso Oil Company did not accept the offer to become a sponsor but did however send several hundred of their tiger tails, which were proudly flown from car aerials wherever we went.  Tiger Tails became the name of the club’s weekly newsletter.

The original strip was chosen to be, black shirt with gold sash, black shorts, gold socks with two black bands at the top, and the emblem of a tiger’s head was also chosen.  The strip has changed many times over the years but the black & gold colours remain the same.  Fees in 1966 were a very reasonable $2.50. Dick Kocass started a cub’s team in 1972 and some of these players are still playing, or now have their children playing.  By 1976 Pendo had grown to 25 teams and Binalong No. 2 was included in the lease to cope with the demand.  From the late seventies to this present day the club has registered approximately 33 teams each year

In 1966 the club had 1 field and the canteen was a tent.  The tent was burnt by over-zealous hot dog sellers, then progressed to a shed which was dismantled in the off season, then to a slightly larger building built by several fathers and now the present 73 day building which was erected by council. Another fire in 1996 destroyed a lot of memorabilia due to be displayed at the 30th year celebrations.  Due to the hard work of committee members the club now boasts four fields, all with underground watering systems and a modern well-equipped canteen. In 2016 upgrades to the lights allowed night games to be played on Field No1.

Bob Carrett, Brian Ollier and Hans Grazelska were the clubs first coaches.  Many followed, and in some cases they brought with them many years of experience from competition overseas. Emil Kosaras and Richard Baker both played for Federation Clubs after arriving in Australia, and when retired, took up coaching at Pendle Hill.   The first head coach was Bob Hall (Australian Representative), followed by Dick Kocass, Ian Bullock, Dave Luck, John Simmons (present day player), Richard Baker (present day player and coach) and Fred Seger to name a few.

In the early days a team of marching girls were recruited from long suffering sisters of the players. The team dressed in club colours and won many awards. Parents were not forgotten, Dads “old buffers” and Mums “puffers” teams got together for many hilarious games of soccer.

Presentation night has progressed from a family picnic at Prospect Dam and long nights in school halls, to presentation days at the oval. Now a separate junior and senior presentation is held. Toongabbie Bowling Club (major sponsor) is the venue for many of our get-togethers such as Trivia and Karaoke nights. Many club balls have been held at various local venues, we have a Cubs day and of course, the tradition of the annual match of Coaches and Managers vs. Over 45s continues. The winner of which receives the “Wako Cup‟ named after a former team mate.

Pendle Hill Junior Soccer Club, which became Pendle Hill Football Club in 2009, has grown to be one of the largest clubs in the Granville Association and celebrated its 50th year anniversary in 2016. Pendle Hill Football Club continues to grow through the dedication of many people who over the years have enjoyed making PENDO part of their lives.