A rugby league identity in his hometown of Dubbo and a former Shark from the formative years of the Cronulla club, Michael ‘Mick’ Wilson passed away last week.
Wilson played three first grade matches, two in the Sharks inaugural season of 1967 and one the following year. He played 44 games in total for the Cronulla Club.
Shark #19, Wilson passed away in Dubbo, aged 77.
“He was a jovial country fella, came down to us from the bush,” recalls Brian Cox, the fullback and a teammate in the Sharks 1967 team. “He was a tough bugger, a raw-boned front rower.”
A man who touched the lives of many people in the Central West of NSW and in particular the Dubbo community, Wilson was an outstanding contributor to the Dubbo CYMS Club, where he was a life member, and to country rugby league as a devoted servant for a period of more than 30 years.
Wilson had seven children and 34 grandchildren, with his son Bernhard playing for the North Sydney and Balmain clubs. He was also an uncle to Panther’s lock and captain Isiah Yeo.
His funeral was in his hometown of Dubbo last Friday.
The Sharks offer their condolences to his family, friends and the rugby league community in western NSW.