OUT OF THEIR LEAGUE

Rights Information
Year
1994
Reference
F51285
Media type
Moving image
Item unavailable online
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Rights Information
Year
1994
Reference
F51285
Media type
Moving image
Item unavailable online
Production company
First Hand Productions
Credits
Director: Alan D’Arcy Erson

‘Rugby league has always been the working man’s football’, so starts the voiceover on this documentary. This is the story of the favoured sons of socialism. Sir Roger Douglas (accountant & politician), Frank Dodd (school principal), Ian MacKinlay (associate headmaster), Kevin Ryan (barrister), Gerald Ryan (barrister), Trevor Moffitt (Artist). United by their humble origins and government-subsidised success, but divided in their views of the Free Market nation we’ve become.

The link between social position and football code was still strong in the 1950’s when this particular group of men were in their playing prime. Once they ran before the local crowds in the first ever Auckland University rugby league side. Tonight they’ll sit down to their reunion dinner. Their league past is about all they have in common. They were born at the time of the first Labour government and the Welfare State was good to them. Each was the first in their family to make it to university. Since their league days they’ve done well.