Paul Morgan (rugby league)
Encyclopedia
Paul "Porky" Morgan was an Australia
n rugby league
player and businessman. He is remembered for being co-founder of the Brisbane Broncos
club. the Paul Morgan Medal for the Brisbane Broncos' best and fairest player of the season is named after him.
Morgan attended Brisbane State High School
where he was a pupil of former Queensland Maroons captain, Cyril Connell, Jr..
Morgan represented Queensland in rugby league in his first year out of school and went on to play for the Bulimba Cup-winning Toowoomba team of 1970 alongside Wayne Bennett. He later played in Brisbane for Redcliffe
.
In 1986 Paul Morgan joined Barry Maranta
, Gary Balkin and Steve Williams
to form a Brisbane
-based club for the New South Wales Rugby League premiership
, Australia's top rugby league club competition at the time. All men had played for Brisbane domestic teams. Four organisations made bids for the team which would be established in 1987. Ron McAuliffe
, had the support of the NSWRL over the Maranta-Morgan group, other groups included 'International Syndicate' led by John Sattler
and Bob Hagan, and one by Darryl van der Velde
(who would later be CEO of the South Queensland Crushers
).
The NSWRL decided not to have a Brisbane club in 1987 but in a final bid for the 1988 season
, both McAuliffe and Maranta-Morgan bid for the club. The NSWRL finally decided to have a Brisbane based team and thus the Brisbane Broncos
were born. The rights originally were going to go to the McAuliffe based group, but when it was realised they didn't have the funds to support the club, it was given to Maranta-Morgan.
However the Maranta-Morgan group did not please everybody, especially Australian Rugby League
chairman Ken Arthurson
, who decided to add other (now defunct) Queensland-based teams, Gold Coast in 1988
and South Queensland
in 1995
.
Morgan was a stockbroker by trade; he was in charge of Pacific Sports Entertainment, the company that owns the Brisbane Broncos.
Paul Morgan died of a heart attack while playing golf in Brisbane. He was 54. He left a widow, Suellen Morgan. The Brisbane Broncos' player of the year award was named after him. Paul Morgan's son, Lachlan Morgan played for the Toowoomba Clydesdales
in the 2006 Queensland Cup
grand final.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
player and businessman. He is remembered for being co-founder of the Brisbane Broncos
Brisbane Broncos
The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the city of Brisbane, the capital of the state of Queensland. Founded in 1988, the Broncos play in Australasia's elite competition, the National Rugby League premiership. They have won six premierships and two...
club. the Paul Morgan Medal for the Brisbane Broncos' best and fairest player of the season is named after him.
Morgan attended Brisbane State High School
Brisbane State High School
Brisbane State High School is a partially selective, co-educational, state secondary school, located in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is a member of the Great Public Schools' Association of Queensland, and the Queensland Girls' Secondary Schools Sports Association...
where he was a pupil of former Queensland Maroons captain, Cyril Connell, Jr..
Morgan represented Queensland in rugby league in his first year out of school and went on to play for the Bulimba Cup-winning Toowoomba team of 1970 alongside Wayne Bennett. He later played in Brisbane for Redcliffe
Redcliffe Dolphins
The Redcliffe Dolphins are a rugby league team from the city of Redcliffe in Queensland, Australia. The Redcliffe Dolphins were founded in 1947, accepted into the Brisbane Rugby League premiership in 1960, and since 1996 have played in the Queensland Cup....
.
In 1986 Paul Morgan joined Barry Maranta
Barry Maranta
Barry Maranta is an Australian businessman and co-founder of the Brisbane Broncos rugby league team. As well as being a founder of the Broncos he is currently a Sky Shades president....
, Gary Balkin and Steve Williams
Steve Williams (Australian rugby player)
Steve Williams is an Australian former state and national representative rugby union player who captained the Wallabies in five Test matches in 1985.-Early life and sporting promise:...
to form a Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
-based club for the New South Wales Rugby League premiership
New South Wales Rugby League premiership
The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League from 1908 until 1994, the premiership was the state's and later the country's elite rugby league competition...
, Australia's top rugby league club competition at the time. All men had played for Brisbane domestic teams. Four organisations made bids for the team which would be established in 1987. Ron McAuliffe
Ron McAuliffe
Ronald Edward McAuliffe OBE was a politician and sports administrator in Queensland, Australia. He is best remembered for his years running the Queensland Rugby League, and his instrumental role in the formation of the State of Origin competition.McAuliffe attended school at St. Joseph's College,...
, had the support of the NSWRL over the Maranta-Morgan group, other groups included 'International Syndicate' led by John Sattler
John Sattler
John William Sattler is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1960s and '70s. He was a rugged Prop forward who led his club, South Sydney to four premiership victories between 1967 and 1971 and who played four tests for Australia – three as the national captain...
and Bob Hagan, and one by Darryl van der Velde
Darryl van der Velde
Darryl van der Velde is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer, coach and administrator. He played club football in Queensland for Souths and represented his state on one occasion in 1977. After playing he coached the Brisbane Rugby League premiership's Redcliffe side in 1986...
(who would later be CEO of the South Queensland Crushers
South Queensland Crushers
The South Queensland Crushers were an Australian rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. In 1992 it was decided that the team would be admitted into the New South Wales Rugby League competition, along with three other teams, as part of the League's expansion plans for professional...
).
The NSWRL decided not to have a Brisbane club in 1987 but in a final bid for the 1988 season
New South Wales Rugby League season 1988
The 1988 New South Wales Rugby League Premiership was the eighty-first season of professional rugby league football in Australia. This year saw the first expansion of the NSWRL competition outside the borders of New South Wales, with the addition of three new teams, the Brisbane Broncos, Gold...
, both McAuliffe and Maranta-Morgan bid for the club. The NSWRL finally decided to have a Brisbane based team and thus the Brisbane Broncos
Brisbane Broncos
The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the city of Brisbane, the capital of the state of Queensland. Founded in 1988, the Broncos play in Australasia's elite competition, the National Rugby League premiership. They have won six premierships and two...
were born. The rights originally were going to go to the McAuliffe based group, but when it was realised they didn't have the funds to support the club, it was given to Maranta-Morgan.
However the Maranta-Morgan group did not please everybody, especially Australian Rugby League
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
chairman Ken Arthurson
Ken Arthurson
Kenneth Richard "Arko" Arthurson AM is an Australian rugby league football identity. Affectionately known as "The Godfather of Manly", he played, coached and was later an administrator at the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles club of the New South Wales Rugby League premiership...
, who decided to add other (now defunct) Queensland-based teams, Gold Coast in 1988
New South Wales Rugby League season 1988
The 1988 New South Wales Rugby League Premiership was the eighty-first season of professional rugby league football in Australia. This year saw the first expansion of the NSWRL competition outside the borders of New South Wales, with the addition of three new teams, the Brisbane Broncos, Gold...
and South Queensland
South Queensland Crushers
The South Queensland Crushers were an Australian rugby league football club based in Brisbane, Queensland. In 1992 it was decided that the team would be admitted into the New South Wales Rugby League competition, along with three other teams, as part of the League's expansion plans for professional...
in 1995
Australian Rugby League season 1995
The 1995 ARL premiership was the 88th season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the first to be run by the Australian Rugby League. For the first time since 1988, the League expanded again, with the addition of four new clubs from North Queensland, Western Australia, South...
.
Morgan was a stockbroker by trade; he was in charge of Pacific Sports Entertainment, the company that owns the Brisbane Broncos.
Paul Morgan died of a heart attack while playing golf in Brisbane. He was 54. He left a widow, Suellen Morgan. The Brisbane Broncos' player of the year award was named after him. Paul Morgan's son, Lachlan Morgan played for the Toowoomba Clydesdales
Toowoomba Clydesdales
The Toowoomba Clydesdales are a rugby league football club based in Toowoomba, Queensland, named after the Scottish horse breed. They played in the Queensland Wizard Cup since the competition began in 1996 but no longer play in this competition....
in the 2006 Queensland Cup
Queensland Cup
The Queensland Cup is the premier rugby league football competition in the State of Queensland, Australia.It is a statewide competition with the majority of teams based in South East Queensland but also including sides based in Cairns, Mackay and Rockhampton.The competition began in 1996 as a...
grand final.