Pioneers of Rugby in Wellington 089: Jackie Dougan

Pioneers of Rugby in Wellington: Jackie Dougan

Most generations of Wellington club rugby feature an exciting, match-winning, much talked about first five.

In a golden era of both club and representative rugby in the 1950s, Jackie Dougan was that player that many came to watch. The inside backs wizard of the time.

While never an All Black, Dougan’s decade-long club and representative career had many highlights, and he retired from top level rugby a household name in 1957.

Dougan’s career also had two distinctive eras: his Petone one from 1947-54 and his Onslow one from 1955-57.

One of five brothers, Dougan joined his older brother William [Billy] at Petone and he first played for Wellington in 1947 aged 20. He played seven times for Wellington that season and another 18 times over the next five seasons, injuries and other preferred players at various times notwithstanding.

He made few appearances in 1953 and 1954, with Hutt’s Trevor Riley Wellington’s main flyhalf in these two seasons.

For Petone, Dougan’s first season was as a teenager in 1945, alongside brother and halfback Billy, and he was a regular in Petone sides up to 1954 when fit and available.

In these years Petone were always there or thereabouts, but 1949 was their sole Jubilee Cup success when they shared it with St Pat’s Old Boys. They also had some big battles against rivals University in these seasons, with University winning a three-peat of Jubilee Cups 1952-54.

Although he lived in Titahi Bay, Dougan and his brothers were known as Petone players on both the rugby and cricket fields. But in early1955 when he changed clubs to Onslow early in the season it caused a sensation.

The reason he left was because he was captaining Petone’s cricket team and they were in contention for silverware on the final afternoon of their season – also on the day of the Petone rugby club’s trials. He chose to finish the cricket season over attending the main rugby trial and he was not chosen in Petone’s rugby squad because of his absence. So he walked from the club.

Bruce Heather, in his book Onslow’s Golden Winter, wrote: “Jack was living in Titahi Bay and Onslow was the closest Senior club to home.  He contacted fellow Wellington representative and Onslow’s hooker Stan Judd and he subsequently joined Onslow.”

The move rocked the entire Wellington club rugby community, not least because he was one of the leading players, but also because of loyalties at the time. Dominion columnist ‘Corinthian’ devoted his opinion piece to the matter upon breaking the news. Players generally stuck with the same club throughout their careers. Transfers were relatively rare, transfers of leading players rarer still.

Peter Gallagher in Petone’s history book, True Blue, wrote of Dougan: “The 1955 season commenced on a sad note when Jackie Dougan decided to transfer to the Onslow Club. A member of another famous Petone sporting family, Jack started playing senior club rugby just after the second world war. His play was always full of originality and sparkle and he was always able to command plenty of respect from his loyal fans. Jack always appeared to enjoy himself when playing, even though the same could bot be said to opponents who had the task of stemming his unorthodoxy. No game was lost with Jack ready to conjure up some new scoring mode even if he had to resort to a ‘pot’.”

Dougan’s transfer papers weren’t processed in time for the start of the season, so he made his Onslow debut three games into the season, ironically against Petone, which the Villagers won 6-3 after Onslow had established a 3-0 halftime lead.

In their return match later in the season, Petone were up 14-0 at halftime. As far as stirring halftime talks were concerned, that by Onslow’s coaches Lin Thomas and his assistant Tom Morrison was up there. Heather, in Onslow’s Golden Winter explained that the instructions were for the backs to spin the ball on every occasion and the forwards were told to lift a gear and prove that were the best pack in the competition.

It worked a treat and Onslow got back into the game. Dougan put them on the board with a dropped goal, followed by a try and two penalties to make it 12-14.

With the clock winding down, would Petone crack? Dougan missed another dropped goal attempt, but Petone’s wing, Lionel Abbott, made a meal of the tidy up and clearance and Onslow wing George Blair poured through to score the match winning try.

The following week saw more high drama.

Onslow held a slender 9-6 lead over University with time almost up on the clock. But when Jarden made a break and kicked and chased it was almost too unbearable to watch for Onslow’s supporters. In a foot race to the line, Dougan beat Ron Jarden by the narrowest of margins and booted the ball clear free of the All Black wing’s clutches.

On the same day, Petone fell 12-13 to Oriental, thus paving the way for Onslow’s maiden Jubilee Cup triumph.

That was the high point of Dougan’s club career, ironically, Petone won the next two Jubilee Cups whilst he was still playing for Onslow.

Dougan played another 10 games for the Wellington representative team in 1955, 13 in 1956 and 15 in 1957, and was the province’s clear first-choice flyhalf.

Dougan was Wellington’s vice-captain in 1956 and 1957 and stand-in captain in some games for regular captain Don McInstosh in 1957.

After playing a limited role for Wellington in their 1953 Ranfurly Shield run, Dougan was was a key player in Wellington’s 8-0 win over Canterbury on 22 September 1956 to re-gain the Ranfurly Shield. And in their 9-6 defence against Auckland a week later, followed by three defences in 1957 before losing it 11-19 to Otago on 24 August 1957. He also played for Wellington in their 6-8 defeat to the touring Springboks in 1956.

Like his uncle and 1940s Wellington representative Bill before him he had only one All Black trial match but that was in 1957, a decade after his first-class debut. He was 31 years old in his trial.

In a decade of top-flight rugby, he played 67 times for Wellington and 91 first-class games overall.

After retiring from top-line rugby, Dougan didn’t hang his boots up straightaway. He played a season for Titahi Bay.

His nephew John Dougan was a Petone All Black in the 1970s and played a decade of provincial rugby for Wellington 1967-77 and briefly for Hawke’s Bay in the late 1960s and was later player-coach of the Taita club in 1978-79.

Jackie Dougan passed away in Masterton in November 2019, aged 93.

References:

• Akers, Clive. New Zealand Rugby Register 1870-2015. New Zealand Rugby Museum, 2016.
• TheDominion, the Evening Post and the Rugby Weekly May-September 1955.
• Heather, Bruce. Onslow’s Golden Winter. Published 2010.

• Griffin, Don and Gallagher, Peter. True Blue. The first 100 years of the Petone Rugby Football Club Incorporated 1885-1985. Apex Print, Petone, 1985.
• Swan, Arthur C.; Jackson, Gordon F. W. (1952). Wellington’s Rugby History 1870 – 1950. Wellington, New Zealand: A. H. & A. W. Reed
• Wellington’s Rugby History 1951-79. By Bob Fox, with assistance by Paul Elenio and Joseph Romanos (Evening Post) and Alex Veysey and Ian Gault (Dominion), with statistics compiled by Gordon Jackson (1951-68) and Alby Butterworth (1969-78). Tolan Printing Company, Wellington, 1979.