UTS Haberfield Rowing Club in Sydney was formed as Haberfield Rowing Club in 1925. It has occupied its current site on Port Jackson's, Iron Cove at Dobroyd Point since 1926. The club had a senior and lightweight Sydney premiership & national competition focus until 1992 when it became aligned with the University of Technology, Sydney and since then it has also been a varsity club. Its elite program has enjoyed great success since the 1990s with a number of the club's oarsmen and women making Australian Olympic selection since then.
History
The Haberfield Rowing Club campus was formed by charter in 1925 but had some initial difficulties in getting council approval for its clubhouse site. In early 1926 it opened its £1,300 club house at Dobroyd Point. Early success on the river was attained due to the skilled coaching of Bern Williams, their captain, and the club finished second in the junior pennant in 1926/27 and second in both senior and junior pennants in the 1927/28 seasons. Throughout the 'thirties with Bernie Williams still as Head Coach the club had further success winning the junior pennant in 1930/31 and 1931/32 and second place in the club premiership in three consecutive seasons from 1930/31 onwards. Haberfield's greatest success came in 1938/39, when both the premiership and the junior pennant were won, and the performance was repeated in 1939/40.[1]
Haberfield predominated in success on the river during the war years. The club won each of the substitute point score competitions which were held until 1947/48. This performance, coupled with the successes of 1938/39 and 1939/40 and of 1948/49, when the premiership and junior pennant competitions were reintroduced, led the NSW Rowing Association to state "[Haberfield] have thus set a record of supremacy in New South Wales rowing that is unequalled". At the 1948 Australian Rowing Championships, the NSW King's Cup winning eight was the entire Haberfield senior men's eight. The club continued its good standing throughout the 1950s with three more premiership wins, four seconds and two-thirds and six wins in the junior pennant. The 1960s also saw three premierships wins.[1]
The University of Technology, Sydney was founded in Sydney in 1893 as the Sydney Technical College. From the early 1980s it was chartered as a full university and set about growing its student union capabilities and facilities. In 1992 the UTS Union sought an amalgamation with the Haberfield Rowing Club. The club has been known as UTS Haberfield Rowing Club (UTSHRC) since 1992. The merger saw an immediate benefit to the club in an increase in financial support and enabling the hire of Timothy McLaren as head coach. During McLaren's 15 years with UTSHRC from 1992 to 2007, thirteen UTS Haberfield rowers made Australian Olympic rowing selection at three Olympic Games winning eleven medals (ten bronze and one silver)[2]
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