In the unforgiving world of country rugby league, 300 games for a single club is a landmark few ever reach. Chris Rawlinson has now joined that exclusive group with the Yass Magpies, matching club great Tony Worthy at the 300-game mark in the black-and-white jersey. Worthy, one of Rawlinson’s best mates reached the milestone just over a month ago.
The achievement is rare for good reason. Country football demands more than talent. Players juggle work, family, travel and the physical toll of winter football on often heavy grounds. Careers are routinely cut short by injury, relocation or simply the grind. Reaching 300 appearances for one club requires durability, loyalty and a willingness to keep turning up when many would hang up the boots.
Rawlinson’s path to the milestone began early. He came through the Magpies’ junior ranks and was a Canberra Raiders junior before he featured in Yass’s 2006 grand final victory. By 2017 he had already played his 200th game for the club — still relatively young because he often played two matches a day, reserve grade and first grade.
His playing style has long been defined by fitness, versatility, work rate and skill-set. Teammates and opponents have seen him operate across the park.
The milestone also cements a long partnership with Worthy. The pair played together at Binalong and coached the Brahmans to three successive premierships across the George Tooke Shield and Woodbridge Cup in 2013, 2014 and 2015. They returned to the club years later, with Rawlinson as coach and Worthy as assistant, drawn back by the family culture they remembered from those successful seasons.
Rawlinson has already begun laying the foundations for life after playing through his coaching work, including the Rawleague banner. After leading reserve-grade sides at Yass and taking the Binalong job, he has used his experience as a Raiders junior and long-time senior player to develop others. Coaching has become a natural next chapter rather than a sudden change of direction.
Off the field he is supported by partner Jess and their two children. Jess has been working her way back into rugby league after a knee reconstruction, while the next generation start their journey
In a competition where squads turn over quickly and few players stay in one town long enough to accumulate such numbers, Rawlinson’s 300 games stand as a tribute to consistency. He and Worthy now share a club record that will be talked about at Walker Park for years. For a player who once said another 200 games looked unlikely, the 300 mark is proof of how far longevity, skill and quiet determination can take you in country league.
Worthy said, “We have played a lot of our footy together over the years. A lot of people came out to celebrate it with him and a lot of blokes chipped in to make it a special day.
Chris is playing really well at the moment. We are in the Grand Final next weekend at Seiffert and a few more games will tick over. Hopefully we can finish off the year with a win.”
Chris was asked about the final matches of the season and the impending Grand Final.
“We won 72 nil against Woden. Unfortunately they only had 13 players.”
“I had a minor injury the week before, so I wanted to rest as much as I could. I played probably the first 20 minutes.”
During that time he got three try assists, before going off.
“I came back on with about five minutes to go and played out the last five minutes.
“I think Tony Worthy, Brad Wylie and Dave Brown got that all together, shirts and got some video messages and speeches and stuff like that. It was nice.”
“It’s pretty cool. We would have probably played 300 together. I entered first grade as an 18-19 year old.
“So they would have been close together. Close to each other, except one year of juniors, I suppose.
“We played a semi on the weekend and we won the semi and so we’re in the GF in 2 weeks at Seiffert Oval.”
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