FROM reading an advertisement in the Telegraph newspaper recently, Paul Anderson discovered that a Rugby League medal belonging to Ernie “Bigga” Mills was looking for its rightful home.
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Paul read the advert and phoned the Telegraph discovering that the medal had turned up in a pawn shop in Western Sydney five years ago.
The owner of the shop Matt Ball said, “ It was the right thing to do to try to find the owner of the medal and we were so pleased to bring the medal back to the Crookwell Rugby League Club where it belongs.”
Brian Doyle and Paul Anderson met with Matt and his brother Michael on Friday at the Club to take back Mr Mills’ medal.
Mr Mills won his first of eight medals during the Yorkshire Cup in 1928-29. It is hoped that one day all eight medals will be back together.
Mr Mills played his high school football years in Crookwell.
We hope you enjoy reading a brief history of our local legend.
The story of Ernie “Bigga” Mills, from Blanket Flat to Wembley
It would have been a terrific task to make it on the world stage of rugby league during the years of the Great Depression, that is exactly what Ernie “Bigga” Mills managed to do.
From Blanket Flat (home was about 3.5 miles Crookwell side of Bigga) to the premier grounds of English rugby league during the seasons 1927-28 to 1934-35 was the exciting journey of Bigga Mills.
Research of Bigga Mills’ feats show a number of interesting facts.
English rugby league had a “Colonial Import Rule” in place between February 11, 1913 to June 2, 1927.
This effectively barred all Australian and New Zealand players from the English league, "strickly no Anzacs"!
All of that changed on June 3, 1927 within a matter of hours, Huddersfield Rugby League Club had signed the highly rated winger Ernie “Bigga” Mills.
He was 22 years of age and said to be faster than anyone in rugby league.
A school teacher, Bigga was teaching and playing footy at Grenfell in 1926.
He signed for the huge fee of 7,500 pounds, free travel with employment in his profession as a school teacher.
However, from 24 February 1927 - 31 May 1927 Ernest "Bigga" Mills was teaching at Hadley School ("A History of Country Schools in Crookwell Shire" by Ron Mackay" ref p.279)
So he must have agreed to go to England while still at Grenfell and before the rule change of June 3, 1927.
No one at Hadley would have dreamt of the adventure ahead for their young school teacher.
Mary Willis said, he stayed at her parent’s home, Harold and Queenie's home "Corona" at Fullerton during that time and taught her brother Ron at Hadley School.
In "It Seems Like Only Yesterday" by Crookwell Historical Society ref. Pgs. 343 and 355, Ron describes Ernie as a real sprinter, "he could run like a hare.”
“I well remember the the old telephone poles from the house, 100 yards, we would race home and he'd pip me"
"Yes the earliest teacher remembered at Hadley School was "Bigga Mills".
He was educated at Bigga Primary School, then Goulburn High School before gaining a Bursary to attend university to study teaching, this was in Sydney.
The community of Bigga combined to assist with the costing of his further education.
His father Alf was a drover and member of the extended Mills family of that time.
“Bigga Mills was before his time, an athlete with extreme skill and highly intelligent,” said Ian Chudleigh.
At Goulburn High School his rugby league career began.
He shared playing with Bigga and Binda while on holiday and North Goulburn in that district competition.
In 1980 “Moe” (Maurice) Fahey said that Bigga was invited to play against the touring ‘Poms’.
“The game was at Temora and our man “killed” them.”
That would have been in 1924, the English Lions toured here that year.
Born in 1904 Ernie Mills would have been 20 years of age.
By 1926 he was teaching at Grenfell.
It was the first year the town competed in a inter district competition.
From there things moved quickly, for in May 1926 the town had secured Huddersfield’s Ben Gronow as captain coach.
Gronow was a current English international at the time, a superstar, an extraordinary goal kicker, a stonemason by trade.
It was said “he was the most famous forward in the world”.
He toured here with the "Poms in 1924.
Gronow returned to Huddersfield in time for the 1927-28 season and with the change of the Colonial Import Rule he had encouraged "Bigga" to travel with him.
So it all began from there.
So tighten down your sprigs and we will go on the rugby league journey of a lifetime with the mighty Ernie “Bigga” Mills from Bigga.
After finishing teaching at Hadley School on 31 May 1927, he was to score in his first game versus Castleford, won by Huddersfield 3-nil on August 27 1927.
By seasons end his new club were doing handstands over their new player.
Bigga was the club’s top try scorer with 31 including a bag of four verses Dewsbury, three verses Keighley and the Castleford clubs plus four lots of doubles.
1928-29 season saw him again leaving opposing teams in his wake, season total 44 tries including three tries on four occasions and two tries on ten occasions.
Medals included – competition, league highest try scorer - 44; club’s highest try scorer; championship final vs Leeds, score 2-nil.
And so on it went.
1929-30 28 tries including 2x three tries and 7x two tries.
Medals – league champions (vs Leeds, 10-0); Yorkshire League Champions; Club’s highest try scorer.
Season 1930-31 39 tries including five tries vs Brookland Rovers Feb 7 ‘31, four tries vs Featherstone Rovers April 6 ‘31, 2x three tries and 5x two tries. Medal – Club’s highest try scorer.
Many more, bigger and better times were yet to happen.
1931-32 saw Ernest “Bigga” Mills cross the line 50 times. Included five tries vs Castleford Jan 25 ‘32, four tries vs York Sept 16 ‘31. Also three tries vs each of Keighley, Wigan and Bradford plus two tries on four occasions. Medals – Highest try scorer in “the League”; Club’s highest try scorer; Yorkshire Cup (vs Hunslet 4-2); Championship runner-up vs St Helens,2-5.
During that season he crossed the line in 13 consecutive games scoring trys 17 times and scoring his 50 trys after playing in all 46 games.
1932-33 Bigga scored 34 tries, including one bag of five vs Bramley 52-5 on Jan 14 ’33 plus one x3, five x2 tries. Medals – Clubs highest try scorer; Challenge Cup Champions vs Warrington 21-17 at Wembley (Mills, try).
1933-34 Bigga Mills 33 tries, 2x four vs Leeds Jan 21 ’34 and vs Bradford, April 14 ’34 plus 1x three and 4x two tries.
1934-35 the curtain comes down. Bigga Mills 23 tries including 1x five vs Bramley 32-5 plus 1x three tries and 4x two tries.
Sadly this season saw the finish of the rugby league career of Ernest “Bigga” Mills.
On April 6 1935 vs Bradford Northern his ankle was broken so severely he was never able to return to the field. He was only 31 years of age, young for wingers of that time and still to this day.
In the hope he may recover the Huddersfield Rugby League Club kept him on the books until 1938.
Along the way Bigga scored 290 tries in 386 appearances, this included a record run of 123 consecutive matches during the period of December 28 1929 to September 5 1932. That is a record he held for 51 years until 1983!
He twice represented for ‘Other Nationalities’ verses England and Wales in 1929 and 1930 seasons.
He was twice top scorer of the League – 1928-29 season 44 tries and 1931-32 season 50 tries.
He was top try scorer of Huddersfield RLFC in six seasons – 1927-28 31 tries, 1928-29 44 tries, 1929-30 28 tries, 1930-31 39 tries, 1931-32 50 tries, 1932-33 34 tries.
Cup winning medals – Rugby League Cup Final at Wembley vs Warrington 21-17 (try Mills); Rugby League Champions 1928-29; Rugby League Champions 1929-30; Yorkshire Cup Medal 1931-32; Yorkshire League Medal 1928-29; Yorkshire League Medal 1929-30.
Highest try scorer in the League Medal – 1928-29 Mills 44 tries (equal); 1931-32 Mills 50 tries.
Highlight of career was winning Wembley appearance v's Warrington,21-17 Mills Try (1932-33)
If you needed a player who could score tries quick then you needed Bigga Mills. He scored five tries in game four times three or more tries on 28 times.
A try scoring machine, Ernie, during the 1931-32 scored in 13 consecutive matches for 17 tries.
Mr Mills passed away at the St Mary’s Aged Care unit during 1983.
Information/research courtesy of Rhonda Brownlow and Shirley Picker (Ben Brownlow’s daughters), Huddersfield Rugby League Heritage Committee, Ian Chudleigh (Bigga) and Mary Willis.
