History


Southern Lions was founded in 1987 by Kingsley Bailey and Bob Brown as the Fremantle-Leeming RUFC.
We took the red, white and blue colours of the original Fremantle Rugby Union Club and are proud inheritors of that tradition.

The club started at Leeming, and with growing numbers we soon moved to a bigger ground in Bull Creek, where the membership continued to swell.

In 1998, with the aim to expand beyond the limits of a single suburb, we vigorously started recruiting and attracted committee, coaches and players from all over the southern region. With this influx of talent and a broader membership base we changed our name to Southern Lions to reflect our focus on the southern suburbs. The Bull Creek clubrooms was a great home for our club in the early years, but our success and the friendly, family oriented atmosphere of the club meant that we needed larger training grounds and more space to continue to grow.
In late 2003 the club moved to Murdoch University where there was strong growth and we again outgrew the facilities.
In April 2010 the club moved to state-of-the-art facilities in Success where we still proudly reside.

We are now proud to boast 400 players, and hundreds of other members including committee members, managers, coaches, physios, parents and regular supporters.
With our 400 players representing over 10 countries, all at Southern Lions prides ourselves on providing a welcoming environment for the local community in the Southern Metro region of Perth.
Our members stay involved with rugby throughout their lives - as players, coaches, officials, managers or supporters and have long lasting friendships between children, adults and families.
We have Junior (U6 through to U18s), Senior (Premier, Colts, Premier Reserve and 3rd grade) and Masters Teams.
In 2017 the Southern Lions were proud to introduce WA’s first All Abilities rugby team, and in 2019 we followed this up with the first WA Junior All Abilities rugby program.

Having achieved promotion into the Premier Grade competition in 2018, our vision is to continue the growth of rugby union within the Southern Metro region of Perth whilst maintaining our fun, friendly, family environment.

We pride ourselves on representing the local community and seek professional partners to join our pride and support the journey.

We host annual Senior 10s and Junior 7s rugby competitions, attended by WA, National and International teams.
We regularly host Junior and Senior Finals, and we have been selected to host a Super Women’s match between WA and Queensland.

Southern Lions is known as “the PRIDE of the South”.

PRIDE defines the values that we individually and collectively strive to live –

  • PASSION - LOVE RUGBY, LOVE WHAT YOU DO.
  • RESPECT - RESPECT THE GAME, RESPECT THE CLUB, RESPECT YOURSELF.
  • INTEGRITY - BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF, BE HONEST WITH YOUR EFFORT. BE THE BEST THAT YOU CAN BE.
  • DEVELOP - DEVELOP THE PERSON, DEVELOP THE PLAYER.
  • ENGAGE - ENGAGE WITH RUGBY, CLUB AND COMMUNITY.

“THE STRENGTH OF THE PRIDE IS THE LION. THE STRENGTH OF THE LION, THE PRIDE.”

Southern Lions values community participation, social inclusion, being active and healthy, teamwork & sportsmanship, and all in a supportive & family orientated environment, where people come together to share in the sense of community, a sense of pride and a passion for the game of rugby union.

Our Mission is to be the Premier Rugby Union club in Perth (Australia).

Southern Lions is actively seeking players that can take us to the top of the Premier Grade competition.
We are looking for players that are capable of playing for Western Force in the new Global Rapid Rugby competition.
This exciting new competition will include the Western Force and teams from around Asia and the Pacific.
The new competition starts in March 2020, and all players who excel in the Premier Grade competition put themselves in the shop window for Western Force selection and a professional rugby contract.

Southern Lions is a great opportunity for any player with a passion for the game, who is committed to developing their skills (no matter how good they are), and a willingness to put in the hard work for a Premiership win.

Yours in Rugby Union,
Ronan O'Shea, Club President (0410 471 572)
Angus Harriman, Vice-President Seniors (0432 723 141)
Sandra Leef, Vice-President Juniors (0407 840 140)

January 2020