The Australian rugby league community is united in grief following the death of Joyce Churchill, the beloved widow of Immortal Clive Churchill, who passed away at the remarkable age of 99.
A Pillar of the Rugby League Family
The Australian Rugby League Commission and the NRL confirmed the news, expressing they were "deeply saddened" by the passing of a "staunch and passionate supporter of rugby league." Joyce was married to Clive Churchill, the champion fullback and one of the game's four original Immortals, whose legacy is honoured through the Clive Churchill Medal awarded to the best player in the NRL grand final each year.
Clive Churchill, known as 'The Little Master', died in 1985 after a battle with cancer. His funeral at St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney saw his coffin draped in a Rabbitohs jersey, drawing thousands of mourners. Joyce, born Joyce Ivy Martin on 24 November 1926, married Clive at the registrar general's office in Sydney on 31 January 1959. The couple had one son, Rodney Churchill, who played lower grades for South Sydney as a winger in 1978.
A Lasting Legacy and Iconic Grand Final Moment
Joyce Churchill's connection to the game's highest honour was profound. The Clive Churchill Medal has been awarded since 1986, and Joyce was a familiar and proud figure presenting it on stage for many years. Her final presentation was a particularly memorable one.
In 2014, she presented the medal to South Sydney's Sam Burgess after his heroic performance in the grand final, where he played almost the entire match with a badly broken cheekbone and eye socket. That victory ended a 43-year premiership drought for the Rabbitohs, the club her husband famously coached and played for. In an emotional tribute, Joyce wore the red and green pork-pie hat that Clive wore during grand finals when he coached South Sydney.
Club Pays Tribute to a Woman of 'Dignity and Grace'
The South Sydney Rabbitohs stated the club was in "deep mourning" for a woman who carried the historic Churchill name with "dignity and grace." Rabbitohs chairman Nick Pappas shared a personal reflection, saying pinning her life member's badge on in 2006 was a privilege of his chairmanship.
"We will always remember Joyce as a woman of great humility and principle who cherished the club her late husband Clive will always be synonymous with," Pappas said. The NRL's statement echoed the sentiment, noting: "The legacy of the Clive Churchill Medal will live on thanks to the extraordinary contributions of Clive and Joyce Churchill."
After Joyce stepped down from presenting duties, the honour was continued by her son, Rodney. The NRL and the Rabbitohs have extended their deepest condolences to the Churchill family and friends, celebrating the life of a woman who was an integral part of rugby league history for almost a century.
