Past, present and future Beaudesert Kingfishers came together at R.S. Willis Park on July 4 for the inaugural Matthew Gee Memorial Old Boys & Supporters Day, celebrating the club’s history while honouring one of its most dedicated volunteers.
The day attracted former players, supporters and families from across the region, with the Senior Women defeating Springfield Panthers 22-6 before the Senior Men capped off the day with a 66-12 victory over the Ormeau Shearers.
The event was created to recognise the legacy of Matt Gee, who passed away earlier this year after years of service to the club as vice-president, sports trainer and volunteer.
His wife, Sue Gee, said seeing former players and supporters return to the club made the day especially meaningful.
“It has been really special,” she said.
“There’s a few people I haven’t seen for a while. Even though we might live in the same town, you just don’t see them.”
Mrs Gee said it would have been meaningful for Matt to see so many familiar faces back at the club.
“He would’ve been very proud,” she said.
“He was a very humble person. Talking about him is very hard. We don’t do anything for the recognition or the gratitude. It was because we loved to do it and see the kids have a good time and play footy.”
Kingfishers president Justin Kummerow said the turnout reflected the club’s strong connection to its past.
“What started as a little idea of Matt’s to revive the old boys turned out to be such an amazing afternoon,” he said.
“People who have been involved in the club for 50-plus years turned up. It was just a pretty cool afternoon all in all.”
Mr Kummerow said one of his last conversations with Matt had been about bringing the event back.
“One of the last footy conversations I had with him was about the old boys and getting that up off the ground again,” he said.
“It’s a bit bittersweet… but it was pretty neat to be able to present the inaugural Matt Gee Memorial Player of the Match trophy. That’s something we’ve started and hope the legacy lives on year after year.”
The inaugural memorial award was presented to Cooper Lewis after the forward scored a hat-trick in the Kingfishers’ 66-12 victory.
