Blayney Bears 'immortal' John Davis praised for contribution to Group 10 rugby league

Davis died on Monday, October 31, aged 74 and has been remembered as a giant of public life in Orange and Blayney.

He served as Orange City Council mayor for 12 years as well as mayor of Blayney Shire Council and founded John Davis Motors in 1983 in addition to many other business, volunteering and philanthropic ventures.

He was also heavily involved in community sport, in particular with his beloved Blayney Bears with whom he will forever be associated with.

He captain-coached the Bears to their first Group 10 premiership in 1977, coached the 1996 grand final winners and oversaw a golden decade for the club in the nineties as both a coach and president.

Mooney, who retired after the 1996 grand final win, said Davis had a special touch and would be sorely missed.

"He was an immortal of Blayney rugby league," he said.

"He was such a genuine person and a great people manager. He had a knack of putting people in the right spots whether he was coaching or as president.

"When he came onboard we were very successful, no matter how he was involved."

His finest moment as coach surely came at half-time in the famous 1996 decider.

Cowra Magpies had taken out the 1995 grand final and looked set to go back-to-back at the break in the 1996 edition, leading Blayney 19-10.

Enter one John Davis, who delivered an almighty half-time team talk to inspire his chargers to put on 18 points in as many minutes and run away with the trophy 34-23.

Mooney said Davis was simply "a winner".

"It was one of those days we weren't supposed to win," he said.

"He was a motivator, a winner. He could get people to run through a brick wall. At half-time he gave a few blokes a rocket, put people in the right spot and it worked!

"When he was coaching or president we always made the grand final. We won four premierships in the nineties and lost two grand finals in extra time."

Davis' influence on his players extended far beyond the football field.

Mooney said he always had the interests of the community at heart and acted as a business mentor to many.

"He was a big figure," he said.

"He looked after so many people. You won't get a more generous bloke in the world.

"He had vision, he was proactive all the time and good for the town. He always wanted to make things better.

"He was a mentor to me in business. He was so good to everyone. Even these days he was still picking up old footballers and taking them to have a coffee and looking after them."

Bears stalwart Adam Hornby said Davis was instrumental in the resurgence of rugby league in the region three decades ago.

"Because of John Davis, Group 10 was at its strongest in the 1990s," Hornby said.

"He brought professionalism to the group. He'll be a big loss for the Central West.

"He helped the town of Blayney wherever he could. He was such a great sponsor."

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