General News
5 December, 2025
NORMAN (CEC) KERR: A champion of another time — By Brian Lennen
In a lifetime the world around us has changed dramatically.Our ambitions and opportunities have changed along with it.
Legally a student could leave school at 14 and many did. They were to enter into the work force.
There was a plentiful supply of manual jobs and most were happy to take them.
Maryborough was among the most industrialised cities in Australia.
The railways were a significant centre and maintained a large band of workers. They served the tracks all the way to Mildura.
The more ambitious student stayed on at school to complete their Merit Certificate (eighth grade).
This was an era before unemployment benefits and most youngsters wanted a good job and were happy to remain in their home town.
The local industries such as P&N, Phelans, the Knitting Mill, Hedges & Bell and the Flour Mill provided employment for many.
Work for the council and in the retail trades was popular.
Girls were offered a course titled “Commercial” — it featured typing, bookkeeping and shorthand.
Victoria had one university, Melbourne, and was usually the domain of the affluent. It was basically for the elite!
The ambitious students sought tertiary qualifications and some gained degrees in Melbourne.
Many gained certificates at teachers’ colleges (both primary and secondary). Night school and correspondence schools were undertaken by diligent students. Many gained studentships.
The expression “he’s good with his hands” related to the trades.
Most reasonably sized towns had a technical college where the trades were taught.
This relied heavily on the apprentice system. It wouldn’t have worked without the generous contribution of the trade’s people.
The education department had to entice quality tradepersons to staff the colleges.
These trade teachers often completed their courses through night classes.
High schools were often few in number and were staffed by graduates of secondary teachers’ colleges.
Many of the high school teachers extended their studentships to complete a degree.
This was a challenge to access the only university in Melbourne.
Most studied hard to complete their degree by correspondence.
Cec Kerr started his secondary education at Maryborough Technical College and never left.
He plied the trade of carpentry which he taught for his entire career. He was a familiar figure riding his bike down Nolan Street.
He was a strict and dedicated teacher who suffered no nonsense.
Interviewing Cec for the morning sports show on 3CV I was impressed by his modest but assertive nature.
He told me of his travelling to Melbourne to play football at the weekend.
It wasn’t an interest to him to stay on in Melbourne and was packed and on his way home before most of the other players had showered.
The media of the day described him as the fastest player in the VFL.
Although small in stature he was powerfully built and excelled at whatever he turned his hand to.
He had an arrangement to catch Reg Ansett’s bus which travelled through Maryborough dropping off the Herald & Sporting Globe to various newsagencies along the way.
With no Sunday papers readers would be waiting patiently for their delivery.
Cec had one thing alone on his mind, to get home to his beloved wife Constance (Connie).
In Cec’s day the VFL was Melbourne-based and all matches were played on the same Saturday, and unlike today without TV coverage, clubs had limited finances. Cec played 64 games for Fitzroy and finished at aged 22.
One can only imagine the status of John Nicholls, Jack Worrall, Horrie Clover, Ron Branton and Cec Kerr would be held in this age of million dollar deals.
Alongside the legendary Haydn Bunton and fellow Brownlow medallist, Chicken Smallhorn, he was not diminished.
Cec was also a gifted athlete.
At the age of 20 in 1931 he became the first and only son of Maryborough to win the New Year’s Day Gift. In 1932 he backed up to win second.
His photo in all his glory hangs proudly in the foyer of the Highland Society.
His daughters Joan and Beverley were outstanding softballers. Joan, a catcher, was a regular member of the Victorian team.
Norman “Cec” Kerr passed away on July 22, 1995 at the age of 85.