OVER the weekend, South Coast rugby league lost one of its true legends John Costello, who succumbed to a long and hard-fought battle with cancer.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Costello passed away in Scotland, aged 72, in the early hours of Saturday morning, after COVID-19 prevented his return to Australia earlier this year.
Costello's affiliation with rugby league first started in the 1980s with the Shellharbour Sharks, before he joined Group Seven Junior League's general committee 1990, which he stayed a part of until 2001.
Following that, Costello held numerous roles in Group Seven including junior management committee (1992-01), senior general committee (1997-07), board of directors (2000 -2007), deputy chairman (2003-07), disciplinary and disputes committee chairman (2002-2006) and appeals committee (2005-2006) - which saw him inducted as a life member in 2018.
"Despite John being a Shellharbour bloke and me being an Albion Park boy, we really hit it off and became best buds - which was too common considering the rivalry between the two clubs," said John Edmonds, who worked alongside Costello during his time in Group Seven, with the likes of Tracy Roberts, Greg Bray, Billy James, Lindsay Ryan and Brian Hardman.
"I can still remember when he was first diagnosed (about 18 years ago).
"He said he'd been to the doctors and he'd been diagnosed with this new disease called dog bone.
"I asked what that was and he proceeded to pull his shirt down and showed me a lump on his chest, which he asked me to touch.
"Just when I was about to touch it, he started barking at me - that was just the type of funny bloke John was, as he always wanted to end a conversation with a witty remark.
"I actually spoke to John three weeks ago and he wasn't sounding too good but that didn't make the news on Saturday any less devastating - it broke my heart.
"Group Seven evolved plenty during his John's time involved, as he was one of those blokes who just took charge and got things done.
"He was a very easy-going bloke and once you were friends with him, you were friends with him for life - he's one of nature's gentlemen, who will be sadly missed."
Costello did all this while still holding numerous roles at the Ron Costello Oval-based club including secretary (1999-2012), junior committee member, club delegate to Group Seven and Illawarra competitions and ground announcer/timekeeper for all Sharks home matches from 1997-2019.
As such, Costello, who was also part of the Shellharbour Dragons and Marlins, is also a senior life member of the Shellharbour Sharks - after his tireless commitment to the club, which also included lending it $20,000 to prevent bankruptcy.
"John was an absolutely tireless worker with both the Sharks club and Group Seven," said former Shellharbour president Peter Blaine, who was in charge of the club from 2000-2014.
"He came the to club at a time when it was rebuilding and helped take it to another level, including being a part of the redevelopment of the ground.
"As president, there's always a handful of people who do all the work and John was one you could always depend on - you knew it'd get done if you told him once and you never had to chase him up.
"I always got into him about the only reason he liked to sit in the commentary booth was so he didn't have to do all the other work setting up or because he liked the sound of his own voice.
"There was also the running joke we didn't want him attending working-bees, firstly because he was a terrible cook and secondly because he'd always want to talk, which stopped him and the others he was speaking to from working.
"We ended up being really close friends, spending numerous Christmas' with him and him attending my kids' weddings - apart from his ordinary jokes, he was an all-round top bloke and had a big impact on all that crossed paths with him."
Outside of rugby league, Costello was heavily involved with the Wollongong Irish Australia Club where he served as president, fundraiser and master of ceremonies at functions.