NRL Immortal: How Ronnie Coote went from footy’s public enemy No.1 to winning the game’s highest honour
On Wednesday night, Ronnie Coote was recognised as one of the greatest rugby league players to ever grace the field. But in 1970 he embarked on a controversial move that made him one of the sport’s greatest villains.
Coote, one of South Sydney’s best players, was finally immortalised on Wednesday night.
Coote, one of the greatest locks in the history of the game, played in nine grand finals and won six premierships, four with the Rabbitohs. He played for NSW and captained Australia.
However, it was Coote’s polarising departure to the wealthy Eastern Suburbs in 1971 that coincided with the end of the successful Rabbitohs and the beginning of the longest period of economic malaise in the club’s history.
Souths fans had to wait 43 years for another title in 2014, which is still the longest period between two championships for a club in NRL history.
In late 1970, the backrower wanted more money from Souths after playing a key role in the club’s grand final victories of 1967, ’68 and ’70.
When the Bunnies rejected him, he refused to play at the start of the 1971 season and sat out five games before returning to the team and helping them win that year’s championship.
Souths’ rivals since 1908, the then Eastern Suburbs Roosters, looked on and tried to tempt him to defect, only to be bounced from pillar to post by angry Bunnies supporters.
“There was so much hate mail coming in,” Coote recalled in 2013.
Ronnie Coote’s long wait to receive Australian rugby league’s greatest honour – immortal status – finally came to an end on Wednesday night (pictured)
The 79-year-old first made his mark at South Sydney (pictured), where he won four championships while playing for the Bunnies from 1964 to 1971
However, he defected to Souths’ arch-rivals, the Roosters (pictured), and became a villain for many football fans, some of whom sent him shocking hate mail
‘A woman said she put a gypsy curse on me. ‘You will not have any luck for the rest of your life,’ she said.
‘Another one sent a letter saying, ‘We used to have a rabbit called Ronnie Coote and when you left we ate him for lunch.”
Coote believes his high-profile move has greatly exacerbated the feud between the two clubs, which is now arguably the fiercest in the league.
The 79-year-old first came into contention for immortality status when the award was launched by Rugby League Week magazine in 1981 with four first-time runners-up.
He was overlooked in favor of John Raper, who was considered at the time to be the biggest player in the post-war era.
Graeme Langlands was long regarded as a future immortal, and he and Wally Lewis were signed ahead of Coote in 1999.
Then came Arthur Beetson in 2003, Andrew Johns in 2012 and the plethora of pre-war players in 2018, alongside Norm Provan and Mal Meninga.
Meanwhile, Coote did his own thing.
The former Rabbitohs star became a McDonald’s franchisee, founded the charity Men of League (now Family of League) and had trophies named after him.
Coote (pictured during his time with the Rabbitohs) waited 43 years to become an immortal – the same wait Souths endured before winning their first grand final since he left the team
Over the past week, it had become increasingly difficult for Coote to ignore the Immortal chat. Everyone had repeatedly told him that he finally had a chance to be added.
“I’ve been there every year they’ve done it, it was on the list, but I’ve never been able to do it,” Coote said Wednesday night.
I’m used to that feeling.
“If I get it, I’ll say, ‘Thank you very much’. But if I don’t get it, rugby league has been great for me and I think I’ve been good for rugby league.”
It is perhaps fitting that Coote’s 43-year wait came to an emotional and tearful end on Wednesday night as he was named the competition’s 14th Immortal.
“It has to sink in for a while, I don’t know how that will happen,” Coote said afterwards.
‘I’m really proud to be in the top 13 players who ever played. I’m really proud of that.
‘I thought this wouldn’t happen. This time it did.
“Everyone told me it would happen. But I wasn’t sure. I wait for things to happen before I sit down and enjoy them.”
Coote’s immortal status comes after he previously left Cameron Smith, Billy Slater, Darren Lockyer and Allan Langer behind.
Coote also had a stellar career with the Kangaroos (pictured), representing his country 23 times and scoring 13 goals in green and gold
For most of them, Coote was a player they had only heard of and never seen.
A player from his parents’ generation, or in Smith’s case, his father’s favourite.
“When you hear people talk about his career, they say he was just a phenomenal player,” Smith said before Wednesday’s ceremony.
“My dad always talked about him. He was my dad’s favorite player growing up.
“If Ronny got the nod as Immortal, I’d be happy and the old man would be happy. He’d be happy if Ron got it (over me).”
On Wednesday night, it felt like a matter of now or never for Coote when it came to rugby league immortality.
It’s unlikely Smith will have to wait even remotely that long.
The NRL is expected to announce the next Immortal in 2028 and Smith is the early favourite.