Ernie Chambers

Post-World War Australia

During the post-World War II years, PCYC witnessed a boom across NSW in the number of young people participating in sports and arts activities. As young men returned home from the war and life got back to normal, demand for facilities, activities and equipment sharply increased.

To meet this demand and build more Clubs, the work of many dedicated staff and volunteers stands out. Most notable was the leadership of Frank Washington, Peter Shonks and Ernie Chambers. Introducing Judo to PCYC Ernie Chambers grew up in Mayfield, Newcastle and during the war he worked in the production of aircraft.

In 1948, he became a student of Ray Staples, an instructor who was teaching a new form of self-defence he had learned as a member of the Occupation Forces in Japan. For the Police Boys Club as it was then known, this new sport, Judo, became an ideal vehicle for working with boys, as it offered both physical competition and many appropriate disciplines .

However, it was no easy feat to get the new sport up and running. For instance, there were no books on judo at the time - there was only one book written in French. When Asahi newspaper representatives on a visit to Australia promised to help, books were supplied in Japanese. But larger obstacles remained.

Frank Washington

Almost every Australian had been touched by a long and bitter war with Japan. Frank Washington, a public servant, had been appointed as General Secretary to help advance the organisation and when called to serve, became a prisoner of the Japanese in Changi. On his release, he reflected the feelings of most Australians at the time, though he gradually came to support the sport in the years that followed. For Frank and all others, the dedication and enthusiasm of its young participants was clear, as were the qualities it imbued.

One of the many facilities developed by Frank was a Club at Sydney's Eloura beach, in co-operation with Surf Life Saving. When first constructed, the Eloura Club was located in the in the middle of nowhere, in the sand-hills of north Cronulla, and the concept was to provide a 40-bed facility where young people from country NSW, never having seen the ocean, could visit. After many years of hosting thousandsof overnight stays and surf carnivals, the full lease was transferred to Surf Life Saving NSW in the1980s.  Judo spreads across Australia

Ernie Chambers

In1952, Ernie began to teach judo at PCYC Woolloomooloo, where Lady Sylvia Chase, the Clubs patron, served tea and biscuits to the boys. Together with Jim Towers, Ernie introduced judo to Burwood and then across NSW, becoming a founder of the sport in Australia, and recognised as a foundation President of the NSW Judo Federation and the Judo Federation of Australia. In the same year, Australia's Ted Borovski won bronze at the Tokyo World Championships.

In1954, Ernie joined NSW Police and was posted to Redfern. At the time, the appointment and selection of officers to serve in PCYC was highly selective, and appointments to PCYC were highly sought.

Officers were personally appointed by the Commissioner, a practice commenced under Supt William Mackay, and one that reflected the value of the work of Police Officers in identifying young people at-risk, and working to give them a better chance in life. For Ernie, it wasn't long before his sporting talents were spotted, and after transfer to the South Sydney club, asked the organisation's governing body, the Federation, for permission to conduct an Inter-Club Judo competition.

These grew and in 1966, the first interstate judo tour of Tasmania was organised. The following year saw the first international tour to New Zealand, and the year after, Japan. All trips were fully sponsored by companies such as Mitsubishi and funded by activities such as raffles, 200-Clubs and variety nights. This meant there was no cost to PCYC, while young participant's, many who had never left their suburb, let alone Australia, returned with memories for a lifetime. As Ernie took over from reins from thesuccessful Peter Shonks as Sports & Cultural Secretary, he continued to build a stream of ‘high participation' events for over16 years. In any single week, competitions were running in wrestling, judo, boxing, football (soccer), basketball, table tennis, and gymnastics.

Shields and perpetual trophies were annually contested and highly regarded; a vital part of the culture at the time ensured that every young person that competed or marched got a badge.

A special relationship

Through Ernie's work in judo, as well as regular exchanges and tours, PCYC created an important relationship with the city of Okayama. On one exchange visit, Okayama sent a Shinto priest to the Cowra Club to view a judo competition and visit the cemetery.

The site remains the only official Japanese war cemetery in the world, outside of Japan, and it is now maintained by the RSL. In recent years, Ernie helped facilitate a donation of $250,000 for the Japanese art collection at the Art Gallery of NSW.

Another part of the role was to entertain visitors from overseas who came to Australia to see and learn about the "best youth movement in the world". Both Frank Washington and Ernie Chambers have been recognised as Life Governor NSW, a prestigious award highly honored by its recipients and awarded to only one person a year. Today, many participants from the post- war era: members, Police, staff and supporters, meet at least annually for a lunch at NSW Parliament House. All are welcome to attend.

The word judo consists of two Japanese characters, 'ju', which means gentle, and 'do', which means 'the way'. Judo means the way of gentleness.

This may not be immediately obvious to those new to the sport, as bodies fly through the air and get pinned to the ground. However the techniques of judo are based on giving in, rather than fighting back. It is this principle of gentleness on which all judo techniques are based. It is a system of physical, ntellectual, and moral education, developed out of a uniqueculture and set of traditions. Judo gives its students a code of ethics and a way of living.

Practiced by millions, it is the most popular combat sport in the world and with the exception of football (soccer), it is the most popular sport by participation in the world.

(Ernie with judo boys & Duke of Edinburgh at PCYC South Sydney)