William Pummy Mantle was born at Bowenfels on the outskirts of Lithgow NSW. The family lived in what could be described as a shanty amongst the coal tailings. Williams father, Thomas “Pummy” Mantle was a coal miner. This was a dangerous occupation which either killed or injured through work place accidents or subjected the miner to insidious diseases like black lung. Tom Mantle fell victim to a mine explosion in 1886. He left a widow and William Pummy Mantle who was only weeks old.
Some years later, Pummy Mantle’s mother was remarried to John Doig. Pummy had a number of half siblings, the youngest being Eric Doig who played for Wests and NSW in the 1920’s (Wests #202). Peter Baker in his book, Side Stepping Shrapnel, says that; “Pummy encouraged his youngest brother, Eric, who was ten years old to play ball in the backyard.”
However it was Pummy who was about to shine on the football field at this time. He played with a couple of junior teams before linking up with the Lithgow True Blues Club in 1907. He was with this Club for three seasons but importantly was playing with and against the best in the region. Pummy was diminutive being only 59 kilograms and 167cm tall but possessed great speed off the mark which made him a perfect half back.
In Peter Baker’s book, Side Stepping Shrapnel, Pummy’s career is summed up in the following quote;
“Sport lives and breathes through the countless players and volunteers around the country. Pummy was not a rugby league legend. He was never a Dally Messenger. Yet he was one of the building blocks on which sporting life in Australia rose. His story reflects the men and women who have created our sporting culture. The stories of these people should not be buried in our fascination with ‘superstars’ of the code. You will find men and women like Pummy in every town across Australia.”
