Waverley's World War I Loss Norm Callaway Player No 131

Dennis Hourn | June 11, 2023

Book Recommendation

"Life So Full of Promise: Further Biographies of Australia’s Lost Generation" by Ross McMullin

The book covers stories of three young men whose promising lives were cut short on the battlefields of WW1. The research Ross McMullin has put into this book is quite extraordinary. One of the three stories relates to Norman Callaway who features in this three-page tribute in Eastern Suburbs 2018 Annual Report "Waverley’s World War I Loss NORM CALLAWAY #131"

Callaway played for Waverley in 1914/15 and 15/16. He had previously played for Paddington but having moved to 22 Ebley Street Bondi Junction residential rules required him to turn out for the Waves. He debuted for NSW against Queensland in February 1915 scoring 207. It was his only representative game.

He was killed at the second battle of Bullecourt in May 2017. Callaway was 21. His body was never found. He was one of seven club members who lost their lives in WW1.

I highly recommend the book, "Life So Full of Promise: Further Biographies of Australia’s Lost Generation”.

I am well into the book already and I have to say it is a real page turner. The description of grade cricket at the time is forensic in its detail. Section 2 on Callaway runs for some 170 pages, and it really is a fascinating read and shows club cricket has really not changed all that much from more than a hundred years ago. Ross himself played first grade cricket in Melbourne during the seventies and his knowledge and understanding of the game is evident throughout his book.

The cover has a photo of Callaway which I had not seen before. I told Ross that if a picture says a thousand words this photo tells ten thousand. It is haunting.

To purchase the book - click image