Wests Rosellas visit Young to farewell former teammate "Chook" Howell

Howell, from Young, passed away aged 68 during April last year following a long battle with illness.

Many of Howell's close mates couldn't get together at the time of his death, however easing COVID restrictions have given opportunity for a more fitting farewell.

Former teammates from Newcastle club Western Suburbs Rosellas met with friends and former teammates from Young and Forbes over the weekend.

Wests players placed a Rosellas RLFC emblem on Howell's burial site at Young cemetery on Saturday afternoon.

Jon Hulbert, who played at Wests, helped organise the event.

"We thought how about we go down to Young to see where Chook was buried. With COVID, we had no closure. None of us went to the funeral, then they brought him down here to Young. We've got about 15 here for the weekend catching up with the boys from Young and Forbes. He played in Forbes as well," former teammate Jon Hulbert said.

Howell passed away after almost a decade of fighting Parkinson's disease and dementia.

Rated one of the toughest and most feared players to ever lace on the boots in the Newcastle competition, Howell dished out plenty and had a rap sheet longer than most players. But he was also frequently on the receiving end as well.

"He got sent-off in his last ever game. He'd been sent-off plenty of times before," Hulbert said.

"One game against the French, a friend of his told me Chook went to tackle a bloke who turned his hip on him, knocked Chook out. Chook got back up and there he was first up to tackle the next bloke coming through. He said he was out on his feet, he was unbelievable," Hulbert said.

He was signed by Wests in 1977 following a recommendation from another Rosellas legend Allan Buman. In 1978 in the absence of injured captain coach Bob Adamson for the decider, Howell captained Wests to a 23-16 grand final triumph over South Newcastle.

He was appointed captain coach in 1980 and proceeded to lead the Rosellas to three straight premierships, the first two over Cessnock and the third over Kurri. In 2010, he was named at lock in the club's team of the century.

"I lived with him for awhile. He loved cooking, woodwork, he had a game of tennis, golf, he went sailing. He was a brilliant character, he could talk to anyone. Any young footballer, he'd always be there to support them and bring them through," Hulbert said.

"Parkinson's slowed him up. It was pretty devastating."

In an interview with the Newcastle Herald back in 2014, Howell revealed he had suffered as many as 15 concussions during his career. There is little doubt he has paid the ultimate price for consistently being knocked out.

"It [parkinson's] started getting me in my late 50s - that's something I put down to football," Howell said. "It's something that people cop because of head knocks and that sort of thing. I've got memory loss really bad now. My mates will say to me, 'remember this' and I can't."

Hulbert said he hopes to establish a pre-season tournament between Wests Rosellas, Young and Forbes to play in honour of Howell.

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