Denis (Dinny) Lutge (1879 to 1953) - The eighth child of Peter Benson and Mary Lutge
Denis (Dinny) is the most well known of our Lutge family. There's even a "wikipedia" entry which gives Dinny's birth date as 26 November 1879. All sorts of searching of the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages and still no success in finding a birth registration. So, the search continues....
Dinny was the eighth child of Peter Benson and Mary Lutge. He moved to the Mosman area with the family in the mid 1880s. While Dinny worked as a stevedore in his early life, he commenced his rugby union career with the Mosman Junior in 1893. We can see how young he is in this picture where he is second from the right in the second row (behind the fellow with the cap). Three of his brothers are in the bottom row - far left is Bob Lutge, second from left is Peter Lutge, second from right is Paddy Lutge.
Between 1901 and 1907, Dinny played rugby union for the Northern Suburbs Club. He made his international debut as a lock-forward in the first rugby union test match played between Australia and the All Blacks in Sydney on 15 August 1903. He went on to play in all three of Australia's Test losses in 1904 against the visiting British Lions.
In 1908, Dinny was named foundation captain of the North Sydney District Rugby League Football Club. He represented NSW that year and, in May, played in the first international rugby league matches against the visiting New Zealand team. Dinny, Daily Messenger, Micky Dore, Dough McLean snr and Johnny Rosewell, were the inaugural Australian dual code rugby internationals.
Dinny enjoys the distinction of having played in each of Australia's inaugural rugby union and rugby league test matches against New Zealand. He captained the 3rd test and led Australia to its first international rugby league victory.
Dinny was selected by the playing squad as tour captain for the nine month inaugural Kangaroo tour of Great Britain in 1908-09. However, Dinny broke his arm after five games and the team was captained by Dally Messenger in the remaining 40 games.
Dinny retired from football after his return from the tour. He coached a New Zealand Maori rugby league team in 1909 and was the first coach for North Sydney in 1915.
In 1917, Dinny married Margaret Shaughnessy at Mosman. Dinny and Margaret were both 38. Margaret was the daughter of James and Ann Shaughnessy. She was born in Balmain in 1879.
Margaret had previously been married to Frederick Walkley 1903. They had two daughters, Margaret Anne (Madge) in 1904 and Marie Ivy in 1906. Frederick died in 1913 at Gunnedah.
Dinny and Margaret had two children - Mary Joyce (Joyce) in 1919 and Denis James in 1920. However, Denis only lived for 11 days.
Margaret died at a private hospital on 11 April 1926. She was 47 years old. Joyce was only 7 years old when her mother died.
Dinny, like his oldest brother, John Henry, worked for Mosman Council. For over fifty years, until just prior to his death, he was the beach inspector and cleaner at Balmoral Beach. Dinny was my mother's great uncle. She often talked fondly about the time they shared with him at Balmoral. Many times, we heard the story of my grandmother, Ethel Lutge (nee Webb-Wagg), losing her engagement ring in the sand at Balmoral. Dinny improvised a sifter to search for the ring which was finally found to the relief of everyone!
On 18 February 1953, Dinny died at a private hospital. His death was registered in Mosman. Dinny was 73 years old.
Dinny is buried at Macquarie Park Cemetery. His grave remained unmarked for many years. Following a public appeal, a monumental headstone was erected by the North Sydney District Rugby League Club about 20 years ago.
I've met a grandson of Dinny recently which was a great thrill for me. Like my mother, he talked of Dinny lovingly and with great warmth. He also told me that Dinny was an "all-round" sportsman who excelled in any sport he took part in. As someone interested in our family history, this adds an important dimension to the life of a great sportsman.
An aside - William Shaughnessy, the brother of Dinny's wife Margaret, married Anna Eliza (Annie) Moran on 04 December 1901 at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Mosman. Annie was the daughter of Richard Moran who was Peter Benson Lutge's business partner in a stevedoring business prior to Peter Benson's death in 1890. Richard Moran was an alderman on the first Mosman Council in 1893 and served until 1896.
