"It's a very nice return," said former Orange school teacher and captain of the 1976 Lions team, Mark O'Connor. "It's always a bit nostalgic and good to catch up with people after so long... It's a good club!"
In '76, Bathurst had gone through the entire season undefeated, Mark said, reflecting on the match.
"And they'd beaten us in the semi-final, although we should have won. They got an intercept try right at the end," he recalled. "Then we played him in the Grand Final and I think we beat them 15-3. They didn't score a try, so that was pretty rewarding."
To celebrate the anniversary, Orange City's 1st Grade squad ran out in replica jerseys on Saturday in their match against Orange Emus.
