WHEN you think of the word ‘King’, who pops into your head?

Elvis Presley, the king of rock ‘n’ roll?

Wally Lewis, the king of State of Origin?

King Charles perhaps?

Or maybe you’re like me and know someone with the name Rex, like my son, whose name literally means “the king”.

Now, let me tell you about a different King I ran into recently in Bellingen: Dominic King.

You probably know Dom as the former Mayor of Bellingen, or as a councillor, passionate environmentalist or keen cyclist.

Or maybe you remember him coaching one of the girls soccer teams where his daughters once played?

But did you know Dom had a very successful sporting career, in which he played 238 games for Parramatta Rugby Club?

While he professes not to have been one of the sport’s legends, he did get to play against greats like David Campese and the Ella brothers.

Dom continually played rugby from ten years old until his retirement at 32, showing a real commitment that he still carries into his role as an advocate for the Bellingen Shire and local government.

“The lifelong friendships and the opportunity to travel overseas were some of the benefits of having such a long rugby career, but [also] the discipline and ability to deal with losing and still getting up to go again,” Dom says of the lessons learnt from the sport.

By Daz HALLORAN