Loyal Marlin Harry Bergelin desperate to break Shute Shield premiership drought
By Matt Findlay
Flick through the imaginary Shute Shield dictionary, land on Harry Bergelin’s name and you’d find a simple, dutiful definition, encapsulating the Marlins’ flanker perfectly - Manly, through and through.
Born and bred on the northern beaches, the 28-year-old is a graduate of the Manly Roos and was schooled at St Paul’s Catholic College and has now gone on to make more than 100 top grade appearance for the Marlins.
While it’s far from the mercenary-like scenes of the NBA, NFL or even the NRL and there’s plenty of one-club players scattered throughout the competition, in a sphere of ever-increasing professionalism Bergelin remains somewhat of a throwback to the tribalism of yesteryear.
Granted that tribalism hasn’t exactly left the north, you need only to have seen the 10,000 or so on hand for the Battle of the Beaches a few weeks ago to see that.
“I guess I haven’t really left the bubble yet at all. I never really felt the need, I think I