Briggs, a natural-born sportsman and one of Moree's most respected citizens, has fought the big battles over the decades both on and off the paddock.

But when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer midway through last year he knew the road ahead would be long and hard.

About three months ago a few of his mates got together to organise a reunion to pay tribute to the man who helped redefine Moree sport in the 1970s and 1980s.

They just wanted Briggs to know that he wasn't going into battle alone. And, once Moree's ever-reliable bush telegraph notched up a gear, old team-mates, friends, family and former work colleagues rallied to his side.

All the well-known names of country rugby league were there: the Jurd brothers and the Peachey boys made the trek to Moree, as did the Mathers, Quinns, Walfords, Flicks and Allen brothers.

Heck, there were enough Shearers in town to knock over 500 woolly wethers before smoko.

Many hadn't been back to Moree since those heady days of the 1970s when the Moree Boars were an unstoppable force, an era when rugby league was king.

It was a time that brought the coveted University Shield to the far north-west for the first time when, in 1973, Moree High School overcame bolter's odds to beat Forbes High School by one point.

The nailbiting match, played at Gosford's Grahame Park, is still rightly considered to be Moree's proudest sporting achievement.

And it's a special moment in the town's history because of one man or boy at the time.

Briggs, at just 15 years of age, had 8000 sets of eyes on him when he lined up a goal from the sideline with just 10 minutes left to play of that now-famous 80 minutes of football.

John Brooks had just crashed through the Forbes defence to plant the ball right in the corner and bring Moree High School to within two points of Uni Shield glory.

With the score 12-11 Forbes's way, it was left to Briggs to convert Brook's try and rewrite local sporting history.

And that's exactly what he did.

When that oval-shaped ball floated across the black dot, with those 8000 sets of eyes following its every move, Briggs brought Moree to national sporting prominence.

He single-handedly or footedly, if there is such a word embedded the sports-mad town into rugby league folklore.

Briggs says he felt "sheer elation" when the flags were raised and Moree took a 13-12 lead.

"But I remembered that we still had 10 minutes of football left and that the game wasn't over even though we got one point in front, the game wasn't finished," he said.

Briggs likes to play down that special moment, just as he likes to play down everything else he's done and achieved over the years.

He reckons he's just the bloke who's there to fix your phone he's worked for Telstra since before the dial-up days and humbly says the records he created, rewrote and smashed over the years were just part of growing up in the bush.

"I'm just a hometown boy, a boy from Yarraman," he smiles.

Briggs is Moree born-and-bred raised at the small village of Yarraman on the northern edge of town and no amount of coaxing, lucrative contracts or big bucks could've dragged him away from the place.

And, mind you, during those early years there were plenty of big, fat, juicy carrots left dangling.

In 1976 he played a season with Macquarie United in Newcastle but it wasn't too long before he jumped on the red rattler at Broadmeadow Station and headed home to the black-soil plains.

"I finished school and went to Newcastle for 18 months but came back to Moree," Briggs said.

"I never had any big plans to go to Sydney or anything. There were a few offers but it didn't really worry me.

"I've always said that if I had (good mate) Stan Jurd's determination, I might've made it in Sydney. Stan is just one of those blokes who got to where he did through sheer determination and ability," he said.

As Jurd's brother Robert said: "You simply can't buy class and Bernie Briggs is all class."

Briggs's sporting achievements are incredible. He was a 1970s sports prodigy, a freak.

He was part of Moree High's undefeated Under 16 outfit and, apart from his pivotal role in the University Shield win, played with that year's Under 18 Group 5 grand-final winners.

He was named the NSW Combined High Schools' 15-years javelin champion and was an all-rounder with the north-west area open cricket team.

Briggs also has the distinction of being awarded two North West Schools Sport Association Blues in 1973 one for athletics and a special Blue for rugby league and cricket.

He also played for the Under 21 Northern NSW Emus cricket team that toured New Zealand and, when he found some spare time, won the 1973 State javelin championships.

Briggs handled the round ball just as stylishly. He scored a few goals during the season for the Moree open soccer team and that year they won the regional competition.

All of this at just 15 years of age.

Briggs also played three times for Northern Division against Great Britain the third time he was "off his game" and soon after the match was admitted to hospital with pneumonia.