Raudonikis, who played 240 games for the Western Suburbs Magpies and Newtown Jets and also represented NSW and Australia throughout the 1970s, had strong ties to the region, having been born in Bathurst and having played his junior rugby league in Cowra.

Local rugby league identity Royce George said people often argue Raudonikis was born in Cowra, but it's a fact he was born here in Bathurst.

"He played all his junior rugby league in Cowra, but he was definitely born here."

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Mr George said he has a bar runner on his bar which he bought at a charity sports night at The Ox which was attended by Raudonikis and Arthur Beetson.

"I've still got it, it's sitting in my bar right now, and it says born in Bathurst."

While he never confirmed how Raudonikis' family ended up in Bathurst, Mr George suspected he may have been born at the Migrant Camp on Limekilns Road.

"With a surname like that, I just presumed his parents came here as migrants and he was born at the camp," he said.

With Raudonikis seven years older, Mr George said he never actually played against him, but saw him out often in Sydney.

"He was down at Newtown when I was at Cronulla. I was 23 then, so he would have been around 30," Mr George said. "I never played against him, but used to run into him a lot."

Back in the day, Mr George said a lot of the footballers would head to Chinatown for a night out, especially after a day at the races or the grand final.

"We'd go to Covent Gardens at the entrance of Chinatown. We'd all go there, have a Chinese feed and have a drink and hang out.

"They were really good nights."

Mr George said Raudonikis would always be remembered as a legend, a bit of a rascal, and one of the true characters of the game.

"Some of the things he used to say, talking about 'taking people's heads off" ... I think these days the commissioner would bar him before he took the field.

"He was old school and there's nothing wrong with that. There's not enough of them [old school people] these days," he said.

Raudonikis died in a Gold Coast hospital.

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