Souths legend Sam Burgess always loved looking back towards the city and taking in the view of the palm trees at the northern end of Redfern Oval.

He will never forget standing at the southern end of the inner-city ground, in the summer of 2010, and bursting into tears when the club’s Hollywood owner Russell Crowe handed him a membership card for his late father, Mark.

Burgess can still recall the thousands of hours he spent working up a sweat on the field, lifting weights in the gym beneath the main grandstand, and even getting into a fight with former teammate Dave Taylor.

“He didn’t throw many punches back,” a smiling Burgess told the Herald, as he and Souths players, past and present, farewelled Redfern Oval for the last time on Wednesday.

On April 17, 1948, Redfern was adopted as the official home of Souths. On Monday, almost 75 years later to the day, the club will start life at its new centre of excellence at Heffron Park.

About 500 fans helped the players farewell the old girl on Wednesday.

Removalist trucks parked out the back were loaded up with tackling bags and gym equipment. The players had already transported the most precious items before Christmas when they completed an overnight march from Redfern to Heffron Park, and made a point of stopping at most of the junior grounds along the way.

One of the great lasting memories at Redfern, however, will be Burgess being consoled by Crowe before a Manly trial after he left the north of England to become a Rabbit.