In 1995 the Canowindra Apex Club erected signage at the Canowindra Recreation Ground, or the Oval as it was also referred to, honouring the late Tom Clyburn.

Despite the signage, the ground - which is the home of sport in the tiny Lachlan town and will house some of this Woodbridge Cup season's biggest games with the Tigers on top of the 2021 ladder - was never officially ratified by the appropriate authority, the NSW Geographical Names Board as the Tom Clyburn Oval.

Tom Clyburn's family is now attempting to rectify this oversight.

"We put an application in as a family just to have it officially named," Clyburn family member Eddie Clyburn said this week.

"As far as I know they (Cabonne Council) have supported the naming of the football ground itself but not the whole complex."

The Clyburn family is now waiting on official notification, in writing, from Cabonne Council of its decision.

Prior to 1995 the area in question was simply referred to as "The Oval".

"We always knew it as the Oval and over time they've called it the Canowindra Recreation Ground and so on, we're just trying to get an official name for it which it hasn't got," Mr Clyburn said.

"If you went to the Geographical Names Board and they had a look on their old maps it just shows Canowindra Recreational Ground.

"We're just trying to get it officially named so that down the track, say 30 years down the track, people can't change it from Tom Clyburn Oval to something else.

"We now have to go back to the Geographical Names Board for them to throw it out to the people of Canowindra."

"This should have happened then, then they'd be no problem," one Cabonne Shire Councillor said when the application was discussed at this month's council meeting.

Born in Canowindra in 1914 Tom Clyburn was playing first grade football for Canowindra by the time he was 17.

He played until 1947 for Canowindra and at representative level scoring 100 points or more each year in 11 consecutive seasons, and went on to referee until 1966.

He also took on leadership roles with a myriad of Canowindra sporting clubs.

In 1983 he was named Cabonne Citizen of the year.

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