The Mt Warrigal-born Lee started his career with the South Coast club but quickly moved through the ranks to play first grade for Oak Flats at the tender age of 16.

He moved to Sydney grade cricket a year later, teaming up with brother Shane and now Oak Flats captain Kerry Penfold at Campbelltown.

Yesterday he retired from Test cricket with over 300 wickets.

"You could just tell that he was going to make it," Penfold said yesterday.

"Once he was going he was one of the quickest blokes going around even at a young age. Everybody could tell that he was only a couple of years away. He's done well and it hasn't changed him."

It wasn't just Lee's on-field success that made the fast bowler so popular among his former team-mates, Penfold said, but the humble way he went about his business.

"He's been a great role model," he said.

"He is from a great family and it shows. He is very level headed."

With 310 Test wickets, Lee trails only Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Dennis Lillee on the list of Australia's all time wicket takers.

"The guys in front of him are pretty good," Penfold laughed. "Brett is a great, great cricketer."

Part of Lee's success can be traced to the expert coaching he received at the Illawarra Academy of Sport.

The academy also helped develop fellow Australian players Shane Lee and Phil Jaques and upcoming talents Philip Wells and Nic Maddinson.

Academy executive officer Mark Brogan said Lee had not only set a good example for young athletes but also for the wider community.

"Throughout his career he's showed an ability to rise above adversity," Brogan said.