DAD GREW up on a farm in the Gippsland town of Rosedale and became a Hawthorn supporter listening to Graham Arthur making his debut over the radio. In 1961, the Hawks won their first premiership under his captaincy and our family was destined to support them.
My first memories of playing were tearing around in the backyard pretending to be Leigh Mathews or Peter Knights. Dad told me 'Lethal' Leigh Matthews could run through brick walls, and Peter Knights could jump over goalposts – and I believed him.
When I was about six we moved to England for Dad’s work and I was sent to boarding school for the year. Of course, they knew nothing about Aussie Rules over there. It was a shock to the system – no footy and no family – we were only allowed to see our parents four or five times a year. I adopted Liverpool as my team that year and followed their 'football' stars like Kenny Dalglish and decorated goalkeeper Ray Clemence.
When we returned to Australia, I played footy all the way through school. I attended Camberwell Grammar in a side that was unbeaten for about three years until Assumption College recruited a few extras and knocked us off in the under-16s. Our school coach was also the vice-principal. He took footy very seriously, but was a great coach and playing in that team is one my favourite schoolboy memories.
While at uni, I played on and off with the college team at Trinity. After I left, I ended up coaching the college seconds which was great fun. A good mate and I also coached the Northern Bombers in the RecLink competition for a season.
I’m still involved as a Patron of RecLink which does a great job providing sporting opportunities for disadvantaged people.
I’ve recently given away playing in the club-18s amateur competition for Old Melburnians. A workmate got me to go down to training one day about seven or eight years ago and I ended up having a ball playing with a great group of blokes including one of the most mobile ruckmen ever to play in the Victorian amateurs – Michael Verge.
One year, I narrowly knocked him off for the club best and fairest but he never tapped it to me much after that.
Two weekends ago I came to the sad realisation that my playing days are well and truly over, after I pulled on the boots for my old law firm in a social competition. I’m still sore!
My Saturdays now revolve around my family and obviously the footy. I usually go to at least one AFL match a week and my wife can attest to the fact that I watch a lot more of it on TV.
But I always make sure I spend as much time as I can with my young family. We have two sons now, Charlie who is 18 months old and Harry who is seven weeks. I can’t wait for them to get a little bit older, when we can have a kick together.
Neither of them have got a guernsey yet, but if Grandpa’s got anything to do with it, there won’t be too much doubt as to who they’ll barrack for.
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More My Saturday
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The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
