BRIAN ‘Cobber’ Cassidy’s story is one of determination and resilience.
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Many a time during his memorable football career in the Wimmera and in South Australia, Cassidy would have been forgiven for feeling disheartened.
Originally starting his football at Edenhope in the Kowree-Naracoorte Football League in the 1970s, Cassidy wasn’t a big-bodied player.
He played some senior games when he was 16, spending most of his time on the wing.
But Cassidy was hungry for the football, and quickly worked out he wanted to play on ball.
“I played a few senior games when I was in the under-16s and the next year I spent half the year in the firsts and half the year in the seconds,” he said.
“When I started I was on the wing and a half-forward flanker because I was always pretty light. I wasn’t too quick but I had good endurance.
“In 1981 I went to Goroke because I thought I could play on ball. I played as rover one year at Edenhope but then I was back on the wing for a couple of seasons. Goroke’s coach Phil Crabtree told me I would probably play in the middle and that’s what I wanted to do so I went there.”
It was a memorable first and only season with Goroke for Cassidy. At the start of the season, he was married to Kerry and Goroke went onto win the West Wimmera Football League in 1981.
It was the last season before the league disbanded.
“I moved to Goroke and we won the flag in 1981 against Balmoral,” Cassidy said. “I went to school with Phil and he rang up one night and I had a meeting with him – myself and another guy from Edenhope went there for a season. It was my first flag and the club was very good to me.”
Cassidy returned to Edenhope after 1981, but didn’t taste premiership success with the club.
He crossed over to Naracoorte in 1985 and coached the side in 1986. In the 1986 season, his home club clinched the flag.
“Living in Edenhope and not playing in the team when they won that flag was pretty hard to take,” he said.
“I think we had our presentation night that night and I caught up with a few of the Edenhope guys during the week.
“I was going to leave Naracoorte after 1985 and go back to Edenhope but they offered me $10,000 to coach in 1986, and that was a lot of money then.”
It was a happy return to Edenhope for Cassidy in 1987 – the club completed a three-peat from 1986-88, with Cassidy part of the last two flags. He also coached the reserves to a flag in 1987.
“If I never had the opportunity to go back to Edenhope and play in a flag I would still be devastated but I was lucky enough to go back and win the next two years,” he said.
“I coached the reserves in 1987 and they hadn’t won a flag in 33 years and we won a flag there, too.”
Cassidy said the 1987 Edenhope team was as good as a team he had played in.
“It was probably the best team I played in,” he said.
“We beat Kybybolite in the grand final and they had guys like Stephen Copping who played for Essendon. They beat us in the second semi-final but then we beat them in the grand final by something like 15 goals to four.
“That side would have matched it with most leagues I think. Carl Robertson coached and he was a great coach – didn’t drink or smoke and was a disciplinarian. His brother Steve was as good a player I played with, too.”
Cassidy was at the top of his game during the ‘80s and was among the best in the league. He won league best and fairest awards in 1983, ‘85 and ‘88. He is among the best players to have featured in the league.
“It’s not a record – one bloke won five best and fairest awards in the 1950s and then there are four or five guys who won three,” he said. “You don’t play for those sort of accolades.
“If I had have played in 10 flags that would have been better than winning medals, there’s no doubt about that.
“The feeling you get being part of a team that wins a flag is just unbelievable.”
Those three flags are rated as Cassidy’s best moments in football. On his right leg he has a tattoo of a magpie, Goroke’s mascot, to signify the 1981 flag, and a bomber, Edenhope’s mascot, to remember the 1987-88 flags.
Cassidy had been on the radar to play at a higher level with the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).
“I spoke to a few SANFL clubs to go there and train but nothing really eventuated it,” he said.
“I never really wanted to go either. I loved the life in Edenhope and I probably didn’t take football that serious to go to Adelaide.”
During the 1989 grand final Cassidy suffered a broken jaw and gave football away for a few seasons.
“We bought a pub at Hawkesdale after that and we had that for nearly four years and I didn’t play,” he said. “I didn’t really miss it too much but then when we shifted to Horsham after that my sister Julie was at Horsham United.
“I went to watch a game and had itchy feet, so I pulled the boots on in 1994 and we lost the grand final that year.”
Cassidy was a playing coach at Quantong in 1995 and then again at Kalkee in 1996 after that before retiring.
He went back to be involved at Horsham United as a selector in 1999, and had a few coaching stints at the club until 2007.
He coached the Wimmera Football League’s interleague side in 2009 and 2010, and fittingly finished his coaching career at Edenhope-Apsley in 2011 and 2012.
It wasn’t quite the perfect end for Cassidy – Edenhope-Apsley lost the 2012 Horsham District league grand final to Kalkee.
“That was my last year coaching. Absolutely I wanted to coach Edenhope-Apsley to a flag. I was devastated to lose that grand final and it took me a while to get over it,” he said.
“Kalkee was the best team on the day and we only lost by 16 points. We had blokes who needed needles to play in the game and we just weren’t quite good enough.”
Now, Cassidy is the voice of football in the region, commentating at grounds across the Wimmera and Horsham District leagues.
“I was a bit nervous commentating the first couple of games but I think the feedback has been pretty good,” he said. “I reckon everyone was listening in to see if I was going to swear, but I’ve been pretty good.
“When they interviewed me for the interleague coaching for 2009 they gave me strict instructions not to swear and I was good then.”
With talks of another merger touted for his home club, Cassidy hopes to see football continue in west Wimmera.
“You need to have juniors and Horsham have done that better than anyone – I’d be against another merger,” he said.
“Edenhope-Apsley did a great job getting to a preliminary final this season.”
