Williams’ lasting legacy
THE passing of Cats legend Geoff Williams last week led to some wonderful tributes.
As Cats Honouring the Past committee and History Society chair Bob Gartland said: “We have lost another champion from that 1951-52 era”.
Top of the list in Williams’ glittering 121-game career was the 1952 VFL premiership and two best-and-fairest awards.
Gartland also highlighted another contribution to football provided by Williams.
“He was one of the cofounders of the little league competition through the YMCA and all the kids running around in little leagues across Geelong have got Geoff Williams to thank for that,” he said.
Not just the ones today but all of us who ran around in the formative years.
I can proudly call myself a foundation player, having turned out for the Eagles in the very first season. We played home games at Bellaire Primary School, in Highton.
That was a positive; not so good was our purple jumper. Not purple like the Freo Dockers, it was more mauve than purple when I think about it.
And the plastic No. 37 was not a famous number around town, which probably had something to do with the fact it was worn at Geelong by David Brown, who managed just 10 games in two years.
As a skinny little kid, I hardly felt empowered in the purple and recall being bowled over in my first game.
The hip-and-shoulder merchant was John Fagan, who went on to become a star in local footy, winning a Bellarine Football League best-andfairest award and gaining best afield honours in Newcomb’s back-to-back BFL flags in 1981 and 1982. (I had retreated to the safety of the press box and 3RRR studios as a Coodabeen
Champion by then.) The Eagles were disbanded after a year as part of a restructure and I joined the Mohawks.
Purple made way for maroon jumpers with black collars and cuffs. This felt stronger.
And I moved to the single digit No. 9. There were a few 9s on Geelong jumpers at training, thanks to the recently departed John Devine, but the incumbent of the day was ruckman John Noack, who joined the Cats from Sturt. He played one game.
A better Cats connection came via Geelong star Bill Ryan who worked with my father. Big Bill came to watch one day as we took on the Mustangs on the old Rugby Oval, now the home ground of Geelong Cricket Club.
The thrill of seeing my hero on the sidelines was tempered by a wayward kick off the ground being my only involvement in the action.
My football wish was to run on to Kardinia Park in Ryan’s footsteps as part of the halftime little league action.
I was fortunate to sneak into an emergency spot and secretly hoped someone would catch a cold. Alas, I missed out.
Once a Coodabeen, always a Coodabeen.
Geoff Williams, was a true champion. though,