Tell me about your childhood in Footscray.
I’m 87 years old and was born in Footscray in 1930, during the depression. I was the youngest of four children. My father was a carpenter while my mum looked after the house and kids.
How long have you called Tarneit Skies home, and what do you like about the area?
I’ve lived at Tarneit Skies Retirement Village for 13 years. We had a big house and a big backyard, but it was too much, so we decided to downsize. My wife told everyone living here was like a second honeymoon.
The area’s safe and everyone’s very friendly. I’m one of many football supporters in our village. There’s a bit of banter between the Pies, Blues, Tigers and Saints supporters and me. We all decorate our porches with our club’s colours.
If you could change one thing about Wyndham, what would it be?
There’s not much I’d change. Wyndham’s a great place to live. I do think people need to have a greater tolerance of others and be more accepting though.
How did you become such a die-hard Western Bulldogs fan?
My blood runs red, blue and white. Some of my earliest memories are of watching Footscray play at Western Oval.
My dad played in the seniors team at Footscray in 1906, so we spent a lot of time around the football club. I never played seniors but made the thirds [under-18s] in the 1940s.
The club has been a big part of my life I’ve got three kids, seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren who are all Bulldogs supporters like me.
They didn’t really have any other options.
How did you meet your wife?
I met my wife Pam at the football ground in the ’40s when I was playing thirds. We boys would go sit in the stands after our game and tell the girls how good we were. We went around together for a few years and got married in 1953.
Pam passed away last year, but I’ve got lots of family and friends at Tarneit Skies who keep me company and in good spirits.
I understand you have a unique way of letting the neighbours know if the Bulldogs have won or lost each week…
If we win, I’ve got a happy looking stuffed bulldog which I put on the front porch wearing a team scarf. If we lose, I’ve got a sooky doll instead. It’s a doll with hands covering its eyes while it cries. She wears a Bulldogs guernsey too.
We haven’t been playing too well this year, so the sooky doll has been out more than I’d like.
You started the Bulldogs’ club shop in 1989. Tell me how that happened.
I started the Bulldogs’ first club shop in 1989, but it was actually my wife’s idea. We wanted to raise money for the football club because it was struggling financially at the time.
I had $300 to do it with. I spoke to the club’s chairman, who was a nice bloke, and he was happy for me to give it a go. My car was an old tradesman van. We sold scarfs and beanies in red, white and blue that the supporters and players’ wives had hand-sewn from the back of that van.
Later on we had little stands around the ground where we sold things, and they were run by volunteers.
