Roy Cazaly

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Roy Cazaly
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Personal information
Birth January 13, 1893(1893-01-13), Albert Park, Victoria
Recruited from Middle Park Wesley
Death October 10, 1963, Hobart, Tasmania
Playing career¹
Debut Round 15, 29 July 1911, St Kilda vs. Carlton, at Princes Park
Team(s) St Kilda (1911-1920)

99 games, 38 goals

South Melbourne (1921-1924, 1926-1927)

99 games, 129 goals

Total - 198 Games, 167 Goals
Coaching career¹
Team(s) South Melbourne (1922) [non-playing coach] (1937-1938)

52 games - 12 wins, 38 losses, 2 draws

Hawthorn [non-playing coach] (1942-43)

30 games - 10 wins, 20 losses
¹ Statistics to end of 2005 season
Career highlights

Roy Cazaly (January 13, 1893–October 10, 1963) was an Australian rules football player famous for his high marks, and for giving rise to the phrase "Up There Cazaly".

Contents

[edit] Early life/career

Cazaly was born in Albert Park, a suburb of Melbourne on January 13, 1893. He learnt his football at the local state school, quickly becoming its first-choice ruckman. He made his debut in the Victorian Football League for St Kilda in 1911, for whom he would play 99 matches.

[edit] VFL fame

In 1920 he was voted "Champion of the Colony", but left St Kilda, signing with South Melbourne. He began coaching South Melbourne in 1922 and won the club's Best and Fairest award in 1926.

Cazaly was famous for his ability to take spectacular marks despite his small stature, and at South Melbourne a teammate, Fred "Skeeter" Fleiter, would often yell "Up there, Cazaly", a phrase that would become synonymous with football. He initially developed his marking ability by jumping at a ball strung up in a shed at his home, and held his breath as he jumped, an action that he believed lifted him higher. He also possessed the capacity to kick a football over 65 metres.

[edit] Coaching career

In 1928 he departed Victoria and headed for Launceston, Tasmania, before returning in 1931 to coach the Preston club in the Victorian Football Association. His subsequent return to Tasmania was punctuated by short stints as non-playing coach of South Melbourne (in 1937-38), playing coach of Camberwell (in 1941) and non-playing coach of Hawthorn (in 1942-43), and as non-playing assistant coach of South in 1947. While coaching Hawthorn, he was reported to have given the club its nickname the "Hawks" as he saw it as tougher than their original nickname the "Mayblooms".

Roy Cazaly as coach of the North Hobart Football Club in the early 1930s
Roy Cazaly as coach of the North Hobart Football Club in the early 1930s

[edit] Legacy

He is known to have played 378 senior matches (including 13 interstate matches for Victoria and 5 for Tasmania). Throughout his career he stood at just 180 centimetres (5 feet 11 inches) and was incredibly fit. He retired from competitive football in 1941 at the age of 48. Later, he coached (non-playing) New Town to a number of Tasmanian Football League premierships. After his retirement from football, he was involved in many business ventures before his death in Hobart on October 10, 1963. His son, Roy junior, played for New Town after World War Two.

The famous line of "Up there, Cazaly" was used a battle cry by Australian forces during World War II. It is also the name of a song, released in 1979 by Mike Brady and Two-Man Band.

Cazaly was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996 as one of the inaugural twelve Legends.

[edit] External links