- Feb 28, 2003
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For the benefit of the interstaters who don't get the Herald Sun. From Garry Lyon's column today.
Q & A with Leigh Colbert
20 May 2004 Herald Sun
GL: Thanks for your time Colby. Punctured any lungs lately?
LC: Nah, mate, I've been all clear so far this year. It was a bit of a scare last year but I'm pretty good now.
At the end of that incident last year it seemed as if they had taken half of your internal organs out of your body, stitched them up, and stuffed them back inside.
(Laughing) I had a look at Hirdy the other day in the paper and he's in a bad way, so I reckon I've come out all right.
It was reported that you are now a diabetic as a result of that collision.
No, that was a bit of a misconception. If your pancreas doesn't work then you need to have insulin daily, which is diabetes, but fortunately enough mine does work, so I am not insulin dependent. But I am high-risk now, so I have to be careful and have a few tests every now and again to make sure I'm all clear.
Well it was good to see you took it easy in your comeback game. Three or four times you ran back with the flight of the ball and it was one of the few occasions in going to the football that I had to look away.
Well, it's the only way I know how to play so you can't really change. I'm not any superstar of the game, so that's how I have to play to survive.
That's just it, you nearly didn't.
Nah, it never got to that. It was just a good whack in the guts.
Do you think about the consequences when you are running back with the flight of the ball, or is it instinctive?
I don't think I have ever done it differently from when I was a kid. You watch blokes doing it as you grow up and just think that's the way I want to play, and you do. It's just keeping your eye on the footy.
What about leaving the Cats? Did that challenge your love for the game?
I don't know about challenging my love of the game but I learnt a lot about myself, my family and my friends. The media and the Geelong Football Club got on the front foot and said this is why he moved on and it was not altogether true and I just had to cop it and get on with playing footy and shut up and try and get a kick.
You did remain silent for a long time on this subject. You were painted as a villain, a mercenary, a . . .
A traitor . . .
Yes, a traitor. Why didn't you speak out earlier?
I just knew, at the time, I couldn't win. Once I knew that my trust had been broken.
How was your trust broken?
I spoke with the club on the Sunday about my thoughts on a whole range of issues, and where I thought everything was at and why I was looking at leaving, and straight away they said could I not say anything as it could impact on their ability to attract some big-name recruits. So I didn't say anything, and the next day they got on the front foot and released a statement to the football world, their version of why Leigh Colbert was leaving the club. Once that was done the horse had bolted.
One of the reasons floated as to why you were leaving was that some of the senior players were not fully supportive of the decision to make you captain.
Look, one day I will go right into it but it's not something that I want to rehash while I'm still playing. It's like anything, all footballers have ambitions and there were five or six who were in contention for the job at the time, and I can understand that some of them were disappointed. In hindsight I probably wouldn't have done it. I wouldn't do it again.
The captaincy?
Yep, if I had my time again I wouldn't take it.
You rock up at a new club and all you want to do is prove yourself to your new teammates, yet injuries didn't allow it. How frustrating was that?
Oh, it was killing me. The harder I tried or trained the worse it got. It was very similar to what No. 43 for the Blues is going through at the moment. Hamstrings and tendons, on the back of a knee reco, your old club is giving it to you, the media is giving it to you and now your new club is looking at you and saying, 'What is this new bloke doing, is he going to fire up for us, or what?'
You went to the club and offered to take a pay cut didn't you?
Ahh, yep, yep.
How long into your time there was that?
Oh, a couple of times.
Why was that, because you were mindful of the fact that you couldn't get out there and play?
Yeah, I just knew that I couldn't play at my best. You play the game for respect, and being, I think, an honest bloke, I wasn't able to do what I was being paid to do, so on more than one occasion I spoke to Geoff Walsh and Denis Pagan and offered to take less than I was contracted for. They were rapt, and just reassured me I was wanted.
Ninety-eight per cent of players would not have done that. They would have just said that is just the luck of the draw and the club knew there was the risk of injury going into contracting you.
It wasn't just me. There were a couple of other players then, and since then, who have all taken pay cuts to not only help the club, but also to fit other players in.
Look at you now, off-field. High flying stockbroker with J. B. Were, co-host of your own radio show, The Brains Trust, on SEN 1116 with James Hird and Shane Crawford. You couldn't ask for more.
Look I'm more of the coffee boy at Were's, just running around and making sure everyone has coffee and a doughnut to munch on. I'm learning the caper and enjoying mixing with a different group of people. We spend 50 hours a week together at the club so it's good to get away and see what else is happening.
How is it working with the two glamour boys on radio?
Well they have certainly been in the news. They have both had plenty of exposure and controversies follow them around. I feel a bit left out.
They don't think they're above you, do they?
I'm happy if they acknowledge me when they come swanning into the studio. Sometimes they will forget to say hello to me and go and sit in their office where dinner has been organised for them both. But I'm happy to sit out on the stairs and wait for them to call me in if they remember. Sometimes they can't eat all of their pasta and they will send the leftovers out to me, otherwise I will have a bag of potato chips with one of the panel operators and wait to be summoned.
What's more difficult, getting ready to play on Jonathan Brown or interviewing George Foreman?
It's not too bad when the superstars are not in the studio, but we all had eyes to the front when Chopper Read came in for an interview.
What was that like?
Well we were all calling him Mark, not wanting to sound too familiar, and after five minutes he pulled us up and said he hadn't been called Mark since he was 12 years old, and to call him Chopper.
You have had a bit to say about the AFL Players' Association in the last couple of days. How are they travelling?
Yeah, I met with (AFLPA boss) Rob Kerr today, for an hour and a half actually.
What did Rob have to say?
After Scotty Burns had a few things to say in the paper it was just good to sit down and have a chat. We weren't actually having a crack at him, it was more about the association to get up and be a bit more visible when issues such as Hirdy and The Footy Show, and the Carlton boys arise.
You're a pretty relaxed country boy, mate. Still get out and have a beer or have recent events put a bit of a dampener on it?
Nah, you just need to be sensible about it. I wouldn't go out as much as I once did, but having a drink and getting together on a footy trip can be really beneficial, as long as you do it the right way and respect those around you.
Do you miss Micky Martyn?
Yeah, old "nah nurr". I do. He's a ripper. He was going to play for Spotswood last week, but pulled out. Said he was sore.
What about your former skipper, Wayne Carey. Do you talk to him much at all?
I have a yack to him every couple of weeks. He was good to me when I arrived, and one thing I have learnt is to return the respect that is given to you.
Will he return to Arden St in the near future?
I think so, at some stage, but it's just something you can't force. You just have to let things run their course. I'm sure the supporters would appreciate the opportunity to say thanks for his contribution to an amazing era of footy. I'm just glad that people are moving on with their lives.
Q & A with Leigh Colbert
20 May 2004 Herald Sun
GL: Thanks for your time Colby. Punctured any lungs lately?
LC: Nah, mate, I've been all clear so far this year. It was a bit of a scare last year but I'm pretty good now.
At the end of that incident last year it seemed as if they had taken half of your internal organs out of your body, stitched them up, and stuffed them back inside.
(Laughing) I had a look at Hirdy the other day in the paper and he's in a bad way, so I reckon I've come out all right.
It was reported that you are now a diabetic as a result of that collision.
No, that was a bit of a misconception. If your pancreas doesn't work then you need to have insulin daily, which is diabetes, but fortunately enough mine does work, so I am not insulin dependent. But I am high-risk now, so I have to be careful and have a few tests every now and again to make sure I'm all clear.
Well it was good to see you took it easy in your comeback game. Three or four times you ran back with the flight of the ball and it was one of the few occasions in going to the football that I had to look away.
Well, it's the only way I know how to play so you can't really change. I'm not any superstar of the game, so that's how I have to play to survive.
That's just it, you nearly didn't.
Nah, it never got to that. It was just a good whack in the guts.
Do you think about the consequences when you are running back with the flight of the ball, or is it instinctive?
I don't think I have ever done it differently from when I was a kid. You watch blokes doing it as you grow up and just think that's the way I want to play, and you do. It's just keeping your eye on the footy.
What about leaving the Cats? Did that challenge your love for the game?
I don't know about challenging my love of the game but I learnt a lot about myself, my family and my friends. The media and the Geelong Football Club got on the front foot and said this is why he moved on and it was not altogether true and I just had to cop it and get on with playing footy and shut up and try and get a kick.
You did remain silent for a long time on this subject. You were painted as a villain, a mercenary, a . . .
A traitor . . .
Yes, a traitor. Why didn't you speak out earlier?
I just knew, at the time, I couldn't win. Once I knew that my trust had been broken.
How was your trust broken?
I spoke with the club on the Sunday about my thoughts on a whole range of issues, and where I thought everything was at and why I was looking at leaving, and straight away they said could I not say anything as it could impact on their ability to attract some big-name recruits. So I didn't say anything, and the next day they got on the front foot and released a statement to the football world, their version of why Leigh Colbert was leaving the club. Once that was done the horse had bolted.
One of the reasons floated as to why you were leaving was that some of the senior players were not fully supportive of the decision to make you captain.
Look, one day I will go right into it but it's not something that I want to rehash while I'm still playing. It's like anything, all footballers have ambitions and there were five or six who were in contention for the job at the time, and I can understand that some of them were disappointed. In hindsight I probably wouldn't have done it. I wouldn't do it again.
The captaincy?
Yep, if I had my time again I wouldn't take it.
You rock up at a new club and all you want to do is prove yourself to your new teammates, yet injuries didn't allow it. How frustrating was that?
Oh, it was killing me. The harder I tried or trained the worse it got. It was very similar to what No. 43 for the Blues is going through at the moment. Hamstrings and tendons, on the back of a knee reco, your old club is giving it to you, the media is giving it to you and now your new club is looking at you and saying, 'What is this new bloke doing, is he going to fire up for us, or what?'
You went to the club and offered to take a pay cut didn't you?
Ahh, yep, yep.
How long into your time there was that?
Oh, a couple of times.
Why was that, because you were mindful of the fact that you couldn't get out there and play?
Yeah, I just knew that I couldn't play at my best. You play the game for respect, and being, I think, an honest bloke, I wasn't able to do what I was being paid to do, so on more than one occasion I spoke to Geoff Walsh and Denis Pagan and offered to take less than I was contracted for. They were rapt, and just reassured me I was wanted.
Ninety-eight per cent of players would not have done that. They would have just said that is just the luck of the draw and the club knew there was the risk of injury going into contracting you.
It wasn't just me. There were a couple of other players then, and since then, who have all taken pay cuts to not only help the club, but also to fit other players in.
Look at you now, off-field. High flying stockbroker with J. B. Were, co-host of your own radio show, The Brains Trust, on SEN 1116 with James Hird and Shane Crawford. You couldn't ask for more.
Look I'm more of the coffee boy at Were's, just running around and making sure everyone has coffee and a doughnut to munch on. I'm learning the caper and enjoying mixing with a different group of people. We spend 50 hours a week together at the club so it's good to get away and see what else is happening.
How is it working with the two glamour boys on radio?
Well they have certainly been in the news. They have both had plenty of exposure and controversies follow them around. I feel a bit left out.
They don't think they're above you, do they?
I'm happy if they acknowledge me when they come swanning into the studio. Sometimes they will forget to say hello to me and go and sit in their office where dinner has been organised for them both. But I'm happy to sit out on the stairs and wait for them to call me in if they remember. Sometimes they can't eat all of their pasta and they will send the leftovers out to me, otherwise I will have a bag of potato chips with one of the panel operators and wait to be summoned.
What's more difficult, getting ready to play on Jonathan Brown or interviewing George Foreman?
It's not too bad when the superstars are not in the studio, but we all had eyes to the front when Chopper Read came in for an interview.
What was that like?
Well we were all calling him Mark, not wanting to sound too familiar, and after five minutes he pulled us up and said he hadn't been called Mark since he was 12 years old, and to call him Chopper.
You have had a bit to say about the AFL Players' Association in the last couple of days. How are they travelling?
Yeah, I met with (AFLPA boss) Rob Kerr today, for an hour and a half actually.
What did Rob have to say?
After Scotty Burns had a few things to say in the paper it was just good to sit down and have a chat. We weren't actually having a crack at him, it was more about the association to get up and be a bit more visible when issues such as Hirdy and The Footy Show, and the Carlton boys arise.
You're a pretty relaxed country boy, mate. Still get out and have a beer or have recent events put a bit of a dampener on it?
Nah, you just need to be sensible about it. I wouldn't go out as much as I once did, but having a drink and getting together on a footy trip can be really beneficial, as long as you do it the right way and respect those around you.
Do you miss Micky Martyn?
Yeah, old "nah nurr". I do. He's a ripper. He was going to play for Spotswood last week, but pulled out. Said he was sore.
What about your former skipper, Wayne Carey. Do you talk to him much at all?
I have a yack to him every couple of weeks. He was good to me when I arrived, and one thing I have learnt is to return the respect that is given to you.
Will he return to Arden St in the near future?
I think so, at some stage, but it's just something you can't force. You just have to let things run their course. I'm sure the supporters would appreciate the opportunity to say thanks for his contribution to an amazing era of footy. I'm just glad that people are moving on with their lives.
