News Vale Barrie Robran

[Ford Fairlane]

Godspeed to the great man. Russell Ebert never hesitated to call Barrie the best footballer he has ever seen.

I had the pleasure of meeting Barrie a couple of times and he was an absolute gentleman.

 

[philreich]

Very sad news. Who was better - him or Ebert? I guess you could argue either way.

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Both magnificent footballers, those of us who saw them play were lucky to have two greats competing at the same time. Throw in Malcolm Blight in his short time in the sanfl for good measure.

The doyen of football writers in SA, Gordon Schwartz described them as uniquely gifted, Robran using his skills like an artist with a full colour pallette, Ebert using his like hand grenades.

 

[Eddie Woloschek]

What a player he was. It was as if he weaved his magic in slow motion so we could better see his gift. Russell Ebert and Barrie Robran, in the same time, in the same town. How lucky we were. There have been a few as good, but none better. Ave atque vale - hail and farewell.

 

[Papa G]

Never saw him play but many think he was the GOAT. Never heard a bad word spoken about him.

 

[68vette]

What a player he was. It was as if he weaved his magic in slow motion so we could better see his gift. Russell Ebert and Barrie Robran, in the same time, in the same town. How lucky we were. There have been a few as good, but none better. Ave atque vale - hail and farewell.

North Adelaide could have had both playing for them. I am sure I read that Russ had decided to play for North before coming to the city but they never came back with the paperwork.

 

[Ford Fairlane]

North Adelaide could have had both playing for them. I am sure I read that Russ had decided to play for North before coming to the city but they never came back with the paperwork.

I have heard that. I always thought it was the other way around but an old time North supporter said it was Russell going to North that didn't happen.

 

[Fizzler]

Terrible news to hear. Hope he and Russ are reminiscing about their great battles up there. Rest in peace Barrie

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Some video of Barrie playing

 

[edgie]

What a player he was. It was as if he weaved his magic in slow motion so we could better see his gift. Russell Ebert and Barrie Robran, in the same time, in the same town. How lucky we were. There have been a few as good, but none better. Ave atque vale - hail and farewell.

For this and a lot of other reasons it was the golden era of the SANFL

 

[Neese]

Sad. Bloody great player.

 

[moses]

I hope he is having a beer with Russell up in heaven. Sad day for SA footy.

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Went by Adelaide Oval tonight, there is a North Adelaide scarf on the statue and flowers around the base.

 

[jb04]

Very sad news. Who was better - him or Ebert? I guess you could argue either way.

There'll be lots of chat about that on Sunday afternoon I'm sure.

Hope the crowd is huge to share stories and sink tins in the great Barrie's honour. Rest in peace.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

Vale Barrie.

I didn't know he was in poor health. A mate caught up with him a couple of years ago and remarked how good a shape/health he was in.

How ironic - from the SANFL's website story - "Robran died on Wednesday morning as he was preparing to have knee surgery."

Vale Barrie Robran MBE - SANFL

sanfl.com.au

Was lucky enough to see him play 2 or 3 times after his 1974 knee injury and one game in the wet, at Prospect, he kicked 6 goals against Port, wearing that big metal brace, a few on a young Greg Phillips and thought how good must he have been pre injury.

 

[philreich]

Heard Rowey and Timmy interview Rick Davies tonight - Jumbo revealed that he's haunted by the fact that he passed the ball to Robran in a state game, just before Robran did his knee.

 

[Northalives]

Magnificent footballer, magnificent human being.

Leigh Mathews deliberately destroyed Robran's knee in 1974, from memory, to stop him from destroying Victoria in the State Game.

 

[Neese]

Leigh Matthews has a habit of that. Clarkson too.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

From that SANFL linkl I posted above. I've never heard the story about the All Stars and playing Moscow of all places in the early 70's and also in West Germany. London , Athens and Singapore makes sense given the amount of Aussie expats that would have been living there.


Robran repeatedly – out of loyalty to North Adelaide and a commitment to stay with his family in Adelaide – rebuffed offers to move to the VFL during a decade when the Victorians argued its league was the true measuring stick of a footballer’s ability.

But the Carlton players – in particular fellow national Hall of Fame “Legend” Alex Jesaulenko – made up their minds on Robran at the end of the 1972 season.

Jesaulenko applauded Robran after a passage of play during the 1972 Champions of Australia final, won by North Adelaide, at Adelaide Oval where Robran is remembered with a statue at the southern gates.

The admiration continued when Robran, as a member of the “All-Stars” team of VFL and non-Victorian stars, joined the Carlton squad on a promotional tour of London, Stuttgart in then West Germany, Moscow, Athens and Singapore.

Carlton premiership forward – and future premiership coach – Robert Walls recalls the impression Robran left on the Blues.

“At the end of that series,” said Walls, “every Carlton player, to a man, said Robran was the stand out among all the players we saw from outside the VFL – and that included (future Brownlow Medallist) Malcolm Blight.

“Left, right, he was so fluid on either side.

“There was no doubt among us that if Robran came to Victoria he would have been a star.”

 

[raptalia]

Alas another icon of the 1970s passes away. A great South Australian player who ranks with Ebert, Bagshaw and Blight as the men who had a touch of greatness about them. Perhaps the greatest testimony to any player's ability is the esteem that your opponents hold for you and to a man those who played against Barrie Robran acclaim him as a great player.

R.I.P. Barrie Robran.

 

[jac147]

Magnificent footballer, magnificent human being.

Leigh Mathews deliberately destroyed Robran's knee in 1974, from memory, to stop him from destroying Victoria in the State Game.

If my memory serves me correct, SA was playing the Vic’s on a mud heap that was the SCG at the time. I think it was put on as some promotional game of Australian Rules for Sydneysiders. A nothing game that ruined Barrie’s career!

 

[1954]

Barrie Robran was a sensational player who gave the impression of having more time to do anything than other players, and as a number of his highly rated peers have suggested it was so difficult to tackle him it was almost as if time stood still when he had the ball.

A well documented example of his brilliance was during the 1972 end of season championship at Adelaide oval when none other than the great Alex Jesaulenko applauded him for his sensational play on North's half back line on the outer side at the river end, which I was fortunate to witness.

RIP Barrie Robran!

 

[Papa G]

Probably not the right place or time (yeah I'm great at that), but the constant talk of Jesaulenko applauding him or the Victorians really rated him always grates me. Shows such an inferiority complex. Alex himself was a post WW2 Refugee of Ukrainian heritage who grew up in Canberra FFS. Barrie was just simply a great footballer and great person, Full stop.

 

[JimmyBC]

Can anyone elaborate on the Leigh Matthews incident? the details are pretty vague

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Barrie Robran was a sensational player who gave the impression of having more time to do anything than other players, and as a number of his highly rated peers have suggested it was so difficult to tackle him it was almost as if time stood still when he had the ball.

A well documented example of his brilliance was during the 1972 end of season championship at Adelaide oval when none other than the great Alex Jesaulenko applauded him for his sensational play on North's half back line on the outer side at the river end, which I was fortunate to witness.

RIP Barrie Robran!

I remembered that story this morning, glad someone posted that moment and saw it!

Remember North winning the match against Carlton, helped out in no small part by Mal Brown KO'ing half the Carlton team in their match against East Perth a couple of days earlier