Remove this Banner Ad

News Vale Bill Stephens

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

L

lionlionlion

Cancelled
Joined
Aug 17, 2020
Posts
34
Reaction score
54
AFL Club
Brisbane Lions
In a footy world where more and more players could be bought and loyalty is solely dependent upon the size of the pay check,it was refreshing to see a man who did not care about that at all,for he truly loved the Fitzroy Lions. He had stints elsewhere but his first and only love was the Fitzroy Football Club, even through all the adversity and turmoil the Club endured, his love for the club stayed strong and steadfast.I have been told that while he had no kids, the players at the Fitzroy Footy Club were his children. One word describes your love of the club,INSPIRATIONAL.Vale Bill Stephens,I know, in my heart ,you will be eagerly watching from the heavens hoping the Brisbane Lions win the Premiership this year. Condolences to his family and Lions let’s do this one for Bill.
 
lionlionlion said:
In a footy world where more and more players could be bought and loyalty is solely dependent upon the size of the pay check,it was refreshing to see a man who did not care about that at all,for he truly loved the Fitzroy Lions. He had stints elsewhere but his first and only love was the Fitzroy Football Club, even through all the adversity and turmoil the Club endured, his love for the club stayed strong and steadfast.I have been told that while he had no kids, the players at the Fitzroy Footy Club were his children. One word describes your love of the club,INSPIRATIONAL.Vale Bill Stephens,I know, in my heart ,you will be eagerly watching from the heavens hoping the Brisbane Lions win the Premiership this year. Condolences to his family and Lions let’s do this one for Bill.
Click to expand...
 
1883 said:
He was simply a beautiful person. No greater compliment can be had.
Click to expand...
Bill Stephen had a fantastic football brain and was a great mentor and teacher. Sheedy regarded him as a master tactician.

More important than that he was an intensely loyal person ,a kind and loving man who always had time for everybody no matter what their station in life.

I first met him when I was around 9 or 10 years old on a family holiday at Phillip Island. I can still remember to this day how he took time and interest my family for no other reason than it was in his nature to engage with and encourage others.

It's a really sad day.
 

Log in to remove this Banner Ad

A fitting tribute to Bill's contribution to Fitzroy and the VFL/AFL would be if the Brisbane Lions (instead of just black armbands) wore the Fitzroy jumper (FFC logo) in the game against Fitzroy's traditional rival Collingwood on September 4th. Playing the traditional Fitzroy theme song (which Bill had a big hand in writing), both at the start of the game and at the end if the Lions win would also be a great tribute.
 
For those of you from the Brisbane side of the family, Bill was arguably the second most significant Royboy from the Fitzroy side of the family. Possibly the last genuine connection to the premiership side of 1944, given he first played with many of them on debut in 1947. A lengthy playing career, a lengthy coaching career over three stints (including walking the Roys back from the finals wilderness in 1979 after many years), and then on the match committee up until I think the 90s. On and off nearly 50 years service to the Lions. A behind the scenes supporter of a way forward after the merger, via the Brisbane Lions.

For those of you who wonder as to the origins of why our unique merged club's song is sung to La Marseillaise, can I recommend you listen to a podcast from earlier this year. Look up "This Sporting Life", as they did one with Bill earlier this year. He speaks about a Fitzroy trip to Perth in the 50s, with a number of nights on the train. He speaks of a scene in the film Casablanca where French soldiers get up and belt out their national anthem with gusto in spite of their German occupiers. He mentioned it to his mates on the train, how inspiring the music is. He challenged them all to write a line, one after the other. Once they'd worked it out they sang it thousands of times on the trip home.

So whenever you next get to hear the Brisbane Lions song after a win, you can now know the man who inspired the initial idea back in the day.

A thoroughly decent man. Always had time for Lions people.
 
Roylion said:
A fitting tribute to Bill's contribution to Fitzroy and the VFL/AFL would be if the Brisbane Lions (instead of just black armbands) wore the Fitzroy jumper (FFC logo) in the game against Fitzroy's traditional rival Collingwood on September 4th. Playing the traditional Fitzroy theme song (which Bill had a big hand in writing), both at the start of the game and at the end if the Lions win would also be a great tribute.
Click to expand...

fantastic , i hope Brisbane does this, really nice idea
 
Last edited:
adey115 said:
For those of you from the Brisbane side of the family, Bill was arguably the second most significant Royboy from the Fitzroy side of the family. Possibly the last genuine connection to the premiership side of 1944, given he first played with many of them on debut in 1947. A lengthy playing career, a lengthy coaching career over three stints (including walking the Roys back from the finals wilderness in 1979 after many years), and then on the match committee up until I think the 90s. On and off nearly 50 years service to the Lions. A behind the scenes supporter of a way forward after the merger, via the Brisbane Lions.

For those of you who wonder as to the origins of why our unique merged club's song is sung to La Marseillaise, can I recommend you listen to a podcast from earlier this year. Look up "This Sporting Life", as they did one with Bill earlier this year. He speaks about a Fitzroy trip to Perth in the 50s, with a number of nights on the train. He speaks of a scene in the film Casablanca where French soldiers get up and belt out their national anthem with gusto in spite of their German occupiers. He mentioned it to his mates on the train, how inspiring the music is. He challenged them all to write a line, one after the other. Once they'd worked it out they sang it thousands of times on the trip home.

So whenever you next get to hear the Brisbane Lions song after a win, you can now know the man who inspired the initial idea back in the day.

A thoroughly decent man. Always had time for Lions people.
Click to expand...

love it !!!
 
martinson said:
Bill Stephen had a fantastic football brain and was a great mentor and teacher. Sheedy regarded him as a master tactician.

More important than that he was an intensely loyal person ,a kind and loving man who always had time for everybody no matter what their station in life.

I first met him when I was around 9 or 10 years old on a family holiday at Phillip Island. I can still remember to this day how he took time and interest my family for no other reason than it was in his nature to engage with and encourage others.

It's a really sad day.
Click to expand...

great to see people with beautiful memories of Bill.
 
Roylion said:
A fitting tribute to Bill's contribution to Fitzroy and the VFL/AFL would be if the Brisbane Lions (instead of just black armbands) wore the Fitzroy jumper (FFC logo) in the game against Fitzroy's traditional rival Collingwood on September 4th. Playing the traditional Fitzroy theme song (which Bill had a big hand in writing), both at the start of the game and at the end if the Lions win would also be a great tribute.
Click to expand...
I think it would be great if we wore the 50s..60s jumper as we did when we kicked the Magpies ass in the early 2000s
 

Remove this Banner Ad

A champion back-pocket - the best of his day - better than Melbourne's champion, John Beckwith. Also, a grossly underrated coach.

However, he will always, and deservedly, be known as the man who wrote the lyrics for the Fitzroy theme song. A theme song so splendid that the French adopted its tune as their national anthem.;)

Quite simply, a lovely fella, who was never known to do anybody a bad turn.
 


Great player, coach and stalwart of the Fitzroy Football Club. I will never forget how much joy all Fitzroy supporters experienced in 1979 when Bill was coaching us. He set us up for the success of the 1980’s.
 
Some of Bill’s wins in 1979.








Great interview in this clip with Bill after the game.
 
Last edited:

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

Bill Stephen was an inseparable part of Fitzroy’s history.




 
Dylan12 said:
Appreciate you posting all those videos 3KZ is Football :thumbsu:

My searching may have been poor, but are Part(s) 1-3 readily available of those Fitzroy Lions videos?
Click to expand...
Yep they are. There might even be links on the Fitzroy board.
 
Last edited:
Bill was also front and centre when we were rattling tins to keep the club alive in the 80's and 90's. My father was manager of the Fitzroy thirds for a number of years in the 70's and as a kid I got to see and hear a lot of Bill and he was the epitome of a gentleman. In his change room addresses he was emotive but always controlled and encouraging and respectful in an era where that was the exception rather than the rule. The 1979 side was the best attacking side we ever had and Bill was a major reason for that. RIP to a club legend.
 
I hope the Club does something more than simply donning black arm bands as a mark of respect for Bill Stephen.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

Remove this Banner Ad

🥰 Love BigFooty? Join now for free.

Back
Top Bottom