Toast Warwick Capper

[MARK In TIME]

A couple of years back on radio, Adam Spencer (702 ABC Breakfast) decided to run with an April Fools gag telling all his listeners that a stand at the SCG was to be renamed after Warwick Capper. You had the odd cricket and league fan a little irritated, but the great surprise was how well it went down with others.

I remember quite an old person ringing up saying nobody had done more for the Swans in Sydney than Capper. Everybody acknowledged his general dimness, but nobody underestimated his contribution and influence.

 

[CaptainChardonnay]

You can stay at his place for 5 grand

That would be a cracking weekend!!!

 

[Jack Lord]

Saw him play against Carlton at my first ever AFL match, sitting in the Noble Stand many moons ago.

My mate and I still take off the cockney bloke standing behind us that night. He kept yelling ...
"Moooove around Woh-wick. Stop finking about Leanne Edelstone!"

Capper took a couple of pearlers right in front of us.

 

[Tuco]

The irony of Capper was he defined the club in this state and created a profile. ..but that same tight shorts, 80's glam thing probably did more to hurt the ar brand in nsw than even nrl diehards would have been able to do in their wildest dreams. A marvelous player. But ultimately a symbol of everything that was done wrong when the club first moved up here.

I'll take the taciturn, mullet wearing country boys who really built this club in the 90's over the marketing stunts any day

 

[Banyo Bloods]

Swans were more than a marketing stunt in the 80's

 

[Sanecow]

Was thinking about Capper's move to Brisbane in relation to Tippett's move to Sydney and remembered that even after he went to Brisbane, I had a Ricardo (sp?) caricature of him on the wall in his Brisbane Bears jumper (a joke gift IIRC) and was actually disappointed that he didn't succeed.

 

[bedford]

The irony of Capper was he defined the club in this state and created a profile. ..but that same tight shorts, 80's glam thing probably did more to hurt the ar brand in nsw than even nrl diehards would have been able to do in their wildest dreams. A marvelous player. But ultimately a symbol of everything that was done wrong when the club first moved up here.

I'll take the taciturn, mullet wearing country boys who really built this club in the 90's over the marketing stunts any day

What a load of crap

 

[Tuco]

What a load of crap

Nup. Stand behind that view. I bought my first ever beanie as a wide eyed kid being taken to watch Capper fly. Loved watching him. If this thread was meant to simply be a "love capper" thread I apologise because I truly did love him as a player.

But he had another legacy. And maybe down in Victoria his part in it is lesser known. But as I grew older it became very clear to me the reason people yelled "******" at me from passing cars when I went to games and later when workmates used to laugh at me for liking aerial ping pong it was the vision of Capper in these outsiders' minds which dictated for many years how the club was and the code was regarded in both NSW and Qld to a lesser extent.

Some wonder why Plugger has such a positive effect up here? It wasn't simply that he was a winner...there was a seriousness about him and his cohorts like Kel that commanded instant respect. And no one has yelled ****** at me in my flouro VFL badged beanie since the late 90's as a result.

 

[Tuco]

Was thinking about Capper's move to Brisbane in relation to Tippett's move to Sydney and remembered that even after he went to Brisbane, I had a Ricardo (sp?) caricature of him on the wall in his Brisbane Bears jumper (a joke gift IIRC) and was actually disappointed that he didn't succeed.

My uncle lived on the Gold Coast and I went up for a family visit while Capper was playing for the Bears and watched them play a game vs StKilda at Carrara. It was embarrassing. The other players hated him. They refused to kick it to him. He'd lead all day and they'd just ignore him. Complete breakdown. Even the Brisbane fans jeered him. After the game I talked to my uncle about it, and apparently the playing group had never wanted him up there. I was a bit crushed. It was bad enough that he'd had to leave. But for them to just waste him like that was a travesty.

Tippett will not suffer the same fate.

 

[krisholio14]

Met him a few times when he was back in Victoria during his Swans days, because he'd always go to local schools in his spare time to help out the kids. He was an Oakleigh boy, and I was living in the area at the time, which is why I used to see him back there a fair bit.

Might appear full of himself and as thick as two planks, but honestly, he was a genuinely good bloke every time I bumped into him.

He could also seriously play. You don't kick 100 goals in a season if you're a mug.

 

[Luke Girgis]

That Open Mike was hard to watch, I wonder if the guy is actually happy? He looks broken, I feel for him.

Great player, and does seem like a good guy though.

 

[baja]

Nup. Stand behind that view. I bought my first ever beanie as a wide eyed kid being taken to watch Capper fly. Loved watching him. If this thread was meant to simply be a "love capper" thread I apologise because I truly did love him as a player.

But he had another legacy. And maybe down in Victoria his part in it is lesser known. But as I grew older it became very clear to me the reason people yelled "******" at me from passing cars when I went to games and later when workmates used to laugh at me for liking aerial ping pong it was the vision of Capper in these outsiders' minds which dictated for many years how the club was and the code was regarded in both NSW and Qld to a lesser extent.

Some wonder why Plugger has such a positive effect up here? It wasn't simply that he was a winner...there was a seriousness about him and his cohorts like Kel that commanded instant respect. And no one has yelled ****** at me in my flouro VFL badged beanie since the late 90's as a result.

I understand where you are coming from and its an interesting perspective into the mindset of someone from NSW's that may understand more than me how the NRL fans see things..
However he did make headlines, he produced on-field so I have to disagree that he wasn't one of the pioneers in the early Sydney days, one that provided many highlights and put bums on seats both in Sydney and Melbourne.. I do see your point that players like Plugger and Kelly gained more respect from the NRL fans but I wouldnt undersell Capper's influence on football in the early years of the Sydney Swans.

 

[Swanee]

Met him a few times when he was back in Victoria during his Swans days, because he'd always go to local schools in his spare time to help out the kids. He was an Oakleigh boy, and I was living in the area at the time, which is why I used to see him back there a fair bit.

Might appear full of himself and as thick as two planks, but honestly, he was a genuinely good bloke every time I bumped into him.

He could also seriously play. You don't kick 100 goals in a season if you're a mug.

Being a life long Swans fan from Melbourne, while having a brief stint in Sydney, I took my son who was only about 12 or 14 at the time to watch the Swans train at the SCG. We were standing on the boundary when Capper came over and had a chat with us, my son was wrapped. He (Capper) also informed us that the team were about to go to one of the parks next to the SCG to continue training and invited us along to watch. In my eyes then and now I have always admired him for taking the time to consider a young (and an old) fan. My son was devastated when Warwick left to go to the Bears. I dont blame Capper for that, it was the administration that caused that to happen.

He may act dumb, but he is very down to earth. I have also seen Greg Williams and Gerard Healey interviewed and asked questions about Capper. Neither of them would hear a bad word said about Capper, and Gerard Healey in particular was very defensive and protective of Capper as a player and a person.

My uncle lived on the Gold Coast and I went up for a family visit while Capper was playing for the Bears and watched them play a game vs StKilda at Carrara. It was embarrassing. The other players hated him. They refused to kick it to him. He'd lead all day and they'd just ignore him. Complete breakdown. Even the Brisbane fans jeered him. After the game I talked to my uncle about it, and apparently the playing group had never wanted him up there. I was a bit crushed. It was bad enough that he'd had to leave. But for them to just waste him like that was a travesty.

Tippett will not suffer the same fate.

Some years after Capper had retired, Brad Hardy admitted that the players at the Bears (Hardy was one of them) wouldn't look for Capper, wouldnt kick the Sherrin to him even if he was in the clear.They didn't want him being successful because they were all jealous of the money he was getting there. To hell with having a successful team, they just all acted like children and threw a tantrum.