“The big fella’s gone.”
Ross Smith’s sad words in response to Cowboy Neale’s death succinctly told of the enormous gap left in the fabric of St Kilda Football Club by the passing of a man who was more than just an outstanding footballer and a key figure in the greatest moment in our club’s history.
Kevin Charles Neale was a person who you liked to be around. Always ready with a joke or a quip, he transcended multiple generations from former players through teammates from Ian Stewart and Darrel Baldock through to the modern era when he was at the club in an administrative role in the 21st century.
There are hundreds of memories of Cowboy – both the public and well-known recollections and also the behind the scenes moments. When he worked at the club in latter years he would conduct the morning tea trivia questions reading from the Herald-Sun with his own inimitable comments thrown in for good measure.
He had a deep affection for his old coach Allan Jeans, and liked nothing better than popping by the Jeans house for a weekly lunch to catch up with Yabby and Mary.
During his initial years as a player Neale had sometimes frustrated the coach with his inconsistent kicking for goal. Jeans happily used The Herald’s chief football writer Alf Brown to needle Cowboy in a game preview. At one stage a few supporters told Jeans they would pay Cowboy a $20 bonus every time he kicked a goal after a return of two goals and seven behinds the previous match. When Cowboy bagged eight goals two behinds the following week, Jeans gently chided Cowboy by saying he had killed the goose that laid the golden egg and the financial backers were gun-shy after handing over $160 in the first week.
That eight-goal haul was his personal best which he equalled in an amazing performance in 1967 against Essendon at Moorabbin. Playing in the backline in the first half he held Essendon at bay with his strong marking, but the Saints trailed by 23 points at half-time and Jeans threw him into attack for the second half – he proceeded to boot six goals in a stunning third quarter and topped the day off with another two in the final half hour. Eight goals straight and only one Brownlow vote for the match winner! In a statistical oddity he polled two votes the following week for a far less impactful game.
Of course Cowboy’s style didn’t sit easily with the umpires of the time. This was his 48th game and the first time he had figured on the umpiring vote-sheet. Indeed he only polled 27 votes across a mighty 13 season career which says more about umpiring attitudes than Cowboy’s input. His best Brownlow haul was a mere seven votes in 1973 when he won St Kilda’s best and fairest.
Cowboy would mock his tough guy image, but it was a very real thing to anyone who happened to get in his way on the field – “People didn’t understand that I never had a fight. Everyone thought I was tough and I was quite happy to let them think that!” It was a brave opponent who put that theory to the test.
He chuckled when asked about how he would go on the modern-day football field in an era of increased political correctness.
Cowboy’s fabled career almost didn’t get off the ground at all. His first flirtation with the VFL was an invitation to train at Carlton, when they invited his South Warrnambool teammate Terry Board to have a run.
“I think they just invited me down to keep him company”.
Carlton let Neale slip through their hands without any follow-up and kept Board who had 41 games with the Blues. Neale recalled that Carlton’s coach Ken Hands told him years later that they let the wrong bloke go.
Neale was guided to St Kilda by his South Warrnambool coach Brian McCarthy – “He was an ex-St Kilda player and he worked hard to get me down here. I think they paid me 150 pounds to sign and they promised me 200 pounds when I played my first game. It took about three years — not to get the first game, but to get paid the 200 pounds.”
Even at the outset with St Kilda, things didn’t fall into place instantly. He did well in the 1965 practice matches, but was not picked for the first game when others with lesser credential were chosen ahead of him. It was reported in the newspapers that he had gone home to the bush because South Warrnambool needed him.
“That was not true. I cracked it and went home. Three weeks later (club secretary) Ian Drake rang me up and asked me to come back.” He then had two strong games in the reserves and was picked for his senior debut against North at Coburg. Seasoned teammates Ian Synman, Ray Cross and Verdun Howell told him they would take him under their wing and look after him. His faith was shaken when he heard a dull thud at the opening bounce and turned around to see the tough Cross lying with his face covered in blood.
In that 1965 debut season Neale played in the Grand Final side that went down against Essendon. He had worn the number 31 guernsey all year, but was one of the players who were allocated different numbers for the finals series, because an independent magazine had published a list of player numbers against the wishes of the VFL. History tells us that another former South Warrnambool man who had worn the red, white and black Number 31 , St Kilda’s first Brownlow medallist Colin Watson, had been disappointed to see that Cowboy was wearing the number 18.
But that would become Cowboy’s permanent number in 1966 and his trademark.
As full-forward he marvelled at the skills of Ian Stewart and Darrel Balock.
“It was good to play in front of Stewy and Doc. Doc was a bit of a nightmare because every two steps he would change direction. Stewy, you could nearly run with your arms out and your eyes shut and he would land the ball in your hands. Magnificent. When Doc got the ball he was going to kick it long. I would wave it long and I’d just turn around and bolt.”
Of course every St Kilda fan knows of Cowboy’s five goals kicked out of St Kilda’s winning score of 10 goals in the 1966 play-off and the running gag between he and Barry Breen that he kicked half the Saints’ score and Barry is famous for one point. But in a quieter moment of reflection he noted “the more I’ve looked at the tape I have to admit that Breeny did play pretty well.
“He never misses a chance to have a go at me about it. I told him that I missed one in the square in the third quarter. I reckon that was the point that won it!”
Cowboy also admitted that “anyone who reckons they haven’t been frightened on the footy field at some stage is a liar, but as long as you keep your eye on the ball it is OK. You went out of your way not to upset big John Nicholls and you were wary about other blokes like “Delicate Des” Dickson who didn’t say much”.
Of course another Grand Final, in 1971 against Hawthorn, saw Cowboy as part of a famous incident when he crunched Hawthorn’s full-forward Peter Hudson in the first quarter.
“Despite all the stories about it over the years, there was nothing premeditated. I had a bit of a saying at the time that they can’t kick goals if they are unconscious and over the years people have fitted that into the story. It was no pre-game plan but when I saw Hudson in front of me I thought – “It’s a Grand Final and this bloke has beaten us three times this year. It’s not something you are proud of, but in those days you thought, well, it’s a Grand Final and here you go. Nobody saw it and I remember saying to the umpire ‘what did you pay the free kick for?’ and he said it was for Wayne Judson pushing him in the back. I said, “Fair enough.”
Over the years Hudson and Neale became good friends and Neale admired the fact that Hudson never held anything against him, saying he wasn’t sure that he would have been as magnanimous if the roles were reversed.
It says much about both men that in recent years when the troop of former Saints players headed off on regular visits to see Cowboy in his care facility that Hudson was part of the group and was always warmly greeted.
Cowboys recent fight against the insidious effects of Alzheimers was not only sad for himself, but also for his loving family. His wife Georgina has been a tremendous comfort and a pillar to him.
He was truly a wonderful bloke and loved by one and all.
Vale, Cowboy.
Kevin 'Cowboy' Neale
BORN: 18 July 1945
ST KILDA
Years: 1965-1977
First game: St Kilda v North Melbourne at Coburg 1965
Games: 256
Goals: 301
FINALS: 16
CAPTAIN: 17 games (1974,1975,1976, 1977)
VICE-CAPTAIN: 1975-1977
REPRESENTED VICTORIA: 1967
BEST AND FAIREST: 1973
CLUB AWARDS: Most Improved 1966, Best Utility 1969, Serviceable Play 1972, Best Back Player 1973, Team Player 1976
CLUB LEADING GOALKICKER : 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969
CLUB TEAM OF THE CENTURY: 2001
CLUB HALL OF FAME: Inducted 2007
AFL LIFE MEMBER: 2016
TEAM MANAGER: 1988
2005-2014 Coterie Group Manager
President St Kilda Past Players and Officials Association 2002-2014
CANBERRA
AINSLIE FOOTBALL CLUB: 1978-1983 and 1988
98 games played, 430 goals
In his six years as captain-coach Ainslie played in every Grand Final, winning four premierships.
Created a new ACTAFL goalkicking record with 149 in 1980. He later returned as non-playing coach in 1988
Also coached many ACTAFL representative teams
Non playing coach Tuggeranong 1992-1995
Legend AFL Canberra Hall of Fame 2019
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
Non-Playing coach Central Districts 1984-1987
