By Marcus Uhe
Premiership number four in the black and white jumper was a perfect way for Brad Scalzo to conclude his long and decorated playing career.
A journey that started with back-to-back premierships for the Magpies as a teenager playing senior football saw him play state-level football in Victoria and Queensland, with Noble Park in the Eastern Football Netball League, Warragul in Gippsland and finished where he started, all while maintaining an excellent standard right until the very end, having remained a key cog the Magpies’ premiership-winning midfield in 2024.
With two children under three-years-old and another due in February, plus a ton of mileage on his weary body, he felt the timing was right to hang up the boots.
Clutching the premiership cup in his left hand, his departure from Rob Porter Recreation Reserve came on the shoulders of Trent Papworth and Steven Kidd – his 2024 premiership captain and a premiership teammate from his very first, back in 2007.
“You can’t ask for much more than that, to go out with a medal around your neck,” he said.
“I thought it was time to go out on a high like this.
“I’m still playing good footy, I’m not getting dropped to the twos because I’m getting shit and stuff like that.
“I played with ‘Skiddsy’ when I was younger and to have him coach me and finish my time with him was pretty special.”
His retirement is four years the making – and what an arduous road it was.
Between 2020 and 2022, he played just nine senior games thanks to a toxic cocktail of misfortune that included the pandemic and a major knee injury.
With the beginning of the 2022 season on the horizon and a bright future looming after two years under the grips of Covid-19, Scalzo ruptured his Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in a mundane moment at training.
He didn’t have to wait long for a suspected-yet-informed diagnosis, with a teammate breaking the bad news to him.
“Two weeks before round one I was running to get a ball, then I stopped, went to turn and my knee went bang,” he said.
‘Richo’ (Jake Richardson) was studying to be a physio and he said ‘that’s a perfect ACL (mechanism) – you’re sore for 10 minutes and then you’re walking.
“I thought I was done, but as I started coaching I started getting itchy feet again and started thinking ‘I’ve put so much time into this game, played some high quality footy, and to go out with two years of Covid-19 and an ACL, it felt like shit.’
“I thought I might as well do the right rehab, do it all properly and go out on my terms – if I do it again or hurt myself again, at least I’ve tried to have a crack, but ended up playing two more years and now I’m at the end.”
Rendered to assistant coaching duties, his stewardship helped the Magpies win the premiership in 2022.
While still connected, the frustration at not being on the field stung, and fuelled the fire to return for one more year.
“(2022) was early mornings, late nights, training, and then watching the boys win a flag, I got really teary thinking that this could have been me,” he said.
“It hurt a fair bit knowing that I could have been there, but it gave me more determination the next year to play well, train hard and give it my all, because they don’t come around often, flags; you’ve got to cherish every moment you have.”
It was meant to be his last year in 2023 – one more season to erase the frustration of the previous three – but Wandin had other ideas, and Scalzo needed one final shot in 2024.
When the realisation hit on Saturday that the Magpies were going to salute, there was no holding back the emotions.
“Halfway through the last I thought ‘we’re going to do this’ and it was hard to not get emotional before the siren went,” he said.
“(The ACL rehab) did go through my mind and as soon as the siren went, the relief I had and the excitement.. I went and shook all the Wandin guys’ hands and had tears running down my face.
“I couldn’t hold the emotion in – I’m an emotional guy anyway, but it was tough to hold it in.”
Scalzo’s early days at Narre Warren as a spritely teenager coincided with the end of Chris Toner’s tenure as a player, and finished as a lauded veteran playing alongside Chris’ 17-year-old son Mitch in 2024.
He attributes his longevity to his professionalism and looking after his body, and hopes that forms part of the legacy he leaves behind.
“The way I train, I train like I play,” he said.
“A couple of the boys have come up to me and said ‘you’re the best player I’ve ever played with, the way you go about it at training..’ that makes me feel really good – they’re noticing what I’m putting in and showing them that if you work hard, you can play good footy.
“I hope I’ve left that legacy behind, and those young kids, seeing what I’ve achieved at Narre Warren, and they want to achieve the same thing.”
