My Two Cents: Redbacks great Chadd Sayers runs into chance SANFL role with Woodville-West Torrens | Andrew Capel
He once terrorised batters with his unplayable bowling, now the one-Test wonder and Redbacks great has signed up to help out one of SA’s top footy clubs, writes Andrew Capel.
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It began with a throwaway line.
When Australian Test cricketer Chadd Sayers sent a congratulatory text message to his former Woodville-West Torrens junior football teammate Sam Jacobs after his appointment as Eagles senior coach late last year, it kick-started one of football’s most unlikely partnerships.
Sayers jokingly signed off with: “If you need a runner, let me know’’.
They were prophetic words.
“Me and ‘Sauce’ (Jacobs) go back a long way and a couple of weeks later he rang me and said, ‘mate, do you actually want to do it because we don’t have a runner at this stage?’,’’ Sayers recalled.
“I couldn’t believe it and jumped at the opportunity to get back involved in footy and be around an elite program again.
“I could also do with the extra fitness, so I said, ‘why not?’
“Some people might say I’m silly to do it but I love being involved with elite sporting programs and I barracked for the Eagles, having played for them and being a long-term Woodville cricketer, so I thought it was a great fit.’’
Now, instead of making batters look silly with his high class swing bowling, Sayers – who retired from first-class cricket three years ago – is running around in green passing on instructions for a team which is flying high in second spot on the SANFL ladder with an impressive 5-1 win-loss record.
“I’m loving it,’’ Sayers said of his new role.
Sayers and Jacobs go back a long way.
They became mates when they played under-17s and under-19s football together at the Eagles before Sayers pursued a cricket career.
While Jacobs, who is a big cricket fan, became one of the AFLs premier ruckmen, playing 208 AFL games for Carlton (17), Adelaide (184) and GWS (7) from 2007–20, Sayers overcame years of toiling in SACA Premier Cricket to become a Redbacks great and Australia’s 452nd Test cricketer.
He played one Test match for Australia against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2018, taking the prize scalp of AB de Villiers for his first Test wicket, before finishing with match figures of 2-146.
After making his long-awaited first-class debut for South Australia in 2010-11, Sayers enjoyed a stellar, 11-year state career, taking 279 wickets in 71 matches at the fine average of 25.86.
He ranks third among SA’s greatest wicket-takers and is considered unlucky not to have played more Test cricket.
“Chadd was a crafty little footballer when I played with him and while he went down the cricket pathway and I stuck with footy we always stayed in contact,’’ Jacobs said.
“When he asked if I needed a runner, I sat on it for a couple of weeks and until pre-season training got closer, and then thought, ‘wow, what an opportunity for our young guys to learn off Chadd Sayers’.
“You talk about resilience, taking opportunities when they come and consistent performance over a 10-year period, which epitomised Chadd’s career, and they are the types of people I want around our club.
“It was great to get him and we love having him involved.’’
Sayers, 36, has replaced triple Woodville-West Torrens premiership defender Patrick Giuffreda, now an Eagles board member, as runner.
Still playing cricket with Adelaide Turf club Grange and a tradie during the week, Sayers’ Eagles role, while predominantly a match-day position, also includes attending the club’s Friday night ‘captain’s run’.
“It’s important I go to that because we have a team meeting about our next opponent and there are tactical things, positionings and match-ups, that I need to be aware of,’’ he said.
“It’s hard to go out and give a serve to someone if you don’t know why you are doing it, so I like to be familiar with what’s going on.’’
Sayers, who described himself as a “wingman/half-back who liked to use my skills and a bit of pace back in the day’’, said he was thoroughly enjoying his role in football again.
“I’m involved with a great bunch of blokes and the fact we are winning makes things even better,’’ he said.
“It’s great to be back in football with ‘Sauce’ again and hopefully the wins keep coming.’’
Renowned for his competitiveness, Sayers sometimes, in the heat of battle, has to remind himself that he is a runner and not a player.
“You have to remember that you are actually not playing because there can be a bit of lip out there at times,’’ he said.
Jacobs joked that Sayers still had a fierce competitive drive and “might not only give our team advice but also the opposition’’.
“So sometimes if a scuffle breaks out we just need to make sure we look after Chadd just as much as we do our own players,’’ he said with a smile.
NUMBERS GAME
6102
Days between wins for Port Adelaide at Kardinia Park after it beat Geelong at the ground last Friday for the first time since Round 21, 2007.
7
Total points that have decided the past three Carlton versus Melbourne games, with the Blues winning all three.
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“I was just proud of the boys to find some energy after last week and to come down to the hardest road trip and get the result … that’s a big win for us.’’– Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley on the win against Geelong.
“The game’s a good game. We don’t need to change the rules. We change too many rules.”– Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks when asked about the possibility of extra time following the draw against Brisbane.
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