Shane Harvey to hang up the boots after legendary local footy career
One of local footy’s legendary careers will come to an end on Saturday after North Heidelberg’s Shane Harvey decided to hang up the boots.
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One of local footy’s legendary careers will come to a close on Saturday.
Shane Harvey will run out for North Heidelberg for the last time against Macleod at Shelley Reserve after announcing his retirement last week.
It will be the Bulldogs great’s 235th appearance in the NFNL and he hopes to add to his record 1048 goals.
Harvey made the decision to hang up the boots after brother Brent’s season-ending leg injury.
“I lost a little bit of passion to compete unfortunately,” he said.
“I continued this year to play with my brother for one more year but obviously with what happened to him has changed things.
“We both spoke about one more year and having a good crack at winning the flag but that’s obviously not going to happen now.
“I feel like I could have gone on but I’ve got other things, kids’ sport has taken over – I’ve got three boys – and they need their dad during the week and on weekends.”
Harvey will go down as one of the Diamond Valley-Northern Football Netball League’s all-time greats.
It is believed he is the only player to kick 1000 goals in the competition and currently sits on 1048 majors.
He was a part of two North Heidelberg Division 2 premierships and won a Division 1 Rosbrook Medal in his first season in the competition in 2008.
Nigh unstoppable in his prime, Harvey kicked 100 goals in a season five times, was league leading goalkicker seven times, club best-and-fairest five times, two-time Coaches’ MVP, grand final medallist and earned Team of Year honours 11 times.
In a career littered with highlights, breaking the 1000-goal barrier with an eight-goal haul against Hurstbridge was a favourite.
“The 1000th goal was pretty memorable, it rarely happens these days,” Harvey said.
“To possibly be the only one in Northern, Diamond Valley history, it sits right at the top for me.
“Not winning a Division 1 will always leave a sour taste in my mouth.
“But thinking about what I’ve been able to achieve individually and with the team – three or four Division 1 prelims and a couple of (Division 2) premierships – and playing with some great blokes, it’s been pretty great.”
There were plenty more highlights too, a bag of 17 against Watsonia in 2017, nine goals in a grand final loss to Epping in 2012 and seven the week before in the preliminary final and seven in the 2014 premiership win.
He also kicked the ton twice for Wakool, winning a Golden Rivers flag in 2006, and reached triple figures for Barooga in 2010.
Harvey has had hundreds of teammates over his 15-year stay at North Heidelberg.
While nearly all would undoubtedly have him as their favourite player to play alongside, Harvey had plenty of favourites as well.
“A 15-year career is a long time so I’ve had a few, I don’t want to name too many because I don’t want to miss anyone out,” he said.
“Some of the best players, playing with my brother for the past five years and Jesse Tardio has been there since 2014, then you’ve got guys that do their job week-in, week-out like Jakey Brown and Kyle McDonald.
“When I first started Dave Florance and Jason Dean, names like that, even some of the reserves players that I loved training with like Gazi Assi.”
A big crowd is expected on Saturday to farewell the diminutive champion.
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It looms as an emotional day for the North Heidelberg community with Harvey admitting to struggling just to get through Thursday night training last week before informing his teammates.
“It was near impossible to tell the boys on Thursday night, it was probably one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in football,” he said.
“I’m not sure about Saturday how I’ll go but I just hope it’s a good day and we see a few old heads there, I’ll embrace the day and enjoy it.
“I think I need two more for 1050 so that would be a nice way to finish.”
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