Cobden’s ties to AFL Country Festival rivals Geelong and Essendon

Cobden has produced plenty of top-class footballers, and locals may find it tough picking sides for Friday’s AFL Country Game.

Dairy farmers Bernie Darcy and Simon Morris from Cobden showing their loyalties ahead of the match between Geelong and Essendon on Friday. Picture: Zoe Phillips

Cobden is a country town that punches well above its weight in producing AFL footballers.

The dairy farming community, which has a population of less than 2000 people, will have trouble picking sides for this weekend’s AFL Country Game between Geelong and Essendon with local boys Gary Rohan and Zach Merrett running out for the Cats and Bombers respectively.

That is, unless your loyalties were long ago decided.

Cobden third-generation dairy farmer Simon Morris has played more than 400 club games for the local football club, and these days coaches the under-18 team while also pulling on the boots in the reserves. He followed in his dad’s footsteps by becoming a Geelong supporter (and now member), and clearly remembers his first trip to Kardinia Park to watch them play.

“Dad said to me, ‘Righto Simon, we’re going to the footy, we’re going to see ‘Jacko’ (Mark Jackson) play, so I was all excited that week,” he says. “Then by the end of the week he got dropped, so we didn't actually get to see Jacko play.”

For Bernie Darcy — whose dairy farm sits between Cobden and Camperdown — there was a very practical reason to follow Essendon. “When I was growing up there were eight kids in the family, and the local team, Cobden, wore red and black so we couldn’t afford two jumpers so Essendon it was,” he says.

Bernie played football at Cobden, and now his grandchildren do the same.

He was only able to make the journey once to see the Bombers play at Windy Hill, but recalls it was in the “magic era” of some of their greats, including Terry Daniher, Simon Madden, Tim Watson and Kevin Sheedy.

It is not only the Merrett brothers Zach and Jackson and Rohan (all of whom Simon coached in the past) who have gone on from Cobden to play in the AFL. These days there is also Ben Cunnington at North Melbourne, Sean Darcy at Fremantle and Sam Walsh at Carlton. “We (Cobden) haven’t won a premiership since 1998 but we have produced some pretty good footballers,” Bernie says, adding the Country Game was about more than recognising the top-tier of footballers. “It’s not just about the elite players — it’s about the thousands of kids that play footy and netball across the state every weekend, and the thousands of volunteers and sponsors that make that happen.”

Simon said the Country Game came along “at the right time” with the growth of paddock-to-plate concepts and a growing awareness of food origins.

“Agriculture gets taken for granted a bit. It is improving greatly ... (dairy) is a very big part of the economy of Victoria but I feel it doesn’t really get acknowledged as much that way — even agriculture in general doesn’t get acknowledged,” Simon says. “It would be good if it was acknowledged not just when there were droughts or floods, but when things are good, and people realise dairy farmers are very professional at what they do.”

MORE

BEST FOOTY COACHES FROM THE COUNTRY

HEART VOLUNTEER AWARDS 2021 WINNERS REVEALED

CAMPERDOWN CLUBMAN MAKES LEURA OVAL HOME FOR WHOLE TOWN