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Key Facts
Full name
Roy Cazaly
Known as
Roy Cazaly
Born
13 January 1893
Place of birth
South Melbourne, VIC (3205)
Died
10 October 1963 (aged 70)
Place of death
Lenah Valley, TAS (7008)
Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 18y 197d
Last game: 34y 240d
Height and weight
Height: 180 cm
Weight: 80 kg
Senior clubs
St. Kilda; South Melbourne; City; Preston; North Hobart; New Town; Camberwell
Jumper numbers
St. Kilda: 13, 22, 10, 14
South Melbourne: 1, 11
Recruited from
St. Kilda (1921); South Melbourne (1928); City (1931); Preston (1932); North Hobart (1934)
State of origin
VIC
Hall of fame
Australian Football Hall Of Fame (Inducted 1996), Legend (1996)
Family links
Ernie Cazaly (Brother)Charlie Moore (Cousin)
Roy Cazaly
| Club | League | Career span | Games | Goals | Avg | Win % | AKI | AHB | AMK | BV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Kilda | V/AFL | 1911-1915, 1918-1920 | 99 | 39 | 0.39 | 38% | — | — | — | 0 |
| South Melbourne | V/AFL | 1921-1924, 1926-1927 | 99 | 128 | 1.29 | 49% | — | — | — | 4 |
| City | NTFA | 1928-1930 | 51 | 62 | 1.22 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Preston | VFA | 1931 | 19 | 26 | 1.37 | — | — | — | — | — |
| North Hobart | TANFL | 1932-1933 | 26 | 35 | 1.35 | — | — | — | — | — |
| New Town | TANFL | 1934-1936 | 47 | 41 | 0.87 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Camberwell | VFA | 1941 | 2 | 1 | 0.50 | — | — | — | — | — |
| V/AFL | 1911-1915, 1918-1924, 1926-1927 | 198 | 167 | 0.84 | 44% | — | — | — | 4 | |
| NTFA | 1928-1930 | 51 | 62 | 1.22 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| VFA | 1931, 1941 | 21 | 27 | 1.29 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| TANFL | 1932-1936 | 73 | 76 | 1.04 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Total | 1911-1915, 1918-1924, 1926-1936, 1941 | 343 | 332 | 0.97 | — | — | — | — | — | |
AFL: 1,822nd player to appear, 652nd most games played, 544th most goals kickedSt. Kilda: 375th player to appear, 133rd most games played, 170th most goals kickedSouth Melbourne: 320th player to appear, 141st most games played, 54th most goals kicked
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To some extent, Roy Cazaly's name - used as a battle cry by Australian troops during the second world war, and subsequently in the title of a hit song by Mike Brady - is almost synonymous with the sport of Australian football. It is somewhat ironic therefore that he was remembered for his time at St Kilda (where he played 99 games between 1910 and 1920) as 'just another footballer', only eking out a reputation as a 'superstar' when he joined South Melbourne in 1921.
While at South he added another 99 senior games, made his Big V debut (going on to play 13 times), topped the club goalkicking list on two occasions, and won the best and fairest award in 1926. Less tangibly, he established a reputation as Victorian football's foremost aerialist, giving rise to the time-honoured catch-cry - first coined by team mate Fred Fleiter - 'Up there Cazaly!'
Cazaly was more than just a brilliant aerialist, however. A non-smoking teetotaller, he was ahead of his time as far as fitness went, and he combined superb physical conditioning with an acute football brain. The former enabled him to play over 400 senior games in Victoria and Tasmania, while the latter was on eminent display during a highly successful seven-premiership coaching career.
In 2005, Cazaly was named as an inaugural coaching legend in Tasmanian Football's official Hall of Fame, following on from his selection in 1996 as an inaugural playing legend in the Australian Football Hall of Fame.
Author - John Devaney