BACKS
Richard Gill
My teammate at Casterton. The way he attacked the footy and the contest off half-back was one way: flat out!

Matthew Scarlett
In my opinion, the best full-back I’ve ever seen and the best player in a one-on-one contest. Taught me how to use my body.

Sam Rooke
My brother. I grew up playing footy and cricket in the paddock with him and he’s one of the hardest players I’ve seen. We thought he killed a guy once when his opponent came off second best in a marking contest.

HALF-BACKS
Brenton Sanderson
Introduced me to the city life in Geelong. Taught me so much about life, such as mince and noodles was actually called spaghetti bolognese. Showed me coffee and chess. Also led the way at the club when I first started, with his training and courage on the field with things like running back with the flight.

Tom Harley
I learnt a lot about how a professional footballer should live his life when I rented with him for a while. He also taught me some interesting trivia such as name the only two double land locked countries in the world (Lichtenstein and Uzbekistan). We shared many jam sessions together.

Rodney Maynard
One of the greats of the Adelaide Crows, he captain-coached me in the country champs. Set the example in how to grow and maintain the perfect moustache.

CENTRES
Joel Corey
Introduced me to the game and rules of baseball – fantasy baseball is a massive deal at our footy club. A good or bad week of baseball can determine your mood for the week. Joel was also a state rep for baseball in his junior days.

Justin Munro
Coached me in my second year at Casterton. He was skilful, tough and protective – especially of me. He always looked after the younger guys in our team.

Corey Enright
So underrated! We learned about business together as partners and are still going strong! Shared plenty of good times watching episodes of Alf and DVDs of Slim Dusty.

HALF-FORWARDS
Tony Lithgow
An absolute freak. He was probably at his best in the early '90s when I used to go to the local games at Casterton as a kid. I played with him in '99 and '00. He was still playing when he was in his early 40s. Was the best high mark for his size and best snap/banana kick from the boundary line. To say he was a better shot from the boundary than Steve Johnson gives you an idea of how good this bloke was.

Mitch White
Teammate at Geelong who showed me how to make potato gems in the oven. Although a very simple recipe, I still remember how good they tasted that day at his house in Torquay.

Adrian 'Popsy' Collard
The most skilful and uncanny footballer I’ve seen (AFL players included). I can’t believe he never played in the 'bigs'. Some of the things he did playing for Casterton were ridiculous and I wish all of our games had have been recorded back then.

FORWARDS
Aaron Lord
Loved the song Babylon and got me listening to Dave Gray. He also showed me how much a recliner could eat him up – he used to sleep overnight in the chair!

Tim Chatfield
My first senior coach. He gave me great confidence and he could jump like a kangaroo. Also showed me how to prepare a kangaroo – from the bush to the dinner table.

Cameron Mooney
He let me know that it was OK to be myself and not who other people wanted me to be.

FOLLOWERS
Steven King
Tried to tell me that you had to eat spaghetti bolognese (or some type of pasta) the night before a game. He wasn’t happy when I cooked up a steak instead! He did cook a great BBQ though – chicken breast and kangaroo fillets were his specialty.

Cameron Ling
Takes 'pushing yourself' to a new level. It was inspiring to see him tackle his fear of heights on a camp we had. He also keeps me updated on the surf reports.

Willie Rioli
A Casterton player and the most talkative bloke I’ve ever played with. He used to have a great big smile on his face whenever he played – he was infectious.

INTERCHANGE
Glen Alderidge
His nickname at Casterton was Bam Bam. The most fearless bloke I ever played with – he would throw his body into any contest without any thought for his own health.

Joel Selwood
Reminds me of an AFL version of Bam Bam. The way he puts his body on the line week after week staggers me.

Mark Enright
A mate from the South Australian country team who showed me a few tricks on the guitar and how to play one of my John Butler favourites, Better Man.

Heath Sims
Played alongside him in a south-east South Australia representative side. I remember visiting the big smoke as a 17-year-old with him and a few of the South Gambier boys.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.