“I have been a Collingwood man for over 80 years,” McCallum told Brown and the Collingwood entourage at the Elsternwick Hospital. “I love the club, the team, and the memories.”
Charles’s daughter Judy describes her dad as “a walking Collingwood encyclopedia. We (five children) were all raised as Collingwood supporters and we have my father to thank for that.”
McCallum vividly remembers his first Collingwood grand final game played in 1935.
“It was a very windy day. Collingwood was losing at the beginning of the game but came home for a win.” (Collingwood had finished second on the ladder to South Melbourne. South Melbourne defeated Collingwood in the second-semi final and the Bloods were strong favourites heading into the grand final. A crowd of 54,154 were at the MCG to watch the Magpies win their ninth Premiership).
Charles was born in Bendigo, Victoria, in 1905 and quickly found a passion for sports. He was an all-round athlete playing tennis and competing at state level in bowls. However, he said he found his athletic niche in footy.
According to Charles, his lengthy career as a Collingwood fan can be partly be attributed to when he started out playing footy for the Sandhurst football club whose team colours were black and white. From there his passion for the club developed into what can only be described as true love and zeal for the Collingwood Football Club.
The highlight of his football career was when he captained and coached the Avoca football club in the early 1930s. By then he was a committed Collingwood supporter and tried to model his game to the Collingwood side.
“I had a lot in common with Harry Collier. Just was not as good.”
He vividly recalls the 1953 VFL Grand Final as his all-time favourite Collingwood game. “In the 1953 Grand Final, I drove down from Warrnambool to the MCG to watch the game. I watched Lou Richards captain the team to a wonderful victory.” (Collingwood led at every break to win their 10th Premiership over minor premiership winners, Geelong).
In his role as a school principal and because of his job, Charles moved with his wife and five children all over the state. While the ability to travel across the state was not that simple, it did not deter Charles on numerous occasions to make the trek down to the MCG to watch his beloved Magpies.
It was when Charles moved down to Melbourne, after 60 years of support from the country, signed up for his first social club membership.
The 2003 Grand Final is described by Charles as “the most heart breaking loss of his Collingwood career.”
He went to the game with his daughter and had to endure the match in the Brisbane supporter section. “We had to deal with all of the Lion’s supporters jumping up and down after every goal. It was horrible,” Judy recalls.
When Charles turned 100 in 2005, Tarkyn Lockyer delivered the cake for the big bash. He also presented Charles with a team signed guernsey. “It has become a family heirloom. A keepsake I treasure.”
Charles told Brown he believed the greatest player to ever wear the black and white was Nathan Buckley. “He was a champion and I loved watching him play”.
During his stay at Elsternwick Hospital, Charles shared his room with Chris Dawes’s grandfather (who has since been released). The two enjoyed discussions about their favourite team and one might think Dawes’s grandfather persuaded Charles into having a new favourite player.
“We need another good full forward. Dawes might be the man. He is a strong player and looks like a future champion.”
Having watched the careers of the Coventry’s, McHale’s, Richards’s, and Shaw’s, Charles knows what a Collingwood champion looks like. A recommendation from Charles is not something to take lightly!
“I wish you all the best this year,” Charles told Brown at the end of his visit. “Good luck for the season and I will see you play in the finals.”
Charles will be leaving hospital early next week to return home where he lives alone accompanied by his cat.
