Steven has just completed his eleventh consecutive season on the scoreboard. His father Jim was a policeman at Lake Boga and his mother was a primary school teacher. His father was an active member of the Lake Boga Football Club and served as Secretary.

Steven is particularly proud of the fact that following his mother’s many years of dedicated service to the Lake Boga Primary School, the school community saw fit to name the classroom where she spent so much of her career ‘The Marge Casey Room.’

She was approaching retirement age, when she suffered a fatal brain haemorrhage.

Upon retirement, his father Jim moved to Woodend. Not long afterwards Steven moved to Melbourne and took up residence in Carlton.

Whilst living in Melbourne he was a familiar sight at Collingwood games. He had his favourite spot at the MCG near the Collingwood cheer squad and rarely missed any of their games that were played in either Melbourne or Geelong. He even embarked on the odd bus trip to Sydney and Adelaide with other dedicated Black and White supporters.

In 1993 Steven came back to Swan Hill. He moved into Ellimatta, the group home for the disabled in Splatt Street.

It was during the 1993 season that he began his role on the scoreboard. Arrival time at the footy for Steven is ten-thirty. With the Under 17’s games commencing at quarter to eleven and the Senior match generally ending at around quarter to five, his is a rather long day.

It can be a lonely existence at times and not without its hazards. Generally a member of the committee will drive around at the end of each game, collect Steve and bring him around to the Clubrooms for his traditional pie and can of coke. On a wet and miserable day a few seasons back, he arrived with a numerous splotches of mud on his clothing. Apparently kids from the opposition team had been throwing mud at him. He said it suddenly stopped when one of their parents spotted them and proceeded to warm their backsides.

Against Swan Hill on another one of those freezing days around the mid 1990’s, there was a strong wind blowing straight down the ground. Just prior to quarter time in the Senior match, a particularly strong wind gust blew most of the numbers off. Without batting an eyelid Steve quickly replaced the missing numbers. At quarter-time the goal umpires signalled all clear. He then climbed down from his perch and retrieved the numbers scattererd about on the ground. Not many people at the ground even noticed what had happened.

2003 season president Mal Heil decided to take over for a while to give Steve a break. When Steven arrived back at the scoreboard, Mal wanted to know where the “8’s” were. He was rather embarrassed when Steven quickly replied, “On the back of the 7’s.”

Another role Steven has taken to heart is the delivery of the meat packs for the Friday Night Pub Raffle. He is very reliable and on more than the odd occasion has managed to relieve the taxi driver of $5 to be invested in tickets.

Hopefully he will be able to continue to carry out these tasks and that one day he will achieve his stated ambition of doing the scoreboard at a CMFL Grand Final. Anyone on the Board listening?

Offers to replace his antique yellow radio with a more modern version such as a Walkman invariably receive the stock-standard response. “With plugs in me ears I wouldn’t be able to hear cars coming!”

In the meantime he will no doubt continue with his campaign to get a toilet installed behind the scoreboard. The past few Presidents will testify to the fact that he has been on their case pushing for this facility. Whoever takes over from Mal Heil, be warned!

Click here to go back to History Stories