Kevin Neale
| Kevin Neale | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | |||
| Nickname(s) | Cowboy | ||
| Date of birth | 18 July 1945 | ||
| Original team(s) | South Warrnambool | ||
| Height | 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Weight | 103 kg (227 lb) | ||
| Position(s) | Ruckman, back pocket, full forward | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1965–1977 | St Kilda | 256 (301) | |
| Coaching career | |||
| Years | Club | Games (W–L–D) | |
| 1978–1983 | Ainslie | ||
| 1984–1987 | Central District | ||
| 1993–1995 | Tuggeranong | ||
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1977.
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| Career highlights | |||
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| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Kevin "Cowboy" Neale (born 18 July 1945) is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Victorian Football League (VFL).
Recruited from South Warrnambool, and nicknamed "Cowboy" for his bow-legs and his rolling gait, Neale played his first match for St Kilda against North Melbourne on 22 May 1965 (round 6), as a back-pocket/ruckman. His debut had been delayed because his own club, South Warrnambool, had needed him as a player for the first three matches of their season.
Neale, recruited by St Kilda as a nineteen-year-old, 6 ft 2 in, 14 st 3 lb ruckman, initially played in the backline (as the first change, resting in the back-pocket ruckman), but was moved to full forward in 1966. (Neale was selected as the back-pocket ruckman in St Kilda's "Team of the Century" in May 2001.)
He kicked five goals in St Kilda's 1966 Grand Final win over Collingwood; and held the club record of 16 finals games, until it was recently beaten by Robert Harvey.
Neale played for Victoria in the interstate match against Tasmania in Hobart, on Saturday, 16 June 1967. He was selected at full-forward, and kicked four goals in the match (he was moved from full-forward in the second half because Victoria's centre half-forward Peter McKenna had not kicked a goal in the first half of the match).
At the end of the 1976 season, it was thought that Neale would retire from playing with St Kilda; however, St Kilda prevailed upon him to play yet another season, and he played in 20 of St Kilda's 22 matches that season, playing his last match as the back-pocket ruckman, in a losing St Kilda side, 17.10 (112), against Richmond 25.21 (171) at the M.C.G. on 27 August 1977 (round 22).
In his entire VFL career at St Kilda, he had played in 256 games, and scored 301 goals (as at the end of the 2010 season, only 5 other men have played more matches for St Kilda, and only 8 others have kicked more goals in their career).
Towards the end of his career at St Kilda, numerous offers were made to Neale to leave St Kilda and take up a coaching position. At the start of 1975, he was offered the position of playing coach at Turvey Park in the South-West League for three years at $25,000 per annum. St Kilda talked him out of accepting the offer; and, towards the end of the 1975 season, the Albury Football Club in the Ovens & Murray Football League offered him a three-year contract of $35,000 as captain-coach.
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