Anthony first arrived at the Uni Whites in the pre-season draft of 2001 – a year which also netted fellow Blacky boys, now super-stars Dan Bushe, Hayden Smith, Julian Malone & Sabbir Gaffar. John Whitehouse quickly spotted Anthony’s talent & immediately put him to work rotating from striker to the bench and back.
Not surprisingly, Anthony quickly became disillusioned with his lot at the whites, as one game he’d start and play a blinder, while the next week he’d be warming the bench. As enigmatic as Anthony’s career on the field was, it was equally so off it. Anthony was renowned for ‘going missing’, sometimes for seasons at a time. The hardest part for the Whites management was trying to keep their young charge focussed, as women, partying & wine appreciation were amusing distractions, resulting in just a handful of games played each season.
In 2007 though, the wild man appears to have subsided, and with it, his erratic strikers temperament. Instead we see the fiercely determined, tough as nails defender, who’s only love is to stand behind the ½ way line, repelling attack after attack, his only desire to kick the ball as far as he can. Gone are the mazy runs through the midfield, the dodges, the parries… Now starts a new chapter in the amazing soccer career of the man known as the Enigma, the life of a defender…
Leave A Comment