Brothers retrace legendary dad’s steps

Robert Cross was 10, his brother Anthony not even half that age, when they were at The Rec on 1965 grand final day in the Great Northern Football League.

The pair were doing what young ’uns do at the footy; their dad, Clive, was also running around — but with more purpose.

Clive Cross, who was 88 when he died in February, had a last quarter 50 years ago which made him a local footy legend and won Railways another flag.

Cross was a late inclusion in the side, kicking four of his six goals in the last quarter to upset flag favourites, Northampton.

“It was here, right here, where dad kicked it from,” Robert Cross, now a Catholic priest, said to his sibling at The Rec.

“He kicked it on the siren.

“Let’s have a go and see if we can kick a goal.”

They tried, the man of the cloth getting much closer to the big sticks than his brother, who was a member of the Railways premiership team of 1985.

Last week the Railways and Northampton sides of 2015 were at The Rec, as the hosts had a reunion for the premiership sides of 1955, 1965 and 1985.

Surviving mates of Clive Cross were there, along with many others from the three decades, who came from near and far.

Railways wore replica jumpers worn by the 1965 boys.

“Dad wore numbers three and seven in his career and I wore no.37, ” Anthony Cross said.

“I cannot remember much, I was only four in ’65. He was nearly 39 and I think he might have been a reserve.”

Robert Cross could remember his father being chaired off the ground and being sick that night.

“I think he might have had a couple of drinks,” Father Cross said.

“A lot of my childhood was spent at The Rec and travelling to places like Northampton, Mullewa, Walkaway, Dongara and Irwin, to see dad play footy.

“Most memories were at The Rec. I’ll never forget a fellow named Bungarra. He stood near the tree on the hill and gave a running commentary of the game.

“Our uncle Stan (Cross) played, but was better known as an umpire. I played one and a half games in B-grade, but had to get permission from the Bishop as it was a Sunday and I was saying mass.

“So I switched to soccer on a Saturday and played for the Saints.”