On Sunday, when Robbie Castello leads his Werribee team onto Frankston Oval, he won’t be thinking about the history of the moment, only about securing 4 points for the Tigers.
But Castello will become Werribee’s games record holder, playing his 138th game and surpassing his great mate Dominic Gleeson.
Gleeson, Castello and CEO Mark Penaluna all arrived at Avalon Airport Oval at the same time. Penaluna is not surprised by what Robbie has achieved.
“Rob has always risen to every challenge and has helped the club wherever possible. He was our original Community Development Manager and established wonderful relationships with schools, Auskick centres, local clubs and Council.”
Castello was named Werribee captain at the start of this season by new senior coach Scott West.
“What made him stand out to me was his enthusiasm and love for the club. From my first day here he set the example with his work ethic and voice on the training track.”
As is his humble nature, Castello deflects the accolades and looks at the bigger picture.
“The Werribee Football Club has a lot of great people. There are a lot of people behind the scenes that keep this club going. Every time it came to sign on for another year there was never an issue for me to put pen to paper with Mark. I feel privileged to be given the opportunity to pull on the Werribee jumper.”
Dominic Gleeson left the club at the end of 2011 to pursue a coaching and playing role with Geelong. He knew his record would not last long.
“I only had the record for a few months but for Robbie to be the one to break it is great. We rocked up to the club on the same night and became mates and the plan was to win a premiership together. That didn’t happen unfortunately. He has won a best and fairest and he has really done the hard yards. He is a champion guy and a champion player. I could not be prouder to pass the record onto him.”
Former coach Simon Atkins sums up what everyone who has been involved with Robbie thinks about the popular 26 year old.
“He is a great clubman, a true Werribee person and it is a credit to him what he has achieved”.
Last Modified on 11/05/2012 16:20