When Brad Edwards finally decides to pull off his boots for the last time, he will know it, as there will not be anything left in the tank to give. As he runs on the ground against Rochester for his 150th, his effort will be just the same as his first game he ever pulled the boots on for the U12s Dawes Rd team. Bedge gives it all, all the time.
As a junior he tried tennis, then golf, but found the comradery in team sports his niche. And when Brad attaches himself to a team, you won’t get a more loyal club person.
2006 saw Brad play his last year of U16s, and while making the Grand Final, it was the start of an unlucky streak for him in the last match of the season.
Brad started 2007 in U18s impressing more than a few in the Club. He won the Best and Fairest as a first year player showing how quickly he adapted to the higher level.
His leadership qualities must have stood out to the coaches, as in 2008 he was elected captain for the U18s. However he played the full season in the seniors, doubling up on some Saturdays with his U18 team. He qualified for the U18s, enabling him to play in another losing Grand Final.
Brad was to repeat appearing in losing Grand Finals in 2009 against Mansfield and in 2010 against Shepp United.
In 2013 Brad was elected vice captain of the seniors and it was the year that finally got the monkey off his back. Brad was also assistant coach to Paul Newman of the U18s. They went in as underdog to a strong Benalla outfit, but kept them scoreless to half time, and went on to give Brad his first premiership of the day.
Hours later Brad played in the senior Grand Final, in a similar sort of game, where Kyabram kept the Shepp United team goalless to half time. The Demons hit back in the third quarter but ran out of legs in the last. Two premierships in one day would be the highlight of his career so far.
Watching Brad play footy provides supporters with a roller coaster of emotions. Your heart is in your mouth with some of the contests he wills his body into, or the death defying leaps into the air without the landing gear down on his return to earth. His kicking is like pin the tail on the donkey at times, while on other days his accuracy is so precise you could nominate the ball to be delivered lace out from over 50 meters.
Whatever he does, he pushes himself to the edge, and that’s why we all love the way he plays.
Last Modified on 05/09/2015 17:15
