Born: Narrogin, W.A.
22 September, 1943

A roving maestro, Barry Cable was always determined to be the best at his art; a dedicated footballer whose total devotion to perfection was never questioned.

From his small country home town of Narrogin in WA's south-east, Cable always had his sights set on big-city football. After being rejected at his first try (by East Fremantle, who felt he was too small), the 168cm (5ft 6in) Cable arrived in Perth, where he was to become a football legend.

Cable played a total of 382 club and 23 interstate matches, one of the few men to pass the 400-game mark in Australian senior football - and an MBE in 1978 was the ultimate tribute. His individual feats were magnificent, winning three Sandover Medals for the fairest and best player in W.A. (1964-68-73), a Tassie Medal in 1966 for the best player in an Australian carnival; and four Simpson Medals - three in successive grand final victories in 1966-67-68 - and one for W.A. in the 1969 Australian Championship.

At club level, Cable won eight fairest and best awards, seven with Perth and one with North Melbourne in the Victorian Football League. His influence on a football team was confirmed with six Premierships - three with Perth, two with North Melbourne (1975-77) and one as captain-coach of East Perth in 1978. Cable worked relentlessly at his football skills, developing the art of short-passing with a deadly stab kick and immaculate handball with both hands.

Football was his life and in 1979 a tragic accident ended his career - and almost his life. Pinned beneath a spinning tractor wheel on his small property at Orange Grove, an outer Perth suburb, Cable's right leg was torn to shreds and for a while his life hung in the balance. But the spirit that carried him through his career triumphed again in hospital and, though his playing career had ended at the age of 36, he fought his way back into football ranks. Shrugging off threats of a permanent leg disability, he returned to VFL football and coached North Melbourne to the top of the ladder. He was back at Perth again in 1986 to coach the club's young talent and in 1987 became assistant coach of the newly-formed West Coast Eagles.