Sydney
1 Dec 2002
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St Cecilia’s children go ‘bush’ for the day
Radical bid for men-only teaching job offers
Crackerjack way to see charity in action
Destruction of human life for profit - research fear
Fr John says ‘thank you’ and ‘goodbye’
Real meaning of Christmas
Perth statue: Archbishop orders inquiry
... deported, then disappeared or dead
Avoid war at all costs: Caritas
Christmas Bowl gets helping hand from a Leunig angel
Govt bows to Church pressure
A walk against war
Persecution: UN should be forced to act
Casting a NET to reach young adults, older kids
Tom Singer, lost in a ‘coward’s war’
Asylum seeker kids allowed to attend Catholic school
Editorial: When aid is misused
Letters: Breadwinners?
Conversation: Terry Underwood, Ambassador, Year of the Outback
Reflections: US bishops pose questions on Iraq
Kids go ‘bush’ at St Cecilia’s to help drought victims
It’s ‘family first’ for SOS (son of Sergio)
Dad had to face racism on field
Retreat helps with the healing
Love of books pays off for coastal school
‘Greedy people’ let the needy go without
Third degree burns
It’s ‘family first’ for SOS (son of Sergio)
Stephen with his family
By Damir Govorcin
Australian Rules players in Melbourne are up there with movie stars, pop queens and rock legends, so far as the public is concerned.
In a city where football is regarded as something akin to religion, they live in a goldfish bowl, as former Carlton star Stephen Silvagni can attest.
In a 312-game career spanning 17 years, the man who was named “AFL full back of the century” was public property in football-mad Melbourne.
And his marriage to former Sale of the Century hostess Jo Bailey in 1996 only increased the media spotlight on him.
Stephen has always tried to keep his football and private life separate.
With his public life dissected and scrutinised from all angles, some things had to remain sacred.
His faith, for instance, is very personal to him.
He declines to bring it into the public arena apart from acknowledging that he and Jo have instilled Christian values into their sons Jack and Ben.
And the family attends the annual Footy Mass at St Patrick’s Cathedral, Melbourne.
It took much coaxing to persuade him to open up for Silvagni, the biography he co-wrote with Tony de Bolfo (Harper Collins, $34.95rrp).
But he says writing the book has helped him “understand who I am and where I’ve come from”.
The Silvagni name has been synonymous with the Blues for more than 40 years, since Stephen’s father, Sergio, made his senior debut in 1958 in a career that ran to 239 games in 14 seasons.
Like his son, Sergio is a legend at Carlton.
His status was such that following in his footsteps looked like a tough assignment for Stephen.
“I’ve been fortunate in having a father who not only played football, but also had a good understanding of how to raise a son,” says Stephen.
“My father never encouraged me to play football or discouraged me from doing so, but playing football was what I chose to do and I was given total support.”
Stephen was geographically bound to Hawthorn, but under the father-son rule - which allows a son to play for the same club as his father - he joined Carlton where he inherited his father’s No 1 jumper.
He also acquired the nickname SOS, ‘Son of Sergio’.
His father sat on the Blues’ match committee during Stephen’s career, but was never accused of showing his son any favouritism.
Stephen’s career included two premierships with the Blues in 1987 and 1995, being named Carlton’s best and fairest player in 1990 and 1996 and gaining All Australian selection in 1988, 1990, 1994-97 and 1999.
His selection as full back of the century took a while to sink in.
He regards it as “a tremendous accolade”.
“I appreciate what it means now that I’ve finished, but in the overall scheme of things you should be judged when your career’s over,” Stephen says.
He was 34 when injury forced him to hang up his boots in September 2001.
Who knows? Maybe one of Stephen’s kids will continue the Silvagni tradition and don the No 1 jersey for Carlton?
Since his retirement, Stephen has joined the coaching staff at Carlton, with his role being to help out the youngsters.
He is also an expert commentator on Channel 10’s AFL coverage, but has no plans at this stage to become a senior coach.
“Today, my wife and I really enjoy the responsibilities of raising our children,” he says, “because, when it’s all said and done, family is the most important thing.”
Despite their busy workloads, family has always remained the Silvagni’s No 1 priority.
Wife Jo says “family has always come first” for Stephen.
“And we both value the importance of time together, particularly now we have the kids,” she says.
Jo has suffered during her pregnancies from a severe form of morning sickness known as hyperemesis gravidarum, which causes severe dehydration.
“This condition has forced me in and out of hospital, but Stephen has been a constant support throughout,” she says.
“Stephen’s a very loyal person and has a really generous heart.”
Jo often gets her way, but says that getting Stephen to take the plunge wasn’t easy.
“Stephen was comfortable in his five-star hotel at home, with his mum cooking and cleaning, so I guess I started hassling him about getting engaged,” she recalls.
“I alerted him to the fact that he was 27, we’d been together five years and if he wanted to head in the same direction as me he had to approach it differently.
“Dare I suggest it was an ultimatum?”
Former team-mate Peter Motley says Stephen was a superstar as a player “and is a superstar as a man”.
He adds: “More particularly, he is my mate for life, and for that I say I’m lucky.”