I've never forgotten Ron's enthusiasm and encouragement when I met him at a schoolboy football clinic in the early sixties.
How I remember the euphoria he brought to a dispirited Carlton when we recruited him as our captain-coach in 1966.
And the unbridled joy of the 1968 Premiership - our first for 21 long years.
And the miracle of the 1970 flag - still the greatest day in our proud history.
Farewell Ronald Dale Barassi.
Leader. Legend. Inspiration.

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Princes Park - always was, always will be.

'Winning isn't everything.

It's the only thing.'

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THEY LIKE TO SEND UP!!!!!!!!

Until each team plays each other the same number of times, the AFL, as a fair dinkum competition, cannot be taken seriously.

He (Mr Swann) said the honour and pride associated with the club's traditional navy blue jumper was priceless.

Wow, such sad news. Vale Ron, what a man

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my last one was rubbish

The greatest name ever in football.

My mother said he was the reason I supported Carlton. He used to appear on the Happy Hammond show in Carlton gear.

My parents being immigrants had no allegiance to any club . Seeing a football person on TV for the first time touched my heart.

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"can't kick ... don't pick"

Feeling sad tonight. My boyhood Hero along with Big Nick & Jezza. RIP RDB, you will never be forgotten.

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Hooked on The Blues

Another motivator to beat Brisbane next week...

Fagan winning a flag would upset the fact of all premierships since the '60's being coached by players coming from the Barassi, Hafey, Kennedy, Jeans lineages.

Barassi coached Nicholls, Jesaulenko, Walls, Blight, Pagan
Pagan coached Clarkson, Longmire, Simpson

That's 17 premierships in total including his own!

Time to make it 17 for us and a legacy of 18 for him!

That is brilliant footage. Essential viewing for any bagger who's been to any, let alone sh*tloads of, games at PP, not just for the famous faces but to see what's changed and sadly a little of what's lost since being shifted to the bigger (but only literally) stages.

And back to the thread...very sad to hear of Ron's passing. One of those people you just expect to live forever (and of course he will in another sense). No one is more part of the footy furniture, so to speak.

Vale, legend and, by all accounts, a top bloke.

Let's hope the Blues can do him proud this week.

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'People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought which they seldom use.'
Soren Kierkegaard

I know what you mean about living forever, funnily enough it was only about a month ago I checked his Wikipedia page to make sure he was still with us (as if he would have died without huge fanfare). I was actuality surprised he was only 87, guess it's because he achieved so much so young.

I was thinking about Barassi's legacy for us and that you could draw a link through all 8 flags from 68–95… amazing, half of our flags can be linked to Barassi!

Very quickly (there will be many more links)…

1968, 1970, 1972 – Nicholls, Walls, Jezza
1979 – Jezza, Johnston
1981, 1982 – Johnston, Glascott
1987 – Walls, Johnston, Glascott, Kernahan, SOS
1995 – Kernahan, SOS

Barassi's influence set us up for a generation of success and leaves us just as we're on the rise once again.

A true great for us, and the game.

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Went to a bucks party at Barrassi’s pub in the 90 s
Had a chat to him for an hour
Just a top bloke
Young in thought
Lived life to the max
That’s more important than his footy achievements

Remember he stepped in to help a woman being assaulted and he was like 70?

What a true legend all round.

I started barracking for carlton from the 1968 Grand Final onwards.

I didnt know Barassi was a Dees legend.

My mother is of Greek origin and didn't follow sport at all, and didnt want me polaying that crazy violent game with no offside and punching and all. She knew Ted Whitten next door, and he was a legend in the area, but he was a big lad, and made for the game.

Mum, bought my first pair of footy boots in 1970 from Victoria market, with screw in stops, and a fake adidas tracky; well it had 3 stripes and that's all that counted.

I opened the shoe box and there they were, my brand new, steel capped, Ron Barassi Aussie Rules Football boots.

I wore them in the change rooms and skidded in them across the boys change rooms....ROB BAraSSI, the Carlton legend, and when I went out on the ground did this drop kick using the steel cap, and all of the sudden I could kick as far as Barassi.

RIP Barassi. I will never forget you and what you did for our club.

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

Fitzroy st StKilda. Stepped in and stopped the thug whilst people younger and bigger than him walked past.

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Everyone looks good in Navy Blue

We shouldn’t underestimate the role played by George Harris in bringing Barassi to our club either.

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"Hence you will not say that Greeks fight like heroes but that heroes fight like Greeks"?

Winston Churchill

https://www.theage.com.au/sport/afl/from-the-archives-1989-even-in-chess-a-man-was-but-a-pawn-to-ron-barassi-20230918-p5e5q4.html

For those who never had the pleasure of reading the great Tiger Crosswell’s prose back in the late 80s…

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“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king. The palace turns into a circus.”
Turkish Proverb

Fagan didn’t play VFL/AFL but he played under dual premiership player Paul Sproule (Hafey/Richmond) at Hobart and Sandy Bay.

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“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn't become a king. The palace turns into a circus.”
Turkish Proverb

It's an omen with a happy ending:
Something tells me the following about the timing of Barassi's passing

He left this world after seeing his beloved Demons lose. He couldn't wait another year as this world was not for hm anymore
He's now up there looking down on us and conspiring with others, maybe even Serge Silvagni for a Carlton Collingwood GF
We will be 31 points down at HT
The players will feel something in the change rooms, something etheral, a calmness will come over them as Vossy speaks
We come back to win by 17 points

Vale Ron
You and Serge were the reason so many Italian migrants in the 60s and 70s decided to follow Carlton...and their kids and grandkids are the beneficiaries

Go Blues

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If I want your opinion, I'll give it to you!

Vossy might even do some 'channeling'

If it's that bleak at half time he gets them all to shoosh and starts yelling:

"Overlap run, handball - handball handball handball at all costs!"

Yes , very much so Aggs . George Harris is the Godfather of the modern day Carlton Football Club . This powerhouse juggernaut that the young ones see today is because George had a vision and Ron Barassi was the focal point of his vision . Poaching players at that time was unthinkable and not the done thing but George plowed on and ignored all the hostile criticism till he coaxed Ronnie over . This Club has not looked back since . George and Barassi were invincible and forged a new era and greatness for our Club . I am forever great full . I am not an overly sentimental person but i can tell you i shed more than one tear on hearing of Ronnies passing . A great man in every sense of the word .

Rest in peace Ronnie . You are gone but you will never be forgotten .

The Carlton Football Club ............. Now Always Forever .

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All my dangerous friends