Dermott Brereton has explained that one of the reasons he joined Collingwood in 1995 was because coach Leigh Matthews wanted him to set an example for the up and coming Saverio Rocca.
Rocca was entering his fourth season in the league and Matthews wanted Brereton to teach him how to physically stand up for himself in a league filled with full backs who liked a brawl.
Brereton made the most of this opportunity on a Friday night against North Melbourne in 1995.
“The reason I went to Collingwood, well one of them, was Leigh Matthews went to me ‘we’ve got this young kid who’s really good and blokes like Mick Martyn just get into him a bit and he needs to see someone stand up to someone like Mick’,” Brereton told SEN Drive.
“I said ‘yeah, no worries’. So when we walked out to the goal square Mick stuck his hand out to shake mine, Saverio and I were walking side by side, and instead of going for his hand I just slammed my open hand as if I was going to shake into his throat and started choking him.
“An all-in brawl started, and Mick’s a ripping bloke too I might add, and the only thing I could hear was Saverio on top of this all-in saying ‘get him Derm, get him!’”
Rocca went on to play 257 games and kicked 748 goals. Brereton played 15 for the Magpies in 1995, kicking 30 himself.