Ron Barassi was born in Castlemaine in 1936 but grew up in Guildford until he was 11 years old, attending the Guildford Primary School until he moved to Melbourne, becoming one of Australia’s greatest-ever football players.

A plinth and bust has just been erected at the John Powell Reserve by the Guildford Progress Association, commemorating Barassi’s connection to the town and his achievements in AFL.

Barassi played 204 games for Melbourne, including as captain between 1960 to 1964, and also played in six premierships.

He also played 50 games for Carlton and was in the all-Australian team three times and the AFL team of the century. Following his stellar career as a player, Barassi coached Carlton and North Melbourne to two premierships each and also coached Melbourne and Sydney.

He was officially made a Legend of the AFL in 1996 and a member of the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2006.

The bust was donated to Guildford by the Vingt Cinq Club, a group consisting of prominent footballers, ex-Olympians and other leading sportspeople.

Barassi unveiled the bust at a large public ceremony last week, attended by scores of locals.

Stories of Barassi as a child were shared, including one when he accidentally rode through the butcher shop’s window with “shattering effect” on a bike with “only two gears – go and stop”.

Barassie reflected fondly on his childhood years and spoke about his family’s first arrival from Italy looking for gold in central Victoria.

“I always feel at home at Guildford,” he said.

“Looking back on my life, I am very glad to have been part of a country zone.

“I’m very pleased to be known sometimes as a ‘country wacka’.”

Barassi also talked about his history in the AFL.

“I was very lucky to be at the Melbourne Football Club at the right time,” he said.

“Hell, it’s been 50 years since they’ve won a premiership.”