Tassie Deacon
SALE Football-Netball Club legend Shane Fyfe is set to reach yet another personal milestone tomorrow, when he plays his 300th club game.
Fyfe, aka ‘Five Time Fyfe’, will become the fourth member of Sale’s 300 club, which includes the legendary Jack Schuback, and current teammates Chris Laverty who reached the 300 milestone in 2019, and Chris Hudson who reached 300 this season.
The 40-year-old veteran began his career at Sale Catholic College before moving to Sale Football Club in 1998, where he played in Sale’s Thirds premiership side.
Beginning his senior football career in 1999 playing two senior games, Fyfe also played with Gippsland Power for two seasons, and won Power’s best and fairest in 2000 – a sign of things to come.
He also took out Power’s coach’s award for the best player in the Grand Final played on the MCG in 1999.
Following his Gippsland Power days, Fyfe chose to try his luck in the West Australian Football League (WAFL).
Returning to Sale in 2001, he won the senior best-and-fairest as a midfielder after playing only 14 games.
He repeated this feat, taking out the same award in 2003 and again in 2004 when he equalled the record of three best and fairest wins previously held by Tom Hart (1952, 1956, 1962) and Robert Foster (1972-73, 1980).
Seasons 2004 and 2006 were especially good years for Fyfe, as he was runner-up in the Gippsland League best-and-fairest (Trood Award & Rodda Medal) in both seasons.
Regularly amassing over 30 possessions in the midfield, the left footer’s battles with opposition centremen during that era were most memorable.
Since 2004, he has been selected seven times in Gippsland League representative sides, and was twice voted as Gippsland League’s best player in interleague matches.
He has also been named in the league team of the year five times.
Having been appointed captain of Sale in 2004, he went on to take out the club’s 2006 senior best-and-fairest award, becoming the record holder of the most senior best-and-fairest winners for the Magpies.
He was transferred in his profession as a school teacher to Melbourne in 2007, where he joined the successful Vermont Football Club for seasons 2008-10.
During his absence, it was unfortunate for Fyfe to miss out on Sale’s 2008 premiership, a game he would dearly have loved to have played in.
Returning to Sale in 2011, he made the back pocket position his own with his special style of football as an attacking defender.
He was finally rewarded for his efforts when Sale won the 2012 senior premiership, being a key part of a very good Magpie’s side coached by Matt Ferguson.
Fyfe was awarded life membership at the club’s 2012 presentation night.
Having had a mostly good, injury-free run over the years, things came to a temporary halt in 2013 when he missed nine games with a hamstring injury.
Fortunately for Sale, the talented left footer recovered to be a sound unit once again and back to his best.
In 2014, Fyfe won an incredible fifth senior best and fairest trophy (hence the nickname ‘Five Time Fyfe’).
Around this time, he also embarked on a coaching career with Sale junior sides, coaching the Magpies Under 18s in 2014.
Fyfe was named in the centre for the Magpies’ 2000s Team of the Decade, and at 33-years-of-age and far from being finished, was appointed senior playing-coach for the 2016 season.
He played his 200th senior game against Morwell in Round 2 of 2016, and his senior games career ended at 272 games in the 2019 first semi-final against Moe.
Season 2020 saw him take a short trip down Guthridge Parade after being appointed coach of Sale City FNC. He returned to Sale in 2022 to continue his playing career with Sale Reserves, where he has made the role of a sweeping defender his own legacy.
Sale FNC’s enthusiastic supporters would find it difficult to put a metaphoric label on one of their favourites – a Sale great, champion, legend, superstar, role model – or maybe all of the above. Also being a cricketer of note, Fyfe’s attributes as a quality sportsman place him high on the list of those to have represented the city of Sale.
