WEBVTT - Greg Hire - Ordineroli Speaking 0:00:05.440 --> 0:00:08.559 Ordinarily Speaking, you see a two hundred and forty three 0:00:08.840 --> 0:00:12.239 game veteran, four time champion of the Perth Wildcats who 0:00:12.280 --> 0:00:15.560 you don't see sub abuse, domestic violence, and an adult 0:00:15.680 --> 0:00:21.840 without a childhood time. 0:00:27.880 --> 0:00:31.440 Hello, and welcome to this episode of Ordinarily Speaking. I'm 0:00:31.520 --> 0:00:35.879 narrowly meadows. Today's guest is Greg Higher. Greg is a 0:00:35.920 --> 0:00:39.560 recently retired champion of the National Basketball League, having won 0:00:39.680 --> 0:00:43.240 four titles with the Perth Wildcats. What he has achieved 0:00:43.400 --> 0:00:47.519 is astonishing given what he has overcome in life. A 0:00:47.560 --> 0:00:51.519 self described troubled team, Greg was going down a destructive 0:00:51.600 --> 0:00:54.840 path but managed to turn his life around. This is 0:00:54.880 --> 0:00:58.520 a story of unbelievable resilience as Greg explores what it 0:00:58.680 --> 0:01:02.280 means to be a man. Please know this chat discusses 0:01:02.320 --> 0:01:05.760 some very serious issues. If it is triggering for you, 0:01:05.840 --> 0:01:09.520 please know there is help out there beyond blue dot org, 0:01:09.760 --> 0:01:14.560 dot AU, Lifeline one three, double one, one four or 0:01:14.800 --> 0:01:18.000 one eight hundred, respect I just a couple of places 0:01:18.040 --> 0:01:21.200 you can go. I thank Greg for his candor and 0:01:21.240 --> 0:01:36.279 I hope you enjoyed the chat. Well, thanks for joining 0:01:36.360 --> 0:01:39.720 me on your podcast, Greg. I wanted to start by 0:01:39.760 --> 0:01:42.720 asking you, in the broader context of your life. What 0:01:42.880 --> 0:01:44.560 has basketball meant to you? 0:01:45.959 --> 0:01:49.600 I think it's everything really from my livelihood now with 0:01:50.560 --> 0:01:54.520 raising two beautiful children of my amazing wife. Basketball was 0:01:54.520 --> 0:01:57.160 a thing that brought us together in a weird way, 0:01:57.280 --> 0:02:01.840 like we were in the same grassroots organization. It's made 0:02:01.920 --> 0:02:05.640 me who I am in terms of what I do 0:02:05.720 --> 0:02:08.960 now off the court. Without the profile of a purf 0:02:09.000 --> 0:02:13.440 Walkeets player, full time NBL champion, I don't think would 0:02:13.480 --> 0:02:15.280 be in a position to be able to deliver the 0:02:15.320 --> 0:02:19.600 workshops that we're doing now in Western Australia. And I 0:02:19.600 --> 0:02:24.440 think it's as a troubled team. As an adolescent, basketball 0:02:24.520 --> 0:02:27.400 was that sort of sanctuary as a sixteen seventeen year 0:02:27.440 --> 0:02:31.799 old kid really struggling with life. That was that one 0:02:31.840 --> 0:02:35.720 thing that was constant in a weird way at that time. 0:02:35.800 --> 0:02:37.960 As a sixteen year old kid, I didn't really look 0:02:38.000 --> 0:02:39.680 at it going oh, basketball was going to teach me 0:02:39.720 --> 0:02:42.000 these valuable life lessons in terms of how to deal 0:02:42.080 --> 0:02:45.520 with plenty of challenges in your life. But I knew 0:02:45.560 --> 0:02:48.480 that one thing was always going to remain constant. I 0:02:48.520 --> 0:02:50.120 was going to have a coach that cared for me. 0:02:50.240 --> 0:02:52.680 I had some peers that would Jerry Thing in their 0:02:52.680 --> 0:02:55.840 power to make sure that I was okay, and then 0:02:56.120 --> 0:02:57.840 I was able to get on the court and escape 0:02:58.000 --> 0:03:01.160 for whatever that time was. Knowing that I had an 0:03:01.200 --> 0:03:03.560 hour an hour and a half that whatever was going 0:03:03.639 --> 0:03:06.720 on in my life, you know, I could just focus 0:03:06.720 --> 0:03:08.960 on the game of basketball, something that I love doing. 0:03:09.040 --> 0:03:12.799 And I think, moving past, you know, down the track 0:03:12.840 --> 0:03:15.640 ten years later, that remained constant whilst there was maybe 0:03:15.800 --> 0:03:18.840 things happening around my life. I think that sort of 0:03:18.880 --> 0:03:22.000 dictated the way I played. Quite emotional, maybe a bit 0:03:22.040 --> 0:03:26.560 aggressive at times, definitely aggressive, but yeah, it was that 0:03:26.840 --> 0:03:28.720 moment that I could get on the court and put 0:03:28.760 --> 0:03:30.760 it everything that was happening in my life on the 0:03:30.760 --> 0:03:31.400 court as well. 0:03:31.840 --> 0:03:34.000 I spoke to your brother in law and best mate 0:03:34.000 --> 0:03:37.000 and best man, Brad Robbins, and it's interesting that you 0:03:37.040 --> 0:03:39.520 just said it that way because he said, as your 0:03:39.520 --> 0:03:43.120 teammate at the Perth Wildcats, it was every rebound, every 0:03:43.200 --> 0:03:46.800 loose ball was actually almost you saying I'm not going 0:03:46.840 --> 0:03:47.640 to end up like that. 0:03:47.640 --> 0:03:48.560 That's not going to be me. 0:03:48.960 --> 0:03:50.120 Is that a fair assessment? 0:03:51.440 --> 0:03:53.160 Yeah? I think I had this massive chip on my 0:03:53.200 --> 0:03:56.960 shoulder my whole career, just even the standpoint of when 0:03:57.000 --> 0:04:00.160 I was a development player. There was no even coming 0:04:00.200 --> 0:04:02.520 up from WI. I was cut like and it's not 0:04:02.560 --> 0:04:05.400 that Michael Jordan, absolutely no doubt, like high school career 0:04:05.480 --> 0:04:08.120 and then come back, and I would have loved the salary. 0:04:08.120 --> 0:04:11.360 But I remember starting and I thought I'd be given 0:04:11.400 --> 0:04:16.400 a gig and then getting my first professional contract. It 0:04:16.440 --> 0:04:19.760 was six thousand dollars for the season worked out being 0:04:19.760 --> 0:04:21.760 three dollars twenty an hour. But I loved it. I 0:04:21.800 --> 0:04:24.720 love that environment, but it was that no one expected it. 0:04:24.800 --> 0:04:27.240 I felt like every opportunity was for me to stake 0:04:27.320 --> 0:04:29.400 a claim. It wasn't about me getting more minutes. It 0:04:29.400 --> 0:04:32.120 was about me keeping my spot on the team. And 0:04:32.200 --> 0:04:35.640 even six years later vice captain, I still felt like 0:04:35.760 --> 0:04:39.160 every single game was an opportunity to prove myself. 0:04:38.960 --> 0:04:41.920 And was that symbolic of how you were brought up 0:04:41.960 --> 0:04:44.520 as well and representative of that the way you played. 0:04:44.600 --> 0:04:49.040 Yeah, I think so. My style wasn't pretty like I 0:04:49.080 --> 0:04:52.320 can say that, And you know I had a few 0:04:52.360 --> 0:04:57.320 moments now retired Matt Neilson, huge mentor of mine. You know, 0:04:57.400 --> 0:04:59.960 once you retire and you have those moments where you 0:05:00.080 --> 0:05:03.159 sitting down and you share a few red wines or 0:05:03.200 --> 0:05:05.440 you know, sitting on the boat, you know mad Mondays, 0:05:05.440 --> 0:05:07.760 and you have that reflection, those real special pieces, and 0:05:07.800 --> 0:05:10.120 you sort of look back at those games where not 0:05:10.200 --> 0:05:12.760 only did they change the game, they sort of changed 0:05:12.760 --> 0:05:15.320 the season. You know. Then there's a few things I 0:05:15.360 --> 0:05:19.240 look back at. One game, I was literally I slept 0:05:19.279 --> 0:05:22.240 for two hours over two days, like I was so sick, 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:25.039 Like I remember the only food that I could eat. 0:05:25.040 --> 0:05:27.040 I was staying at a Melbourne hotel. I ate these 0:05:27.080 --> 0:05:33.680 giant chocolate freckles to cost twelve dollars fifty play room service. 0:05:33.680 --> 0:05:36.320 But yeah, and I had no sleep, I had no energy. 0:05:36.360 --> 0:05:38.839 I remembered like thinking I just can't, like there's no 0:05:38.880 --> 0:05:39.760 way I can play. 0:05:40.480 --> 0:05:42.320 And I got on stomach barg Yeah. 0:05:42.320 --> 0:05:44.560 It was like I don't know what it was. And yeah, 0:05:44.600 --> 0:05:48.159 I literally like slept. I finally got sleep like thirty 0:05:48.240 --> 0:05:50.400 minutes before we left, and I was like said to 0:05:50.440 --> 0:05:51.839 dam I just get me up and I'll have a 0:05:51.839 --> 0:05:54.159 shower and I'll get to the game. And still like 0:05:54.279 --> 0:05:56.520 I was like just couldn't move. And I went through 0:05:56.520 --> 0:05:59.360 my Sammy return. I hit three threes as soon as 0:05:59.360 --> 0:06:01.359 I got on the core, broke the game open. And 0:06:01.400 --> 0:06:04.359 that was like this, we sort of separate ourselves throughout 0:06:04.400 --> 0:06:06.520 the pack. You know, on the eve of trying to 0:06:06.560 --> 0:06:09.719 make the playoffs, We're down by eight points against Adelaide 0:06:09.800 --> 0:06:12.760 my last season, where I had announced my retirement and 0:06:12.920 --> 0:06:15.000 I'm about to get a screen. I see Harry Frowling, 0:06:15.640 --> 0:06:18.719 a youngster from Adelaide thirty six's and he's setting the 0:06:18.760 --> 0:06:21.640 screen and I was actually livid that I hadn't been 0:06:21.680 --> 0:06:24.320 given the court time to get on the court, and 0:06:24.400 --> 0:06:27.760 I literally was just like screwed. There's a moment in 0:06:27.800 --> 0:06:29.640 this game that we could you know, I can run 0:06:29.640 --> 0:06:31.359 with this and I can set the tone and just 0:06:31.400 --> 0:06:32.840 sort of be like, you know, I'm not going to 0:06:32.880 --> 0:06:35.239 back down. I'm going to sort of make a statement 0:06:35.279 --> 0:06:37.440 We're not taking any shit. And I did it, and 0:06:37.680 --> 0:06:41.600 in doing so, I smashed my ac joint. You know, 0:06:41.880 --> 0:06:43.680 for the last eight weeks of my career, I was 0:06:43.720 --> 0:06:46.440 getting jabs time. I'm still struggling with it now, like 0:06:46.600 --> 0:06:50.080 before games, just to be able to play. But it 0:06:50.200 --> 0:06:52.920 was that moment where I just ran through Harry, then 0:06:53.000 --> 0:06:55.840 ran through Harry again, and the crowd got up off 0:06:55.839 --> 0:06:58.560 their feet. Things would going on berserk, and we ran 0:06:58.600 --> 0:07:00.760 with it. We changed our seats and we stealed a 0:07:00.760 --> 0:07:02.919 playoff spot and we end up winning a championship. And 0:07:02.960 --> 0:07:07.039 there's those moments that they're not pretty. Everything was hard, 0:07:07.400 --> 0:07:09.279 Like I look at back at and I think that's 0:07:09.320 --> 0:07:12.880 why I appreciate you know, every single person, and by 0:07:12.920 --> 0:07:15.400 us yourself, Like what's those moments in your life that 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:17.760 he cherishes, the things that you work so extremely hard 0:07:17.800 --> 0:07:20.360 for that you never really were expected to achieve. And 0:07:20.400 --> 0:07:22.560 I think that's been my life. I look back as 0:07:22.600 --> 0:07:25.400 a youngster, I couldn't dribble basketball, like I literally had 0:07:25.440 --> 0:07:27.960 to go see a specialists because I had poor hand 0:07:27.960 --> 0:07:30.120 eye coordination. They might say I still have poor hand 0:07:30.160 --> 0:07:34.200 ole coordination as a professional athlete, but like even then, 0:07:34.240 --> 0:07:37.560 I remembered like I had to go these classes in 0:07:37.600 --> 0:07:40.320 a random place and morlly it was like you go upstairs. 0:07:40.360 --> 0:07:42.120 It was a warehouse and they would throw me the 0:07:42.160 --> 0:07:45.120 ball and I still remember vividly now like they would 0:07:45.120 --> 0:07:48.080 throw me the ball, the ball drop, I'd clap and 0:07:48.120 --> 0:07:51.560 that was me. Like this intensive course for six months, 0:07:51.600 --> 0:07:52.880 Like that was me? 0:07:53.120 --> 0:07:54.440 How old were I was. 0:07:54.400 --> 0:07:57.240 Like yeah, literally four or five? Like yeah, And so 0:07:57.800 --> 0:08:00.280 even for two years I kept going like to what 0:08:00.280 --> 0:08:04.080 that is my motor skills were so underdeveloped, Like I 0:08:04.120 --> 0:08:05.840 mean I look at my two children now and my 0:08:06.240 --> 0:08:09.080 little fellow's going around and shooting, and you know I 0:08:09.120 --> 0:08:12.240 look at other kids like they're riding bikes. Yeah, my 0:08:12.280 --> 0:08:14.960 motor skills were so poor. It was like a point 0:08:15.000 --> 0:08:16.760 where they were like okay, my parents are like yeah, 0:08:16.760 --> 0:08:20.360 they've identified this, and being my mum being Eastern European, 0:08:20.440 --> 0:08:22.680 it's still not even like that was like you know 0:08:22.720 --> 0:08:25.040 that scope, what where do you go out and see support? 0:08:25.120 --> 0:08:27.040 So it was just randomly like a doctor's like, yeah, 0:08:27.080 --> 0:08:30.040 I think he's a bit behind. And it's bizarre that 0:08:30.040 --> 0:08:32.400 that's in the in the app. That was my makeshift. 0:08:32.440 --> 0:08:34.559 Like I played professional sports for ten years when I 0:08:34.559 --> 0:08:36.360 couldn't even really catch a ball at a young as a 0:08:36.400 --> 0:08:36.840 young kid. 0:08:37.000 --> 0:08:40.200 So let's go back to the beginning. We call you 0:08:40.240 --> 0:08:42.559 Greg High, but that's not actually your name, is it. 0:08:42.920 --> 0:08:45.079 Yeah, so if you spoke to Brad Robins, I'm sure 0:08:45.080 --> 0:08:47.559 you would have loved this. Yeah, so my name's Gergelay 0:08:47.679 --> 0:08:53.240 High and one more time, Gerglay Higher. Now in Hungarian 0:08:53.280 --> 0:08:57.040 it's Gergay And obviously you can expect that when you're 0:08:57.080 --> 0:09:02.880 in primary school. Primarily like kids ruthless and so obviously 0:09:02.920 --> 0:09:05.520 say there there's two words, and obviously we're progressive as 0:09:05.520 --> 0:09:08.000 a community. But people are like are just like saying 0:09:08.040 --> 0:09:11.080 that all the time, or I would get scared. You know, 0:09:11.160 --> 0:09:13.560 the Royal Corps first day and it's like, you know, 0:09:13.800 --> 0:09:17.679 h's in the middle of the names and they're coming. 0:09:17.679 --> 0:09:19.200 I would like put up my hand like, yeah, that's 0:09:19.240 --> 0:09:21.640 me before my name's even being announced, because like I 0:09:21.679 --> 0:09:23.199 knew they would, yeah, wouldn't. 0:09:24.320 --> 0:09:27.960 Just reflecting on it. It's like you've got a school. 0:09:27.760 --> 0:09:29.960 I know. And it's even now like I'll get out 0:09:30.000 --> 0:09:32.400 my license and people were like, oh, like something and 0:09:32.400 --> 0:09:34.839 they'll look at me and then like they're like, I'm like, yeah, 0:09:34.840 --> 0:09:39.400 it's my real name. I'm Hungarian. So yeah, quite quite interesting. Greg, 0:09:39.400 --> 0:09:43.280 It's just like this Aussie like, yeah, no worries, but yeah, 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:46.360 that was going up. Was a bit unique, that's for sure. 0:09:46.679 --> 0:09:51.000 Your parents were illegal immigrants. 0:09:49.679 --> 0:09:54.079 Crazy story. They immigrated from Hungary. Obviously back then it 0:09:54.200 --> 0:09:57.960 was a case of you know, there wasn't the come 0:09:58.000 --> 0:10:00.959 in here visa laws like whatever. It was literally process 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:03.400 they want to leave the country. They were still reeling 0:10:03.400 --> 0:10:05.959 from World War two, the effects like everything, you know, 0:10:06.000 --> 0:10:08.559 the country was so behind the times and they sort 0:10:08.559 --> 0:10:11.679 of said, all right, here's a deal. Immigrant to Canada, 0:10:12.240 --> 0:10:16.199 you'll be fine, or immigrate to Perth and Australia. Basically 0:10:16.440 --> 0:10:18.640 similar situations were in Perth. You'll just have to stay 0:10:18.640 --> 0:10:22.560 in a community for a month where basically all immigrants 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:25.040 will come across, which was the KGB which is known 0:10:25.040 --> 0:10:27.320 as Condola, Grouine and Bouga. And so that was me. 0:10:27.360 --> 0:10:30.520 I'm a proud KGB boy and it was the best 0:10:30.559 --> 0:10:33.600 time of my life because you can imagine there were 0:10:33.679 --> 0:10:36.720 so many kids in the same similar situation. My mum's 0:10:36.800 --> 0:10:40.520 job was a babysitter, Like I literally remember being in 0:10:40.520 --> 0:10:43.520 this home in Balga, massive home, and the brutal thing 0:10:43.679 --> 0:10:45.520 was was like we would have all these families and 0:10:45.559 --> 0:10:47.520 then a month they would just move on. So I'd 0:10:47.559 --> 0:10:49.240 have a best mate for a week and then there'll 0:10:49.240 --> 0:10:53.040 be another new lot of kids and whatever it may be. 0:10:53.120 --> 0:10:57.480 But I didn't know the circumstances until being on a 0:10:57.559 --> 0:11:00.240 road trip and so my very first year I was 0:11:00.240 --> 0:11:01.800 getting on the road quite a bit. We didn't We 0:11:01.880 --> 0:11:06.160 suffered a few injuries and Matt Knight unfortunately suffers a 0:11:06.160 --> 0:11:09.679 few concussions and got knocked out one game and I'm in. 0:11:09.800 --> 0:11:12.400 I got brought up to Sydney as an injury replacement, 0:11:12.400 --> 0:11:15.280 and literally yeah at those times, like as a developed player, 0:11:15.440 --> 0:11:17.120 the only good thing about getting on the road was 0:11:17.120 --> 0:11:19.040 obviously being part of the team. But I got paid 0:11:19.040 --> 0:11:22.319 an extra one thousand dollars. My salary was six grand, 0:11:22.400 --> 0:11:23.440 so like you're. 0:11:23.240 --> 0:11:26.000 Like, chicken Den, we're rolling here. 0:11:26.240 --> 0:11:29.680 So yes, I got there and Maddie gets knocked out 0:11:29.760 --> 0:11:32.680 like the second quarter, and it was the first game 0:11:32.720 --> 0:11:36.120 of a three game road trip, and I just went, oh, no, 0:11:36.240 --> 0:11:37.640 Like they're going to ask me and I don't have 0:11:37.679 --> 0:11:40.800 my passport, and their professional athlete old standards like just 0:11:40.840 --> 0:11:43.360 be ready for everything, be ready for the unexpected, and 0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:45.840 literally as certain if the game gets done or beverage 0:11:45.840 --> 0:11:47.200 taps me. Is like, mate, we're going to bring you 0:11:47.240 --> 0:11:50.600 to New Zealand and then Ilwarra. So first thing, he's like, 0:11:50.679 --> 0:11:53.640 you know, I'm I thinking there's an extra two grand. Awesome, 0:11:53.960 --> 0:11:55.440 But then he's like, do you have your passport? And 0:11:55.480 --> 0:12:00.640 I'm like nah, So I'm trying to get my passport arranged. 0:12:00.640 --> 0:12:03.600 They're literally gonna fly someone to bring it in the morning, 0:12:03.840 --> 0:12:05.800 like drop it off and then find New Zealand. So 0:12:05.840 --> 0:12:08.439 I was stuck in Sydney. I went to the embassy. 0:12:08.679 --> 0:12:13.199 The very first few things I said, idea of birth certificate, perfect, yep, 0:12:13.280 --> 0:12:15.720 got that, and then they go, do you have your 0:12:16.080 --> 0:12:19.200 your parents' citizenship papers? And so I was like yeah, awesome. 0:12:19.200 --> 0:12:23.240 So I called my mom up and she's literally like, yeah, 0:12:23.400 --> 0:12:25.400 like I've got your birth certificate, but I don't have 0:12:25.400 --> 0:12:27.080 any citizenship papers. And I was like what do you 0:12:27.120 --> 0:12:31.880 mean and she's like, literally, yeah, we were legal immigrants. 0:12:31.880 --> 0:12:33.360 And I was like, you are joking? 0:12:33.440 --> 0:12:35.440 And how old were you when you found that out? 0:12:36.360 --> 0:12:37.640 Twenty three twenty four? 0:12:37.720 --> 0:12:38.000 Wow? 0:12:38.240 --> 0:12:41.000 Yeah, And I was just like okay, I don't know 0:12:41.040 --> 0:12:44.800 if I should now disclosing up. My mom doesn't get deported, 0:12:44.880 --> 0:12:48.000 but you know, but like I yeah, and I for 0:12:48.040 --> 0:12:52.240 a moment there, I was like, holy crap, like that's 0:12:52.320 --> 0:12:54.440 so bizarre, like that had sort of happened. 0:12:54.480 --> 0:12:56.120 And then was eye opening for you. 0:12:56.360 --> 0:12:58.920 Oh absolutely, because I like, and Mum always said, but 0:12:59.040 --> 0:13:03.120 Mum's so humble, obviously knew the scope. But I remember 0:13:03.120 --> 0:13:05.480 even like when mum got her first car, like and 0:13:05.520 --> 0:13:08.720 it was that very traditional like Eastern Europeans mums are 0:13:08.800 --> 0:13:12.840 doing this, you know, like they're cooking, cleaning providers, you know, 0:13:12.920 --> 0:13:14.840 like they're doing all that sort of stuff, whereas you know, 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:17.160 Dad comes in here and food's got to be on 0:13:17.160 --> 0:13:19.480 the table and all that sort of stuff. And Mum 0:13:19.480 --> 0:13:22.080 would work. I remember, like her first car had no indicators, 0:13:22.160 --> 0:13:25.240 so she would be like hand outside the car and 0:13:25.240 --> 0:13:26.760 then if I'm in the front seat, would ask me 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:28.880 to like put out a hand, and I'm like, but 0:13:28.960 --> 0:13:32.080 I think it's the best thing in the world. But 0:13:32.200 --> 0:13:34.800 she'd and of it, like she because she didn't have 0:13:34.840 --> 0:13:37.600 cyiszenship papers, she couldn't get her license for years, like 0:13:37.880 --> 0:13:41.080 so she was driving illegally. Like she learned English from 0:13:41.160 --> 0:13:44.239 Jehovah's witnesses, Like she didn't know a lick of English, 0:13:44.440 --> 0:13:46.800 and it was a case of like people knocking the door, Hey, 0:13:46.800 --> 0:13:48.880 how a she would like get those words and then 0:13:48.960 --> 0:13:51.360 like pick up and obviously then she would you go around, 0:13:51.400 --> 0:13:54.840 but those just entry statements are going to shops or 0:13:54.880 --> 0:13:57.000 like she would go to the shops to then like 0:13:57.960 --> 0:14:00.640 find out what the checkout operator is saying, so then 0:14:00.640 --> 0:14:03.640 she can understand or oh, here's milk, oh milk, you know, 0:14:03.800 --> 0:14:06.920 like here's that, so like it was crazy like and 0:14:06.960 --> 0:14:10.280 so yeah, end up getting the passport, but that was 0:14:10.440 --> 0:14:12.880 just that like eye opening experience, like and I think, 0:14:12.920 --> 0:14:17.360 how yeah, my mum never complains like it's just like 0:14:17.440 --> 0:14:21.040 this unbelievable woman, and I think it's it's been ingrained 0:14:21.080 --> 0:14:23.120 in me as well as like to do that, like 0:14:23.240 --> 0:14:26.560 just you know, expectations like she she's still she still 0:14:26.560 --> 0:14:29.920 works now. Most beautiful, selfless human being in the world, 0:14:30.480 --> 0:14:33.360 most gentle soul, Yeah, pretty special. 0:14:33.920 --> 0:14:35.120 Do you speak any Hungarian? 0:14:35.600 --> 0:14:38.400 I do a little bit. That The word I always 0:14:38.440 --> 0:14:40.360 and I know this from a young age was an 0:14:40.400 --> 0:14:43.480 yatzi kosh loveda which is I played basketball, and so 0:14:43.560 --> 0:14:46.160 I knew that was like my go to and hot 0:14:46.240 --> 0:14:48.720 void and is how are you and I spend a 0:14:48.760 --> 0:14:51.400 little bit of time there. It's something I actually would 0:14:51.440 --> 0:14:54.920 love to do. I'm not the intellect, so I don't. 0:14:55.000 --> 0:14:57.040 I struggle with the English language a let alone trying 0:14:57.080 --> 0:15:00.520 to adopt the Hungarian language as well. So but yeah, 0:15:00.560 --> 0:15:03.880 I do. And that was the thing growing up my family, 0:15:03.960 --> 0:15:06.440 My brother and my mom would speak it all the time, 0:15:06.640 --> 0:15:09.720 like and especially if like I'd done something wrong, so 0:15:09.800 --> 0:15:13.040 all I'd hear is gogee, come up, And then I'm like, oh, yeah, 0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:16.400 I've done something. I'm in trouble here. It's a it's 0:15:16.440 --> 0:15:17.360 a unique language. 0:15:17.560 --> 0:15:19.560 So you were born in Australia, right, I was born? 0:15:20.040 --> 0:15:22.440 When did they move? It mustn't have been that. 0:15:22.560 --> 0:15:26.600 It was literally, well when I'm nineteen eighty seven to twenty, 0:15:26.800 --> 0:15:29.040 so that it was nineteen eighty six, like I think 0:15:29.120 --> 0:15:31.160 you're like, yeah, I think my mum. 0:15:31.000 --> 0:15:33.320 So you were on the way yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. 0:15:33.160 --> 0:15:35.640 It was like which I was born in a pm 0:15:35.680 --> 0:15:38.520 age or Subiaco. Yeah, brother was five years so yeah, 0:15:38.560 --> 0:15:42.000 so I was born here. Yeah, they made the move basically. 0:15:41.560 --> 0:15:43.320 Then Wow, your life could have been different. 0:15:43.480 --> 0:15:45.080 Oh yeah, ridiculous. 0:15:45.280 --> 0:15:48.680 Did your brother have any early memories of what Hungary 0:15:48.800 --> 0:15:49.720 was like at the time. 0:15:49.600 --> 0:15:52.320 Yeah, not particularly, Like they've gone back a little bit 0:15:52.480 --> 0:15:55.160 and obviously we've got all of our family members and 0:15:55.160 --> 0:15:57.360 a few of them have come out here. You know, 0:15:57.400 --> 0:15:59.800 when you go to school as a young kid like 0:15:59.840 --> 0:16:02.280 you or western eis and this is the thing, Like 0:16:02.880 --> 0:16:04.720 I mean, if you look at my photos, we were 0:16:04.800 --> 0:16:10.280 so like stuck out, like I remember my mum. Yeah, 0:16:10.360 --> 0:16:12.360 Like my very first photos is a year one. I 0:16:12.400 --> 0:16:15.000 was in a suit, like I was in an all white, 0:16:15.560 --> 0:16:19.200 like smiling from from ear to ear. But I was 0:16:19.200 --> 0:16:21.960 in in like a white shirt, white suit, white pants, 0:16:22.040 --> 0:16:25.200 and there's like our classroom photos and obviously pretty diverse 0:16:25.640 --> 0:16:27.600 sort of class, but like there's just me a suit 0:16:27.640 --> 0:16:29.920 and then there's just kids in te's you know, and 0:16:29.960 --> 0:16:31.720 like you know, like you see that like people bring 0:16:31.720 --> 0:16:34.320 in like I brought in full traditional Hungary and gulash 0:16:34.360 --> 0:16:39.800 for like you know, like introduction to country days. And 0:16:39.880 --> 0:16:42.840 but that was the thing Mum was, you know, never 0:16:43.120 --> 0:16:46.680 like we were so different like it was and obviously 0:16:46.800 --> 0:16:48.560 as time Mom still went, but it. 0:16:48.480 --> 0:16:50.680 Was like did you feel different at the time? 0:16:51.080 --> 0:16:55.200 Absolutely, yeah, absolutely, Like I mean I look at them 0:16:55.360 --> 0:16:58.840 and then even like haircuts and obviously with the name, 0:16:59.080 --> 0:17:01.280 and at a time, like I embrace it, like I 0:17:01.760 --> 0:17:05.320 always love being different. But then it's like sometimes, as 0:17:05.359 --> 0:17:07.879 I said before, kids are vicious and they're ruthless, and 0:17:07.960 --> 0:17:11.280 so you know, you have that Ozzie mentality and like 0:17:11.400 --> 0:17:12.840 you know, I would go to the point where I 0:17:12.880 --> 0:17:15.600 went like overboard. Obviously I have a lot of pride 0:17:15.680 --> 0:17:18.000 and playing for Australia that I did last year and 0:17:18.400 --> 0:17:20.879 those sort of experiences because it gave the life. But 0:17:21.400 --> 0:17:23.879 to the point where then Australian tatoo like some of 0:17:23.880 --> 0:17:28.400 that sort of anger, Yeah, like all that sort of stuff. 0:17:27.520 --> 0:17:29.119 You got made in Australia tattoo. 0:17:29.280 --> 0:17:31.760 No, I definitely don't. I'm thank god I've got one 0:17:31.760 --> 0:17:34.159 of my best mates with the Southern Cross Stars and 0:17:34.200 --> 0:17:36.920 I hope led him all the time, like how much 0:17:37.000 --> 0:17:40.199 do you regret that? Never see you without your shirt on? 0:17:40.359 --> 0:17:44.119 So yeah, but yeah, it is it will you know? 0:17:44.240 --> 0:17:47.199 Growing up it was something that I definitely in that 0:17:47.240 --> 0:17:51.480 way wish I could have maybe owned a little bit 0:17:51.520 --> 0:17:55.000 more and embraced Yeah. Absolutely, absolutely sort. 0:17:54.840 --> 0:17:56.280 Of aware, I guess exactly. 0:17:56.880 --> 0:18:00.280 So your mum has she told you any story? Have 0:18:00.359 --> 0:18:02.560 you ever asked her about what life was like for 0:18:02.600 --> 0:18:04.159 her before she got to Australia. 0:18:05.760 --> 0:18:08.320 In a way, it was just you know, you're looking 0:18:08.359 --> 0:18:11.600 at it from that Cold War and that Eastern European 0:18:11.800 --> 0:18:17.000 sentiment where poverty was huge, like, and she comes from 0:18:17.040 --> 0:18:20.560 a massive family. She had a relative that had an 0:18:20.640 --> 0:18:23.800 intellectual disability, so she would look after them and the 0:18:23.920 --> 0:18:27.760 family go along, and unfortunately her dad turned to alcohol 0:18:27.960 --> 0:18:29.720 early in the peace just because he was trying to 0:18:29.720 --> 0:18:32.400 provide for so much, was dealing with some mental health 0:18:32.400 --> 0:18:36.880 conditions and in a weird way, like she didn't really 0:18:36.920 --> 0:18:39.400 have a strong connection to her mum. She loved the dad. 0:18:39.560 --> 0:18:44.520 She always used to say, emotional here, but I reminded 0:18:44.800 --> 0:18:49.960 a lot of her dad, gentle, tall guy that wasn't 0:18:51.119 --> 0:18:53.600 yeah it wasn't you know. You'd see this polarizing figure 0:18:53.640 --> 0:18:56.280 and go, oh, you know, he's just going to be 0:18:56.359 --> 0:18:59.919 this real dominant guy. So she used to always say 0:18:59.920 --> 0:19:02.080 it me like, you always reminded me of my father, 0:19:02.440 --> 0:19:04.919 and then he eds to be tough because she obviously 0:19:05.040 --> 0:19:07.119 I didn't never got to meet any of my grandparents 0:19:07.520 --> 0:19:11.560 by on my father's side. But it was, yeah, pretty 0:19:11.560 --> 0:19:14.800 brutal think like even a you know, this massive role 0:19:14.840 --> 0:19:18.320 model a life basically like in her words, in a 0:19:18.359 --> 0:19:22.199 weird way, took his own life not at one moment, 0:19:22.359 --> 0:19:25.800 but it turned to alcohol to then you know obviously 0:19:25.800 --> 0:19:29.720 did that and that was pretty brutal. So thinking of 0:19:29.760 --> 0:19:32.520 that environment, especially when my mom grew up, and how 0:19:32.560 --> 0:19:35.440 she would have tried to take ownership of all responsibilities 0:19:35.680 --> 0:19:38.200 in her life and so I know that I guess 0:19:38.280 --> 0:19:40.480 that's why she still provides now. It's ridiculous what my 0:19:40.560 --> 0:19:43.800 mum tries to do, even at her age. She's actually 0:19:44.720 --> 0:19:48.879 looks after my brother's child at the moment, and my 0:19:48.960 --> 0:19:54.199 mom's yeah sixty odd, you know, because he's in a 0:19:54.240 --> 0:19:57.000 position to do that at the moment. And that's ridiculous, 0:19:57.080 --> 0:19:58.919 Like I say to him, like she should be enjoying 0:19:58.960 --> 0:20:04.080 the fine points of license. She's actually trying to. Yeah, 0:20:04.200 --> 0:20:06.600 I guess raise a child like at that age when 0:20:06.600 --> 0:20:09.880 she should be embracing grandchildren. But that's just my mom, 0:20:09.920 --> 0:20:13.000