MOUNT Gambier sporting figure Bruce Morale has been a familiar face at several sporting grounds across the Limestone Coast for some time, but he is best known within the baseball and soccer fraternities.
He picked up both sports from an early age, with soccer his first love, as he started playing at five years old.
He had stints at Apollo, Sharks and Inter before finally finding his home at Gambier Centrals, where he became a three-time premiership player and an icon at “the Den”.
Last year Morale’s contribution to the Lions was recognised with the eastern end of the pitch named after him.
That was a “massive honour” for the club legend, who played for Centrals during a successful 10-year period.
Despite his soccer accolades, for many Morale is better recognised for his long career in the Mount Gambier and District Baseball League, where the 42 year old continues to play at Division 1 level for South Indians.
“I started playing baseball when I was 11 and pretty much have not missed a season since,” Morale said.
“The good thing about it is it looks like it’s going to be a sport I can play well into my 40’s and hopefully up until I’m 50.”
Morale first became involved in the sport in primary school.
At the time he did not play summer sport, so decided to give it a try.
“I went out and started playing baseball and played for South – that got me involved in it and I absolutely loved it,” Morale said.
“I picked it up pretty easily and pretty well – having brothers made it easier because you are always throwing stuff at each other.”
From there Morale spent a short period living interstate, but continued to play baseball during that time.
“We moved to Victoria and I played three seasons over there for a local club in the Bendigo league, Shepparton Suns,” he said.
“I really enjoyed it over there, it was a good standard of baseball – they played winter ball.
“Through the summer we would then travel to Melbourne and play up there for Preston.”
In addition to those three years across the border, Morale spent two seasons in Adelaide playing city baseball, which he is glad he experienced.
“I moved from here and spent two years in Adelaide playing Division 1 baseball for Port Adelaide and had a go at playing for their Bite team,” he said.
However, further opportunities did not come to fruition and Morale returned home to the Indians, where he has not missed a season since, with a total of 26 years committed to his club.
Over those years he has served a four-year term as president of South and has also been heavily involved member of the league.
Morale is also nearing an impressive milestone within the MGDBL, which he hopes he is able to achieve.
“In two more seasons I will have represented Mount Gambier in the country championships for 25 years,” he said.
“That is a pretty big milestone and personal achievement that I would like to complete.”
He has also represented South Australia on two occasions.
With decades of experience in both baseball and soccer, in his youth Morale dabbled in several sports.
“I played footy and played a little bit of cricket,” he said.
“I enjoyed my time playing football – I only played it for a few years – I played at Under 18 level and then played a bit of Mid South East football here and enjoyed that.
“I played one season in Adelaide for a club called Portland over there and that was good fun.”
However, soccer eventually took priority during the winter and he played the sport for about 25 years.
“I started playing soccer when I was five years old and played right through,” Morale said.
“I had a little period there in the mid 90’s when we were living in Victoria, so I did not play soccer there, but then we moved to Western Australia for three years and I played over there.”
Morale said his time in Western Australia was “quite influential” to his soccer game, with a coach who was “very patient” with him as a youngster.
Upon returning to Mount Gambier, he continued playing in the Limestone Coast Football Association, where he played out the rest of his soccer career.
“I started off in juniors with Apollo and then when we moved back from Western Australia I played for Apollo,” he said.
“Then I went and played for what was then Sharks, I played one season there and then played about two thirds of a season with Inter.
“I did not really fit into their group – I would have been about 18 or 19 then.
“Then Scott Dickson actually approached me to see whether I wanted to go over and play for Centrals and it kicked off from there and I finished my soccer career playing for Centrals.
“It would have been a bit over 10 years (at Centrals) – I finished when I was 30.”
In Morale’s first season with Centrals the team won the 1998 senior premiership and then went back-to-back in 1999.
Morale’s third premiership as a Lion came in 2003, with the star striker playing a large part in the club’s success over those years.
Over a sporting career which has spanned decades, there are no shortage of memorable moments and achievements for Morale in both his chosen sports, but having his name up on the Gambier Centrals pitch has a special place in his heart.
“Getting recognised at the Centrals Soccer Club with an end named after me, that is probably one of my largest achievements,” he said.
“It was a massive honour and quite humbling really.”
Morale has also won a soccer league medal and claimed a league best and fairest in baseball as well, along with “five or six” baseball premierships.
However, there is one achievement which has remained elusive for his beloved Indians.
“We are still waiting for the elusive premiership in the three-game series,” Morale said.
“I think we are the only club who has not done it.
“That would have been about 10 years ago they brought that in and went to a three-game series.
“We had some lean times there, but the last two seasons we have made the grand final and gone out in straight sets.
“We thought we were a shot last season, but COVID-19 went and beat everyone.”
Outside of his own sporting involvement, Morale is a proud spectator to daughters Isabella and Jorja.
“I have two daughters, they both play softball and are tied up with the netball as well,” he said.
“I was fortunate there two years ago where the whole family was involved with the Demons Softball Club.
“I was coaching and my wife and two daughters were all playing – I really enjoyed that.”
Morale’s love for the sidelines when his daughters are on the field or court is something which surprised him.
“I always thought I would be a very ordinary spectator – I thought once it got to the point where I was only watching sport I would get a bit bored of it – but I absolutely love watching them play,” he said.
Morale is also an avid golfer, which is made all the more enjoyable now Jorja has taken an interest.
“I enjoy my golf, it is a good challenging sport,” Morale said.
“It is an individual sport, so at the end of the day you cannot blame anyone but yourself.
“I enjoy it a hell of a lot more now that I get to play with my youngest daughter.
“Watching her improve, I get a real thrill out of it.”
While his golden years are behind him, Morale has plenty of fuel left in the tank and can already “not wait for the next baseball season”.
He is also eager to continue doing his part to help the sport grow.
“I just want baseball to be better and for more people to get involved – we need people to understand how good a sport it is.”
