The sunny Queensland weather conditions offered no consolation to the sixth pick in the 1999 National Draft as he watched his confidence and career fall into oblivion.”2002 was a bit of adisaster for me,” Cupido admitted. “I didn't enjoy my football, I just wasn't really there. I lost confidence in myself, I didn't sort of take them on so to speak in my play, I just lost momentum and never really had confidence.”
“It didn't work out for me, some players go up there and have 15-year careers, I'm just not one ofthose so stiff bikkies. It was just everything, every little bit sort of contributed and it sort ofbuilds up and in the end you just explode and I just wanted to come home.”
Five shoulder injuries including three dislocations and two reconstructions and a lack ofopportunities made life hell for a player who was expected to take the AFL by storm.The 21-year-old felt lonely and insecure in a place far away from his Croydon home. “Leaving home at 17 and confronting the challenges that lied ahead of me was a tough ask,” Cupido reflected. “I started off alright and played a few games early on and did alright, then Ijust hurt my shoulder and basically took a downward slope from there and never sort of recovered. I never settled, I moved about five or six times within Brisbane in three years. The first plane I could get home for a weekend, I'd get on and it was always sort of leadingto what eventuated out of it all.”
Through the tough times, the 2001 Rising Star nominee felt he did not get enough help from back-to-back premiership winning coach Leigh Matthews. “I think Leigh was a bit too much of an intimidating person to go up and sort of (ask him) what's going on and what I needto improve on,” Cupido said. “The guys that he always predominantly picks in his best 22 or best 10 players, he always gives them a pump up when they go a bit flat, not so much the younger guys.”
Cupido made no secret that he wanted to leave Brisbane as soon as possible, but with one year left on his contract, Windy Hill was the only destination on his mind. “I basically said strikeup a deal with Essendon or I'm staying up in Brisbane and in the end they wereable to sort it out,” he said. “They've attracted me since I was about nine years old, I was just a mad Essendon fan, I used to come out and watch them train and play and I was at the footy all weekend. I've always wanted to play for Essendon,” Cupido said.
An added sweetener for Cupido was receiving his red and black guernsey which had the number 13 printed on the back, made famous by his childhood hero Michael Long. “It is just amazing, Iactually met the bloke and it was even better, it is a dream come true and I'm really enjoying my footy at the moment,” he said with a beaming smile. “There is an aura about the place, it has just got history within the walls and the people at the footy club are fantastic and welcoming to me -even more so that I get to wear the number of one of my favourite all-time players.”
Cupido was born in South Africa but was raised in Box Hill beforemoving to Croydon. A true all-round sportsman, he got his start in football with TAC Cupoutfit Eastern Ranges and was also a talented cricketer with Victorian Premier Cricket club Fitzroy/Doncaster. The long road saw him play 13 games in three seasons at the Gabba, butin 2003 he hopes to wipe the slate clean and start fresh. “I have never felt betterever, I've never been as happy as what I am now and I'm just rapt to be atthe club I've always wanted to be and just surrounded by 35 fantasticblokes,” Cupido said.
Story courtesy of Lance Jenkinson - Moonee Valley Community News.
