​In 2020, Time Out readers voted Yarraville the fifth-coolest neighbourhood in the world. This was back when the phrase IYKYK (if you know, you know) was doing the rounds, and Yarraville was Melbourne’s shining example. Nearby Seddon, on the other hand, was less If You Know, You Know and more As Far As I Know ... It’s Somewhere in the West?
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Though it shares a border with an apparently world-famous suburb, Seddon is one of those places like Cremorne or Travancore or Deepdene that might as well be a suburb of Narnia. You’re not quite sure it’s real until you visit it yourself.

This obscurity is partly due to size. At less than one square kilometre in area, it’s easy for lifelong Melburnians never to twig to its existence, despite its proximity to the CBD. From my house, I can see the sun gleaming on the windows of skyscrapers, and on New Year’s Eve, we have a front-row view of fireworks.

The contested history of Seddon might help explain why outsiders aren’t sure if it’s not just a fiction. For most of the past century, only locals described the area as its own suburb, and some still promote a misconception around its origins.

The myth dates back to 1906, when a name was sought for a new train station between Footscray and Yarraville. While this southern part of Footscray was at the time known locally as Belgravia, this was rejected as too similar to Belgrave in the Dandenongs.
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Instead, former New Zealand prime minister Richard Seddon, who had died in office that year and lived in the area 40 years earlier, had his name bestowed upon our train station.

But this place wasn’t formally recognised as its own suburb until 1999. We still share a postcode with the ’Scray. (Incidentally, Seddon has ties to the name of another nearby suburb – his father-in-law was landowner John Stewart Spotswood.)

With its wide streets and sleepy pace, it’s not a party town. So what if Seddon can’t claim the cool cred that hovers over Collingwood or East Brunswick, where no one would use the phrase “cool cred”?

The simple truth is that Seddon doesn’t have enough non-conformists creatively asserting their identity in the face of an oppressive and precarious system, by which I mean people in their 20s. As far as I know, there’s but one share house in the whole suburb, and while those kids seem pretty on-trend, a single household can’t do all the work for the rest of us. That’s gentrification, baby.

Heavy is the head that wears the crown of cool, after all. Seddonites walk lightly, free of the expectations that weigh down residents of Northcote or Prahran. Look elsewhere for your ironic fashion boutiques and froyo outlets and 24-hour gyms.

Here, we have zero tattoo dens but an abundance of yoga studios. There’s an excellent second-hand bookshop, where I once scored a bargain on a signed edition by some obscure Norwegian. Children’s swings hang from trees on the nature strips. Seddon even has its own WhatsApp group.
In these parts, we boast street libraries the way other suburbs have bubble tea franchises, and if Seddon itself were a book, it’d be a cosy read. It’s a suburb without many question or exclamation marks.

Flying under the radar has its benefits. I was once shopping around for better home insurance (as I said, not a party town) when the voice on the other end of the phone line emitted a confused grunt. “That can’t be right,” he murmured. “It says here there’s no crime in your suburb.” After triple-checking, he confirmed the report.
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Sounds possible, I agreed. Sure, there’s shoplifting, and bikes get pinched, like anywhere else. There was a police chase a few years ago, but the car had no tyres and was going at walking pace. Even the cops didn’t seem too fussed by it all.

Oh, and I suppose there was the terrorist attack in 1975, when a gelignite bomb took out five shops and destroyed the windows of 20 houses. Given that a Yugoslav travel centre appeared to be the primary target, suspicions were directed towards the local Croatian community. A spokesperson told The Age: “We are the first to be accused,” which isn’t the most convincing of denials.

That was long before my time. I arrived here a decade ago, looking for somewhere a freelance arts journalist could even dream of buying, to find the various Eastern Europeans who migrated to Seddon in the 50s and 60s have put aside the historic grudges that have divided their homelands. The elderly men of these communities stroll the streets daily, hands folded behind their backs, and gather out the front of a Spanish cafe to hold court each evening. Being one-sixteenth Croatian myself, perhaps I will join them in my autumn years.

A suburb this small doesn’t have enough oxygen for people to get red in the face too often. Everyone sort of knows everyone else, at least by sight. One of my neighbours seems to be on a first-name basis with everyone who passes his verandah, while the greengrocer has nicknames for most of his customers. People on my block mind each other’s homes and feed each other’s pets when they’re away. I once found a stranger’s credit card on the street and knew the surname well enough to recognise which shop’s door I should slide it under.
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None of this might be cool enough to make it onto any international list, but we’re fine with the anonymity. The crown of cool can be snatched away in an instant, but a sense of community lays down roots, even for relative newcomers like me. If anyone asks: yeah, we’re somewhere in the west.

This article was originally published in The Age, August 18 2025.

At 25 years of age, Denis Wilkinson received a diagnosis that would change his life forever.

Wilkinson was found to have McCune-Albright Syndrome, a rare and complex genetic disorder affecting the bone, skin and endocrine systems.

It explained why he shot up from 5’8 to 6’8 between the ages of 15 and 22.
“I’m one in five million,” Wilkinson explained.

“I get looked after at Royal Melbourne and at Western Health medically, I see the best surgeons. My biggest problem is excess growth, because I produce so much growth hormone naturally, it’s a lot of disfiguration and my bones are very soft.

“(The diagnosis) was very very late and it literally changed my whole life.

“Sometimes my body, I wake up some days and I’m done before I start.”

Almost poetically, around the same time Wilkinson, now aged 40, was diagnosed with McCune-Albright Syndrome some 15 years ago, a chance conversation was struck up at Moorabbin Cricket Club.

It was there and then the seed for what would become the Melbourne All Abilities Cricket Association (MAACA) was planted in the mind of the competition’s founder, Steve Lefebvre.

In 2025, the competition celebrated its 10th season, and it has shaped the lives of Wilkinson and many others for the better.

“This has really saved a number of them,” Lefebvre said of the impact MAACA has had on its participants.

“Some of them have seen darker times and playing within a club has got them connected which is absolutely fantastic, they don’t become one of those unfortunate statistics, they’re actually enjoying themselves among the community like everyone else.

“A number of the clubs have helped them get jobs, they’ve helped them go through pathway processes to the Victorian team.”

The association now has 16 clubs, 24 teams and more than 300 players across Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo and greater Melbourne.

Crucially, every program must be embedded within a ‘mainstream’ local cricket club to foster a sense of belonging.

Lefebvre is a retired police officer of 41 years who developed Victoria Police’s mental health strategy, while he was also recognised with a ‘Victorian Local Hero’ nomination at the 2025 Australian of the Year Awards for his work with MAACA.

He said the association’s growth was rapid, but would be capped at three new clubs per season so it “doesn’t get out of hand”.
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“We’ve got different divisions according to different skill levels and different disability levels, right up to the high functioning guys,” he explained.

The impact
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Vickram and Wilkinson are just two cases out of hundreds of MAACA shaping a disadvantaged life for the better.

“It has made a lot of difference … just that sense of belonging, giving everyone a go, you’re not judging,” Arjan said of the impact on Vickram.

“Everyone has a goal no matter what your ability is, he’s so proud to put on his uniform on match days and he thinks, ‘right, I’m a hot shot cricket player’. It has boosted his self esteem, his morale.
“He’s a different boy altogether.”

Wilkinson has only been playing in MAACA for the past two seasons but said it had been “amazing” for him.

“It’s given me another path and another step in life, people go through a lot of things in life, but it’s all about a team environment and getting out there, and community,” said Wilkinson, who plays for Seddon Cricket Club.

“Some days I wake up and my head is just pounding and my face is swollen, it’s just life.

“Cricket helps me and gives me a purpose on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, to me it gives me something to look forward to, then a week’s gone like that.”

“My day to day life is very boring unfortunately, I’m on the disability pension and when I’m really sick I don’t leave the house, or might see the boys at cricket and socialise.

“Outside of cricket I struggle a lot on the medical side of it. Cricket and golf are the things that get me out of the house to come and socialise, it makes me a better person.
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“The people at Seddon love and respect all of our all abilities players, they put a smile on our face and we put a smile on their face.”

An action as simple as Wilkinson putting his body behind the ball in the outfield can cause injury for him given his softer bones, while he also needs injections once a month, has to take tablets everyday, and has diabetes. “We could go on forever …” he trails off.

Wilkinson has also struggled with alcohol as a result of his condition, but went cold turkey in his first season with MAACA.

“I get on it a bit, I don’t work most days and it gets boring, cricket does help. I can’t say so much positive things with MAACA … I’m very fortunate.

“Last year I did so well,” Wilkinson said.

“This year hasn’t been great because when I get sick I get on it a bit too much, but that’s life.”
Wilkinson added that his diagnosis “took a big toll” on him.

“I’m lucky I’ve got an amazing family, my mum and dad, If I didn’t have them … I’ve been in very dark places in life and if it wasn’t for my family and friends and cricket and golf, it was very, very, very hard.
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“Everyone gets dealt a shit card and might feel shit on ‘x’ day, but you’ve got to wake up and have some positives.”

​This article was originally published in the Herald Sun, June 10, 2025. 

Hi all,

This season marks our 100th year as a cricket club, with the earliest report of a cricket match involving Seddon CC - originally known as Seddon Imperials - in the 1923/24 season in the Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) competition. This is a significant achievement that the club intends to honour with a gala event at the Yarraville Club on Saturday 6 April.

Our 100th gala will include the announcement of the inaugural inductees of SCC Legends, guest speaker legendary Australian fast bowler Jeff 'Thommo' Thomson, a live auction and DJ to conclude the night.

100th Gala Event

When: Saturday 6 April 2024 (6.3pm-11pm)

Where: Yarraville Club (Ballroom), 135 Stephen Street, Yarraville.

Cost per head: $100 per head. Includes a 2 course meal and commemorative stubby cooler. Drinks available at bar prices.

Dress: Cocktail dress marks this important occasion.

To book your seat, click on the link below.

https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1178469
 
Seddon CC's 100 year gala is shaping up to be a wonderful night, to celebrate past and present players, supporters and the strong spirit of our multicultural, family club.

We would love to see you there!

Regards,
 
Leigh Davies
President - Seddon Cricket Club