Some of the AFL’s biggest names have paid their respects to Cam McCarthy as the 29-year-old’s devastated father made some emotional revelations during a moving funeral on Wednesday.
The Fremantle Dockers and GWS Giants star was laid to rest at Fremantle Cemetery in front of more than 100 mourners after his tragic death on May 8, with close companion and West Coast star Tom Barrass acting as one of the pallbearers, who wore blouses with the initials ‘CM’ appearing on them.
Other past and present football stars attending the ceremony included Dockers captain Alex Pearce, teammates Luke Ryan, Sean Darcy and Michael Walters, as well as former Fremantle star Aaron Sandilands and football hero Western Bulldogs cult, Danny Southern.
Football stars, including McCarthy’s great mate Tom Barrass, acted as pallbearers as around 100 mourners paid their respects in Fremantle on Wednesday.
Cam McCarthy (pictured playing for the Dockers in 2018) was remembered as “the light in any room” he walked into.
The pallbearers (pictured) wore blouses embroidered with Cam McCarthy’s initials.
Fremantle Dockers star Sean Darcy (second from left), who played alongside McCarthy, was among the mourners.
Attendees (pictured) heard moving eulogies from the late star’s father Graham and her sisters Hannah and Jessica.
McCarthy’s father Graham gave a moving eulogy in which he recalled the moment the family learned of Cam’s death while on holiday in Coral Bay, more than 1,000 kilometers north of Perth.
“We got the phone call around 5:30 p.m. that night (May 8) and we had had a couple of beers that afternoon,” he said, according to The West.
‘We couldn’t believe it. His mother and I were in shock.
‘The next day, the 14-hour journey towing the caravan gave us time to think.
‘We talked, we cried, we cried some more.
‘We came home to our beautiful daughters… it was good to hug our daughters and get over what happened.
“We loved him to death, he left a mark on everything he did.”
A mourner at the service in McCarthy’s hometown of Fremantle wipes away a tear.
Funeral attendees are photographed outside McCarthy’s farewell venue.
Pictured: Mourners outside the service in Fremantle on Wednesday morning local time.
McCarthy went on to thank AFL teams who respected his son on the field immediately after the tragedy.
“I would like to thank GWS, the Dockers, Essendon and Sydney for the games played on the weekend of Cam’s passing,” he told mourners.
“To the Eagles players who also wore their armbands with the support staff and the rest of the players around the country… (I watched) a lot of football that weekend and it was pretty moving.”
McCarthy’s sister, Hannah, reminded the crowd what made her brother so nice to be around.
“Our one-of-a-kind, charismatic, great brother, every room Cam walked into he graced with his infectious smile and cheerful personality, and I have no doubt that everyone here can attest to that,” he said.
‘Cam, (sister) Jess and I were best friends and luckily we did everything together late in our lives.
McCarthy’s death shook the football world to its core (pictured, mourners comfort each other at the service)
‘In Cam’s free time, he loved hanging out with us and his best friends for a cold beer and, as he would describe it, having fat talks.
“He was an athlete, a singer, a dancer, sometimes a rapper… but most of all, he was the light in any room and the world is so much darker and our hearts so much heavier without him.”
McCarthy’s father also singled out Barrass, who paid a heartbreaking tribute to his great friend shortly after his death.
The two soccer stars met at Western Australia under-18 team training.
“They just formed this bond that is still strong to this day,” McCarthy said.
‘We will be eternally grateful, friend. She loved you to death.
The Freo star’s father Graham singled out his son’s great friend, West Coast Eagles star Tom Barrass (pictured left with McCarthy) for special mention during his eulogy.
McCarthy was selected by the Giants with the 14th pick in 2013 and coached one game in his debut season.
He played a total of 49 games for the Fremantle Dockers and 21 games for GWS, having been selected from South Fremantle.
The headlines followed when he left the Giants at the end of the 2015 season, choosing to sit out the final year of his contract before being transferred to Fremantle.
The Giants granted McCarthy an indefinite leave of absence in January 2016 so he could be closer to his family.
The Fremantle-born star would play a further 49 games over four seasons for the Dockers, scoring 63 goals along the way.