It's common for being a professional sportsperson and a car enthusiast to go hand in hand, with young players on big contracts often running out to buy the flashiest car they can afford.
But a small minority of those players have refined their tastes and turned away from the trope of a professional player with a cool car, instead becoming bonafide car enthusiasts who also happened to play top-level sports.
Andy Roberts is the latter. The soccer player captained a successful team in the '90s and 2000s, but has since found solace in a massive collection of all things Porsche.
The man known as the “Ponytail Express” had a long and lustrous career as a defender and captain of the Newcastle Jets/Breakers when Australia’s premier league was known as the National Soccer League.
Roberts played in the NSL for more than a decade and holds a record of 234 games played wearing the Newcastle emblem – making him the most experienced player in history to play for the team.
After retiring in 2003, he continues to be a Newcastle hero, outfitting locals in dapper attire with his clothing store ‘Gentlemen's Outfitters’. But his one true love is beyond sport and fashion – it's everything German automotive.
“Before my Porsche collection, I had a big collection of Volkswagens. At one stage, I had 15 cars, mostly Kombi vans and Beetles," Roberts says.
"But now it’s Porsches.”
First amassing an impressive collection of split-window T1 Volkswagen buses, Roberts later turned his attention to Porsches and fitting out his man-cave with just about everything you can dream of.
Complete with a replica of the James Dean “Little Bastard” 550 Spyder, a homage to the Steve McQueen Le Mans 1970 911S, a Martini edition 924, an incredible 924 Turbo and a Macan GTS daily driver for good measure.
I had the opportunity to go up to Newcastle to check out his collection, which includes some amazingly special cars, and to get the story behind his obsession with Porsche.
As it started for many car enthusiasts, Andy’s obsession began with Hot Wheels cars, but life had different plans for him. His skills on the football field quickly drew attention, and he began his career at 19 with Newcastle.
“I had a good career with what is now called the Newcastle Jets in the A League. I was the longest-serving player in Newcastle history, playing over 234 games for the club. Now I'm a sponsor, and that's my way of giving back,” Roberts says.
But he didn’t always have his eye on the ball; the pipeline to becoming a full-blown car addict started with Porsche, then to Volkswagen and now back to Porsche.
“Cars were always a hobby for me, everyone has their thing, some people collect cars, some people collect boats or collectibles, but for me it was always cars," he says.
“My first ever Porsche was a 924, a blue one I bought when I was 20. At the time, they were one of the fastest 2-litre production cars you could buy. That was the one I could afford at the time, I was only a kid.
“It was my dream to have a Porsche then, and I was driving through Newcastle when I saw a metallic blue one in the yard, which I bought and owned for six years. I absolutely loved the thing, and that’s what started the Porsche thing.”
Australia's most impressive shed and Porsche collection
Andy Roberts has a seriously impressive collection of Porches and memorabilia. Immediately, what catches your eye when you walk in is a Slate Grey 911S complete with a big shrine to Steven McQueen.
“This is my 1970 991S built as a tribute to Steven McQueen’s car that he had in the Le Mans movie. He owned the car himself, same colour – Slate Grey, same spec, and it spears in the first four minutes of the iconic movie.”
“I owned a little [1:18 scale] model for two years prior, and the actual car came to market at a Porsche Centre South of Sydney. I went and looked at it in person, and it just wasn’t the right time for me, and then it disappeared. It reappeared at another dealership, and we came to an agreement.”
Holding significant value for Roberts, it is a 1970 model – the same as his birth year – and the 911 just happened to be the exact spec of the famous 911S used in the Le Mans movie.
But there’s another car which catches your eye more so than the 911 – the Little Bastard. Any Porsche tragic would instantly clock this 550 Spyder as a replica of the fateful James Dean car.
The actor, racing driver and heart-throb of the 1950s traded in his 356 for the 550 Spyder in 1955, and had planned to race the new vehicle in Salinas, California, about an hour and 40 minutes drive from San Francisco. Dean decided to drive the car to the race himself, rather than trailering it.
The trip resulted in a fatal accident for 24-year-old Dean, after a collision with another car. The 70th anniversary of the actor's death was commemorated this year.
The 550 Spyder became etched in history as a tragic cult icon for car and film enthusiasts alike.
Roberts' 550 includes a large shrine featuring the last image of Dean taken before his death, along with a 1:18 scale model.
“A collector had it in Queensland, and he was getting elderly. I just kept in contact with him and got him at the right time. He said, The car's yours if you want it.”
Last year, Roberts travelled to the crash site to pay tribute to the late actor, making his example just one step more important.
“It’s a bit of a showstopper. Everywhere I take it, people want to ask me about it, and once you mention James Dean, they realise what it is," he says.
“You sit above the windscreen. So it's just like you get air coming through your face, and you can't keep your eyes open. It's like riding a motorbike —you can get a sense of speed because the wind's hitting you in the face."
But you never forget your first. On the other side of the garage, Roberts has two 924s – one Martini edition and one Turbo – in stunning condition.
“The 924 Turbo is in the iconic Guards Red, and it's got the Porsche's famous Pasha interior. It's almost like psychedelic. You look at it and it gives you a headache. But it's built on the theme of the checkered flag waving," he says.
“This one I spent a lot of money on. But they were entry-level, so they weren't really treated well, since collectors didn't consider them collectibles at the time. But it's only now that they're starting to appreciate.”
While Roberts’ 924 Turbo sits on the rarer end of the spectrum, the real special one is tucked up in the corner: A 924 Martini edition, one of only 20 imported into the country.
Complete with the Martini decals, interior and special edition plaque – it’s the magnum opus of the former athlete's collection.
Roberts' garage is a collection of memorabilia to make any man-cave enthusiast at least a little envious.
“When you take an interest in something and a passion for something, you engage with all that comes with it. The car scene is global, with the worldwide web now, and the buying and selling of memorabilia that I have here. eBay's a good source of that; the things you see on the wall and the petrol bowsers have all come from there," he says.
“[When it comes to collecting] sometimes it is like the, the thrill of the chase type thing, trying to find something.”
It turns out the Ponytail Express is looking to downsize its collection, too, saying it may put some of its cars and memorabilia up for sale on eBay in the near future. But you might have to get in quick before he changes his mind, with a Porsche he owned many years ago still on his mind.
“I had a 993 Turbo that I wish I still had now. It's a very rare car worth a lot of money now. I had that for a few years, only 13 and came to Australia.
“But, they say if you don't love, you never love at all.”
Zane Dobie comes from a background of motorcycle journalism, working for notable titles such as Australian Motorcycle News Magazine, Just Bikes and BikeReview. Despite his fresh age, Zane brings a lifetime of racing and hands-on experience. His passion now resides on four wheels as an avid car collector, restorer, drift car pilot and weekend go-kart racer.
