- Saverio Rocca has lifted the lid on how he stopped a shoplifter on Sunday
- He was doing his Christmas shopping when the incident took place
- He had chased the thief as the individual had attempted to leave the store
Saverio Rocca leapt to the defence of a retail assistant on Sunday as he revealed he chased down a thief who had attempted to steal clothes from a Melbourne clothing store.
The 51-year-old is understood to have been shopping in JD Sports doing his Christmas shopping in the Northland Shopping Centre when an individual attempted to run out of the store with several items without paying.
A legend at both Collingwood and North Melbourne, having made 257 appearances between 1992 and 2007 as a full-forward, Rocca recounted how he told the individual to give the items back, before heroically chasing after the thief.
‘I saw a guy, maybe mid-20s, rip some clothes from a shop assistant’s hands and I said to the girl: “Is he stealing that” and she said: “Yes”,’ Rocca told The Herald Sun.
‘I asked him to give them back and he said: “Nah, I’m leaving” and he started running.
‘Stupid me, I started chasing him and I was running out the door yelling a few F-words and I said: “If I catch you I’ll fix you up”. He decided to drop all the clothes and said: “All right”.
AFL and NFL legend Saverio Rocca has lifted the lid on how he heroically chased after a shoplifter on Sunday
Rocca was said to havebeen doing his Christmas shopping in JD Sports in the Northland Shopping Centre when a thief snatched some clothes from a retail assistant
The former Collingwood and North Melbourne star chased after the thief before the individual put the cothes on the stolen items on the ground, with Rocca subsequently returning the items
‘It felt like 3km, but it was probably only 50m and I felt like I was flying, like back in the old days. That’s the quickest I’ve run since the footy field I reckon,’ he added.
Rocca later explained that the pair had just exchanged a few words before the thief handed them back.
‘We didn’t come in contact, we just exchanged a few words and I picked up the clothes and dropped them back. If he had have kept going I don’t think I could have kept up much longer,’ he added.
As recompense for his heroics, the Herald Sun claims Rocca was given a 40 per cent discount by JD towards a new pair of trainers.
After his playing career, Rocca went on to enjoy a stint in the NFL, playing as a punter for the Philadephia Eagles and Washington Redskins between 2007 and 2013.
He holds the record as being the oldest player to be rookie-listed in the history of the NFL, having joined the Eagles at the age of 33.
During his AFL career, Rocca booted a whopping 748 goals for both the Magpies and the Kangaroos, being crowned Collingwood’s leading goalkicker on seven occasions. He was also crowned the Kangaroo’s top goal scorer on three occasions.
Reflecting further on the shoplifting incident, Rocca added that he was glad the thief was not armed at the time.
Rocca would go on to become the oldest rookie-draftee in the history of the NFL, joining up with the Philadelphia Eagles, aged 33
Recounting the incident, Rocca said: ‘I’m just sick of hearing all these stories that people are stealing’
‘Afterwards, I had to think about what I just did, because you don’t have time to think,’ Rocca added.
‘I’m just glad he didn’t have a weapon or a knife.
‘I’m just sick of hearing all these stories that people are stealing. They said it happens all the time and it’s just happening everywhere.’
Michael Voss was also seen chasing after a pair of teenagers while on his morning coffee run earlier this year in Melbourne after they had stolen a Mercedes Benz and crashed the four-wheel drive. The Carlton coach is understood to have tackled one of the thieves as police arrived on the scene.
