Geelong Cats great and media personality Sam Newman has taken a trip down memory lane as a Point Lonsdale home owned by his family for 85 years goes on the market for the first time.
Willyama has remained within the Newman family since the former footballer’s father Noel bought the property at 40 Kirk Rd in 1939.
Newman and partner Sue Stanley filmed their trip down memory lane, driving down the Bellarine Peninsula in his striking red 1959 Cadillac to visit the home where Newman said he lived before being recruited to play for the Geelong Football Club.
Willyama at 40 Kirk Rd, Point Lonsdale, is on the market for the first time in 85 years.
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Willyama became a cherished family retreat across decades of summers and family gatherings and even the early development of Point Lonsdale.
In more recent years, the original house was rebuilt by Geelong builder Bell & Fulton for Newman’s late sister, creating a home that honours the spirit of the original site while embracing refined contemporary coastal living.
In two videos published on his YouTube channel, Newman recounted how his mother and sister created and tended to the beautiful garden on the 1182sq m property.
AFL and media personality Sam Newman visited his childhood home Willyama.
“This is just a nice nostalgic memory of a great property and my sister,” Newman said.
Newman said his father gave the house it’s name, Willyama, which he believed was an Indigenous word meaning “over the crest”.
“It’s not quite the house it was when I was here in the late ’40s to the early ’60s,” he said.
“I think we had a wood stove in the early days. My father had the ice blocks in the Coolgardie fridge.
“I lived here before I started playing football with Geelong, when I moved to Geelong.”
The property occupies an exclusive “old Lonsdale” location, close to the Lonsdale Golf Club and a short walk to the beach and shopping village.
An open-plan living zone at rear of the home opens to a covered outdoor entertaining area.
The kitchen has a walk-in pantry and connects to the laundry.
Landscaped gardens surround the covered outdoor zone.
Fletchers Queenscliff agent Anna Fletcher said the property represents a rare combination of provenance, lifestyle and emotional connection.
“Point Lonsdale has always attracted families who value tradition, connection and community,” Ms Fletcher said.
“Homes like this are incredibly rare because they are often passed quietly from one generation to the next.
“Willyama carries a genuine sense of permanence, the kind of home that becomes part of a family’s identity over time.”
The five-bedroom home is surrounded with landscaped gardens.
Willyama at 40 Kirk Rd, Point Lonsdale, is on the market for the first time in 85 years.
The old Lonsdale property is walking distance to the main village shopping strip.
Conjunctional agent Jock Langley of Abercromby’s said properties with this level of family continuity and emotional connection are extraordinarily rare.
“The fact the land has remained within the same family since 1939 gives it genuine historical and sentimental significance,” Mr Langley said.
Willyama is expected to attract strong interest from both local and Melbourne-based buyers in a deadline sale closing 3pm on June 12.
Price expectations are $3.6m to $3.95m.
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