Football great Barry Cable argues for judge-alone trial as State seeks to adduce ‘propensity’ evidence

Barry Cable is pushing for his child sex abuse trial to be heard by a judge — not a jury — while the State seeks to introduce evidence it claims shows his propensity to commit such crimes. Lawyers for the football great flagged a bid for a judge-alone trial in February because of concerns the 81-year-old would not get a fair jury trial amid heavy media coverage of the historical allegations. Mr Cable was charged in May 2024 with five counts of indecently dealing with a girl under 13 and two counts of carnal knowledge of a child under 13, allegedly committed in Perth in the late 1960s. The judge-alone application was made to District Court of WA Judge John Staude on Thursday as the ex-footballer sat in the dock, with his sons Shane and Barry Junior providing support from the public gallery. Prosecutor Kim Jennings also applied to adduce evidence from three witnesses at a trial to be held for Barry Cable starting on March 10, 2026. She argued there were similarities between Mr Cable’s case and separate allegations dating back to the early 1980s. Ms Jennings said the two complainants in that matter had lived in Mr Cable’s Melbourne neighbourhood, were aged nine to 12 and were indecently assaulted by him in a spa while others were present. The claims were not the subject of any charges. Ms Jennings said the allegation to be tested at trial involved a “vulnerable” child aged about nine who was abused while no one else was there. Defence counsel Tom Percy argued against the prosecution’s application, questioning “whether there was any abuse at all”. He said the allegations were “so different” but “a striking similarity” was the common law test. “You can’t just say he had a generalised interest in young girls and had a tendency to act on it,” Mr Percy said. “It just doesn’t get off the ground ... there is no ‘aha’ moment, when you look at what is said to have happened in Melbourne. “It was completely different. There’s really no similarity at all.” Ms Jennings said there was also the historic complaint at the centre of an earlier civil trial involving a woman who claimed Mr Cable “was touching her under the water” when she was aged 12. The Perth woman won, with the allegations found to be substantially true on the balance of probabilities. Mr Cable firmly denies all of the claims. Judge Staude will deliver his decision on Friday.