https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au The complete history of Australia's greatest sporting club Tue, 30 Jan 2024 23:13:09 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.0.21 https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/andrew-schauble/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:02:09 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/andrew-schauble/ https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/jason-wild/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:02:08 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/jason-wild/ https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/gavin-brown/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:01:34 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/gavin-brown/ Brown was a popular and integral part of the 1990 flag team and when he was felled at quarter time it precipitated a huge brawl. He was made skipper in 1994, but struggled in 1995 and 1996 as hamstring injuries restricted him. Talk was rife of other clubs chasing him, but he stayed with the Magpies and continued to serve the club nobly. Just when many were writing him off he made a brilliant response in 1997 and led the Victorian team in his best season for years. In the state game he showed the way to his teammates by totally negating the dangerous Darren Jarman. Over the years much of Brown’s work was not reflected in statistics. His fierce tackling and tenacious work at ground level paved the way for others, and he was considered the ultimate team man. He wasn’t keen on meekly handing over the Collingwood captaincy at the end of 1998, but the club considered it was time to pass the baton to Nathan Buckley. Even Buckley said in mid-season that he had not thought the change necessary and was afraid that change had been made for change’s sake. His performances in 1999 showed that he still had plenty to offer when many thought that his battered body had absorbed enough punishment over the years. He came third in the club best and fairest voting and turned in a year of consistent high quality football. In 1999, despite the side’s struggle at the foot of the ladder, he seemed to thrive on the enthusiasm that was generated by the youngsters around him. His five seasons as captain from 1994 to 1998 would be enough on its own to ensure a place in Collingwood’s Hall of Fame, but he also won the Copeland Trophy as best and fairest on three occasions – 1989, 1994 and 1997- and was twice an All-Australian selection. Ever the ultimate clubman, Brown was a conditioning assistant in 2001 before taking an assistant coaching post from 2002 until the end of 2007. He then led the rebirth of the club’s stand alone VFL team, where he oversaw the development of several 2010 premiership stars before moving to Carlton at the end of the flag campaign. After three years at Princes Park, Brown took up a role as a development coach at North Melbourne ahead of the 2014 season.]]> https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/darren-millane/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:01:24 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/darren-millane/ https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/jamie-turner/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:01:22 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/jamie-turner/ Herald Sun during his career. “It helps you, too. If someone is playing well in a position and you can’t get that spot, it’s good that you can play somewhere else.” Turner always dreamt of emulating the feats of his famous father, Ken, who achieved the ultimate when he was one of Collingwood’s best players in the 1958 premiership side. He was even pictured as a young child in a black and white jumper kicking a ball in front of his father, while club greats Des Tuddenham and Harry Collier watched on. But Turner’s pathway towards carving a successful career never came easily. He had to work hard for all that came his way, yet always put the team ahead of his own requirements He was recruited as a teenager from Montmorency – another club with black and white stripes – to Collingwood in 1980. However, his under 19s coach, Keith Burns, had initial reservations on whether he was going to be good enough. “He played pretty ordinary football,” Burns said of Turner’s first year in the under 19s. “But then Jamie worked his butt off over summer and ended up (as) captain next year. Players can always improve, especially if they have the right attitude.” Turner’s father noted one thing during his time with the under 19s, telling the Sun newspaper years later that “he was always in there helping and shepherding and doing a lot of hard work and I think from that time that’s how he’s continued to play football – as a real team man.” His graduation to training with the senior group brought with it a nickname that lasted nearly his entire league career – the slightly unflattering ‘Nerky’. It came when Magpie veteran of the time, Ray Byrne. Turner recalled: “He (Byrne) kept on forgetting my name, so he called me Fred Nerk.” That was later shortened to ‘Nerky’, and some of his teammates called him that until he retired. Turner had initially been “too skinny” to play against bigger bodied players, but went too far the other way when he tried to put on weight. It wasn’t until 1984 that he finally got his chance to play a senior league game – as a 21-year-old – after a strict diet saw him shed almost eight kilos. “I was a big eater … I used to have a couple of toasted sandwiches at morning tea and a couple of rolls for lunch,” Turner said. “I wasn’t fit and I found, as the games progressed, I was getting tired and my skills dropped.” That changed when he played 14 games in his debut year, including the elimination final against Fitzroy, and he won Collingwood’s most improved award. But just as he had seemingly secured a spot within the senior team a debilitating back injury kept him on the sidelines for all but the final game of 1985. Turner played 21 games in each of the 1986 and 1987 seasons, with the latter year being his best for the club. He was well rewarded on Copeland Trophy night in 1987, when he was third in the best-and-fairest, and he was adjudged the best clubman, as well as winning a second most improved award. He even polled eight Brownlow Medal votes and made the Victorian squad, though if he narrowly missed out on the team. At the time, the Sun’sLou Richards, wrote: “Jamie Turner doesn’t get many wraps from the media, but whenever the coach gives him a job to do, he does it extremely well. If ever there was a kid who is a chip off the old block it is young Jamie, the son of Ken Turner, one of the ‘immortals’ who won Collingwood’s last premiership in, ‘sob’, 1958.” Unassuming in the way he approached his football, Turner was described as “nothing flashy … in a working man’s club, he is a worker’s player – determined, dour and someone who is prepared to risk life and limb for his team.” Turner was a consistent ball winner, having more than 400 disposals across four seasons (1987-90), although his kicking early in his career wasn’t as reliable as it could have been, evidenced by the fact a few of his teammates jokingly dubbed him ‘Apple’ – as in apple turnover. His captain, Tony Shaw, said in his book, A Shaw Thing, “We always put s—- on him because he kept kicking the ball to the opposition  …. then we found out that he couldn’t see properly. He was as blind as a bat. He got contact lenses halfway through the (1990) season and his kicking improved out of sight, so to speak.” That 1990 season would provide Turner, and Collingwood, with an incredible highlight, though it wasn’t without plenty of anguish: Brian Taylor noted in his book BT Diaries that Turner had been vomiting before the second semi-final, so apprehensive was he about possibly being dropped. But he kept his spot, and did the same in the Grand Final a fortnight later, which meant he ended up playing every game in that celebrated season. While he didn’t have a massive impact on the game, he had joined his father as a Collingwood premiership player. In the victorious rooms, he would say: “I thought I was going to run out of time to catch up with Dad (winning a flag). It won’t sink in for a while. After the game Dad just said to me: “You’ve won, you’ve won!” Tony Shaw sensed Turner’s relief when he went over to him in the chaotic scenes in the dressing rooms, saying “Hey, bugger Kenny Turner, ‘Nerky’, this is us now.” He would say of Turner: “I reckon he could play anywhere (on the field). He just keeps getting the nut.”   Shaw also described Turner as “totally loyal to Collingwood” – and coming from his premiership captain, there can be no greater compliment.]]> https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/mark-williams/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:01:07 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/mark-williams/ In Black & White wrote: “There is no such thing as a light-hearted conversation with him when it comes to football. He is intense even when answering the most trivial questions about the game. His obsession with football is undoubtedly a strength. He detests losing and hates playing badly. He loves winning and performing at his peak.” While those words conveniently ignore the lively and outgoing parts of Williams’ personality (it was he who smuggled a black cabbage patch doll into the 1985 team photo), they do neatly sum up his approach to the game back then. That approach might have owed something to his background, because he came from SA football royalty. His father, Fos, was a legend in SA football, having played more than 200 games and won two best and fairests with Port Adelaide. He then captain-coached Port for nine years, coached them for a further 12 years (in all leading them to nine Premierships), then coached West Adelaide. No wonder he and his brothers, Anthony and Stephen, (who were also fine players) were serious about their footy. And Collingwood were the ones to benefit. After an outstanding junior career, Williams found himself playing senior football at age 17, firstly with West Adelaide, then Port. He looked likely to head to Hawthorn but the Hawks lost interest just as Williams was becoming more and more determined to try his luck across the border. That’s when the Magpies stepped in. After winning all-Australian selection and a second flag with Port in 1980, Williams was ready to move. From the moment he stepped through the door he was right at home, both at Collingwood and also in VFL football. He won the Copeland in that debut season and was also chosen to play for Victoria, starting a brief but glorious career in the black-and-white. The key to his success in the VFL was that, unlike many previous SA recruits, Williams played a very Victorian style of football. He was desperate, a fierce competitor, a strong tackier and a player totally committed to doing the hard, team-oriented things. He gave his absolute all for the team every time he played, and wherever he played. Mostly that was as a ruck-rover, in the centre or on the forward line, but he also spent most of his 1985 season – during which he won his second Copeland – as a run-with player assigned to stars such as Leigh Matthews and Tim Watson. He wasn’t a pretty or stylish footballer – his kicking style was actually ungainly – but he was certainly effective. Collingwood had no more gutsy or effective contributor during the first half of the 1980s. He was also more skilled than many appreciated, and actually finished ahead of Peter Daicos in a long-running goalkicking contest the two held before and after training sessions. Still, it was his endeavour and effort and assault on the footy that most people remember – and which his teammates loved. “He read the play well and attacked the ball like a maniac,” wrote Tony Shaw in his book A Shaw Thing. “Desperation-wise he is a bit more along my line of thinking about how a footballer should play the game. I like a bloke who plays like Mark.” It was no surprise when he was made captain in 1983, and he spent four years at the helm, quickly winning a reputation among his teammates as an admired and inspirational leader. In addition to his two Copelands he also won awards for most courageous (after which he remarked that “courage is an indication of the number of times you get stitches in your head”), Magpie of the Year (twice), most consistent (twice) and even leading goalkicker. Despite those achievements he was still on a relatively modest salary at the end of his second contract, but he and the club ran into a dead-end when negotiating the third. That stalemate ended up with Williams crossing to the fledgling Brisbane Bears. It was a move that nobody seemingly wanted. Williams would much rather have stayed. His teammates wanted him to stay too. Their admiration for him was obvious when his career ended four years later, after a game against the Pies in 1990. And he remains a fan favourite, their affection for him apparent again in 2014 when news emerged that he had been diagnosed with lymphoma. Magpie fans were amongst the first and most vocal to support him, even though he was involved with Richmond at the time. By this time, Mark Williams had established himself as a big name in coaching. He’d started in the AFL with Essendon as an assistant coach, then moved to Port Power in the same role before taking over as their head coach in 1999. He stayed there until 2010, winning a flag in 2004, after which he spent time as an assistant with both Greater Western Sydney and Richmond. As a coach he became famous for his intensity, his insight into the game and his skills in educating and dealing with younger players. The highlight of his coaching career came in 2004, when he led Port to their first AFL flag, after a couple of years of near-misses. His post-match antics (grabbing his own necktie as a middle finger to those who’d branded his team ‘chokers’, and his pointed words to club chairman Alan Scott) that day attracted plenty of criticism. But the real story was that Mark Williams’ Port Adelaide team had just beaten the Brisbane Lions, and in the process had protected the four-in-a-row record set by Collingwood’s mighty Machine teams in 1927-30. He must still get a buzz out of knowing that a Collingwood ‘insider’ was significantly responsible for protecting the club’s most cherished record. For one who still clearly loves the Pies, that is overdue reward for all that he gave while wearing the black-and-white jumper. – Michael Roberts]]> https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/denis-banks/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:00:59 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/denis-banks/ nevermanaged an uninterrupted season. We saw the best of Banksy in 1984 and 1990. In the former year he played magnificent football at centre half-forward, despite really being too small for the position. He was a mobile target whose agility and athleticism made him difficult to mind, and whose marking against taller opponents had to be seen to be believed. At times that year he virtually carried the Collingwood attack, even down to performing a fair amount of the ruckwork in the forward line. He became one of the key players in a Collingwood team that was a little undermanned, and his performances that year earned him admiration all around — as well as the R.T. Rush Trophy for runner-up in the Copeland Trophy. As well as becoming the team’s forward target, Banks also provided some badly needed aggression and toughness in attack. Although he looked slight on the field he had a wiry build that was deceptively strong, and in 1984 — as in most other years — he took some fearful knocks without flinching. For once virtually injury-free (he actually managed 18 games in a row), Banks’ confidence gradually returned, and he played the sort of free-flowing football of which he knew he had always been capable. His old spring even returned, and one particularly breathtaking grab against Footscray earned him the mark of the year. Banks turned 25 during that year, and should have been into his peak years as a footballer. But just when it looked like the crowds might yet get to see him at his best, fate again intervened. He suffered groin problems throughout 1985, playing most of his 16 games under an injury cloud. Much of the good work of 1984 was lost. The pattern continued over the next four years, injuries always restricting his appearances or limiting his effectiveness. It became a battle for him just to get on the field each Saturday, let alone worry about playing well. By 1990 his career looked to be over, with a neck injury that many thought would be the last straw. But Banks felt “something big” was about to happen at Collingwood, and he wanted to be a part of it. So he tried physios, doctors and chiropractors and worked with a ballet teacher, just to keep his body flexible. The hard work enabled him to keep playing, and he was rewarded with his best form since 1984. Playing mostly at half-forward and occasionally in defence Banks had a wonderfully consistent season, displaying a kind of football that surprised those detractors who thought he was finished. Then, in the fifth last round, he broke his wrist against St Kilda. The break was so bad that it probably should have meant an eight-week spell; Banks was back on the field in five. The work he put in was an inspiration to his teammates, who saw through his actions just what a Collingwood flag meant to him. Inspiring teammates was something that came easily to Banks. The players had enormous respect for him, and coaches were keen to have him in the side. Part of the reason was that he was Collingwood through and through. His loyalty was as intense as it was unquestioned, and the players understood what he had gone through just to make it on to the field. He was part of the soul of the side. He was also a genuinely good bloke, easygoing and likeable, with a mischievous side that enjoyed practical jokes. It’s no surprise he became good mates with Darren Millane. The other reason he was so valued by his colleagues was that he played a great team game. Banks did a lot of the little, hard things that players notice and appreciate but which often go unrecognised by the fans in the outer. He also brought a hard edge to the Collingwood game, not in a fist-swinging, wild type way but as a genuinely ‘hard’ man at the ball. Carlton’s David Rhys-Jones told the magazine Footy Starsthat his worst moment in football was after he “accidentally clipped” Denis in a game at the MCG in 1986. Rhys-Jones said he knew retribution would be coming; he just was not sure when. He did not have to wait long. Only a few minutes later, Rhys-Jones dropped a routine mark. As he ran to pick up the loose ball Banks appeared from behind and swung a magnificent right hook that broke Rhys-Jones’ jaw. He was out before he hit the ground. To make it even more dramatic Rhys-Jones had been heading straight towards a television camera at the time, and the punch was captured perfectly. Banks was, of course, suspended, but there were many football followers who felt it was worth it. To this day it remains one of the incidents for which Denis Banks is best remembered. But far from the only thing. His colleagues recall a much-loved teammate – courageous and loyal and tough-as-nails. While for Magpie fans it’s the memories of the spectacular marks, the skills, the full-on attack on the footy and the crunching tackles that come first to mind. Always though, tinged with a little regret that one of the most injury-cursed players in Collingwood history never quite got the clear run at it his talents and commitment deserved. – Michael Roberts]]> https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/tony-shaw/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:00:56 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/tony-shaw/ https://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/ron-wearmouth/ Wed, 16 Jul 2014 12:00:24 +0000 http://forever.collingwoodfc.com.au/players/ron-wearmouth/ He could well have played his league football elsewhere. His father, Dick, played 100 games for Footscray in the 1940s and early 1950s, and his son could have followed him under the father-son rule. Fitzroy was also an option for a young Ronnie Wearmouth, as it controlled the zone around Terang, where he played some senior football in 1968. But Dick was happy for his son to play with Collingwood, the club controlling the zone for Noorat, the tiny town where Ronnie played his first senior football, and where his family ran a dairy farm. Part of the reason for choosing Collingwood was that the club’s vice-president and 1936 premiership player Jim Crowe had coached Wearmouth’s father at Footscray. “Dad suggested I play at Victoria Park because of its stronger and more stable administration,” Ron would recall. He joined Collingwood in 1969, and it is no surprise his hairstyle drew as much attention as his football ability in first year. As detailed in Michael Roberts’ A Century of the Best, one night at training Magpies coach Bob Rose “came out, pinned him to the ground and gave him ‘one of the best basin cuts you’ve ever seen'”. Des Tuddenham recalled saying to the teenager from Noorat: “You can’t look like a girl, son, if you’re going to play a man’s game.” Wearmouth wouldn’t listen. He grew his locks back as soon as he could. Wearmouth made his VFL debut in round 14, 1969, against Melbourne, wearing the No.48 jumper, having 11 disposals. Doug Gott was the other debutant in the Magpies’ two-point victory over the Demons. It would be his only senior match that season. He wasn’t surprised, saying later: “To be honest, I was a little out of my depth. I wasn’t conditioned and I was skinny and not ready for a game of senior football.” Wearmouth was demoted to the supplementary list for a period in 1970, with concerns over his capacity for hard work and training. But, now wearing the No.35 jumper, he won his way back into the seniors for six games in the second half of the season, though he lost his place for the finals. Inconsistency and a lack of discipline at times cost him in his early years at Collingwood. A few suspensions earned him the reputation of being a “hothead”, but he was at least elevated to the No.5 jumper for the 1972 season when Neil Mann took over as coach. He rejected the advances of other clubs, with his father urging him to stay. Wearmouth decided to knuckle down as best as he could. The arrival of Murray Weideman as coach brought another transformation for Wearmouth. In some ways, he was a kindred spirit to the coach, and he was given more time on the ball as rover, and less time in the forward pocket. While the two seasons Weideman coached Collingwood proved to be a tumultuous time, Wearmouth established himself as one of the club’s most consistent and determined players. He played 11 games in Weideman’s first year in 1975, but flourished the following year as one of the few highlights in what was a gloomy season. He finished third in the Copeland Trophy in that wooden spoon year. Wearmouth took his game to a new level when Tom Hafey joined the club as coach in 1977. He said: “Hafey put consistency into my game and under him I played something like 70 to 80 games in a row.” He became fitter and seemingly more explosive under the strict training regimen. He may not have had the aesthetics of some of his more gifted teammates, but he more than made up for it with grit and determination. He missed only one game in 1977, with one of his finest performances coming with 31 disposals and a goal in the second semi-final win over Hawthorn. He was a solid performer in the two Grand Finals that season, but the fairytale that Collingwood fans had been hoping for sadly didn’t eventuate. After a drawn Grand Final, the Magpies were no match for North Melbourne in the replay. Sadly, for Wearmouth, and his team, there would be more heartache to follow. The 1978 season ended in the preliminary final; and two more Grand Final losses followed in 1979 (by five points) and 1980 (81 points). Injuries cost him the chance to make a play for another Grand Final slot in 1981. He played only eight games in his final AFL season, with his final game coming against Richmond in round 20. It was his 186th and last VFL match, with his career closing only a month after his 30th birthday, and after 13 seasons in black and white. His greatest regret, as expected, was never winning a premiership: “We came close that many times but could never manage to win one.” He played for and coached a number of clubs in country Victoria and Queensland, losing further grand finals for Port Fairy and Western Districts. “For a while I thought it was me who was jinxed. But I finally broke the drought when I played for Caloundra in Queensland,” he said in 1990. No one would have begrudged him finally tasting premiership success, even if it was at a local level. For everyone seemed to love Ronnie Wearmouth. He has remained in touch with some of his Magpies teammates, who adored his personality and love of a good time. Just as strong has been his bond with the Collingwood army, who still fondly recall him to this day.]]>