DARREN MONCRIEFF
Saturday 8 October, 2011
HE is often regarded as one of the greatest footballers to have played the game and few could argue at the way Maurice Rioli changed the way mainstream society viewed Aboriginal players.
There was an air of expectation when the late, great Rioli joined Richmond for the then 1982 VFL season, having crossed from the west after a successful stint with South Fremantle in the WAFL.
His sublime skills were matched by a fierce competitive nature and, coupled with a strong work ethic, the Tiwi Islander quickly became a fan favourite at Tigerland.
In all, Rioli (pictured in action for thr Tigers) would go on to play 118 games for Richmond between 1982 and 1987, and would forge a reputation as one of the hardest player to match up on.
His first season at Richmond coincided with the Tigers' rise to the 1982 Grand Final, which saw Rioli win the Norm Smith Medal as that game's best player, becoming the first to win the award playing in a losing side.
But it was his off-field demeanour that would endear Rioli to football fans. His quiet, unassuming ways masked his homesickness and difficulty adjusting to the bitterly cold Melbourne winters, a world away from life on the tropical Tiwi Islands. But his determination was to succeed as a top-level footballer, which he did.
Now Richmond has paid tribute to Rioli, last week unveiling the Maurice Rioli Room at its Punt Road base in Melbourne.
Members of Rioli's family were present as a unique portrait of the dual Jack Dyer Medallist (Richmond fairest-and-best) and 1982 Norm Smith Medallist was revealed which will accompany the naming of the room.
A former Richmond team-mate, another regarded as one of football's greats, Kevin Bartlett, described Rioli as "an extraordinary player".
"I played just the two years with Maurice -- in 1982 and 1983 -- but when I picked the best team of Richmond players I had played with, in a book I did recently, I had no hesitation in including him in it," Bartlett said.
"In 1982, which was his first year at Richmond, we made the Grand Final and he won our best and fairest.
"(Former team-mate) Francis Bourke believes Maurice was the greatest tackler to ever play the game. His chasing and harassment of the opposition was amazing, as was his ability to zig-zag his way out of trouble.
"He was loved by all his team-mates at Richmond. He was very quietly spoken, but a person of great determination."
In 1983, after just his second season in the VFL, Rioli lost the Brownlow Medal to Western Australian Ross Glendinning by one vote. Had he had won, he would have been the first Indigenous player to win the game's most coveted individual award.
Richmond Football Club CEO, Brendon Gale, paid tribute to Rioli.
"At Richmond, we are extremely proud of our history and of those individuals, players and volunteers, who have built the club into what it is," he said.
"There's no doubt Maurice Rioli was a very significant figure in the history of our club, so we have a responsibility to celebrate his legacy.
"Maurice was a champion of this football club, but he was also a champion of his people. He worked hard to close the gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australia and create opportunities for young Indigenous people.
"We believe this is a place that Maurice would be really proud of -- a place embedded in Tigerland that is dedicated to supporting Indigenous youth.
"Naming this The Maurice Rioli Room is entirely appropriate, given his life transcended this football club and everything this Institute stands for."
AboriginalFootball@westnet.com.au
Last Modified on 11/10/2011 00:16