FOR 40 minutes Gary Ablett faced the music, after announcing just one of many badly kept secrets in AFL football - he's off to the Gold Coast.
A
total of 24 TV cameras turned up at Crown to film his press conference,
and the ''say it aint so'' question came from one reporter, who asked
what the ''upset kids with No. 29 on their jumpers down at Geelong
would think of him now that he's going.
Of course, defection is hardly new in football, even for players like Ablett with strong family ties to their club.
So, before they start burning effigies of
Ablett down at Corio Bay - his image was axed from the club's website
yesterday morning - here's a reminder of some of the more famous footy
departures.
1. Ron Barassi
The son of Melbourne player Ron Barassi Snr was just the second player to be picked up under the AFL's father-son rule, in 1952. Ron Barassi Jnr
was zoned to either Collingwood or Carlton, so Melbourne lobbied the
VFL for the new rule. Barassi played in six Demon premiership sides,
and captained two, when Carlton offered him the princely sum of £5000
to join as captain-coach. The news of his move was announced just two
days before Christmas, in 1964, and rocked the football world. Barassi,
right, would go on to coach the Blues to two premierships.
2. Gary Ablett
''IT HAS been week of half-truths, misinformation, and straight out lies,'' quipped one respected football writer at Gary Ablett's
press conference yesterday. Despite protestations that Ablett's
decision was only made this week, all season only the most die-hard
Cats fans have held out any hope of the superstar staying. At the age
of just 26, Ablett is one of the most decorated players in the game,
and has been at the top of Gold Coast's shopping list for a year. With
a big tick next to it, we suggest.
3. Tony Lockett
IN 198 matches with St Kilda, Tony Lockett
booted 898 goals, twice won the Coleman Medal, kicked a century of
goals in three seasons, and in 1987 become the only full-forward to win
the Brownlow. Teammate Robert Harvey declared him the best
player he had ever seen. At the end of the 1994 season, just about
every club wanted Lockett. Collingwood and Richmond led the pack, but
most believed a deal with Sydney had already been done. On September
16, The Age ran the headline ''Swans join race for Saints
Lockett with $1 million bid''. That day, Lockett walked out on St
Kilda, amid claims by the Saints of a ''dirty tricks campaign''.
Lockett went on to be the game's greatest goal-kicker.
4. Greg Williams
THE first time Greg Williams
switched clubs, from Geelong to the Swans, his wage reputedly
skyrocketed from $29,000 per season to $100,000. But that wasn't the
biggest, or most stunning, move of his career. In a last-minute bid,
under the noses of St Kilda and the Swans, Carlton secured the Brownlow
medallist at the end of the 1991 season. His wage would triple again,
to $300,000, and he was unveiled at the club's best and fairest.
Williams, right, would go on to win a second Brownlow, a Norm Smith
Medal and a flag.
5. Chris Judd
IN HIS 134 games with West Coast, Chris Judd
captained the club to a premiership, won the Brownlow and won the club
champion award four times. Like so much in his life, his move to
Melbourne was executed brilliantly. Judd held out and did not sign a
contract with the Eagles during 2007. Two days after the club was
eliminated from the finals, on September 16, he informed the club he
wanted to return to Melbourne. In the next two weeks, Judd met with
Essendon, Melbourne, Collingwood and Carlton. A week later, he
announced Carlton was his preferred club, and the deal was signed on
October 11. It took exactly four weeks.
6. Ian Stewart
FROM 1963 until 1970, Ian Stewart
played 127 games and won two Brownlow Medals with St Kilda, and played
in the club's only premiership team in 1966. In 1969 he was made
captain. Then came the famous swap. In what Stewart described as a
sting'', the Saints were led to believe Stewart would be heading to
Perth to coach. Richmond's young star Billy Barrot was put up
as a replacement. When the Saints signed him, Stewart put in a transfer
request to Richmond, and would go on to win a third Brownlow in 1971,
and another flag in 1973.
7. Daniel 'Danny' Minogue
THE
tough miner from Bendigo had famously played out the 1911 grand final
with a broken collarbone. In six seasons with the Magpies, Dan Minogue managed 85 games, and was captain for his final three seasons. According to legend, he was angry with the treatment of mate Jim Sadler
by the Pies, and walked out. He had to stand out of football for a year
before joining Richmond. It was the kind of-cross town move that could
get you hurt on the streets of Melbourne in 1920, but he
captain-coached the Tigers to a flag.
8. Peter Moore
WINNER of the 1979 Brownlow, Collingwood captain, two Copeland trophies, four grand finals - Peter Moore
was Magpie royalty when Melbourne came knocking in 1983. Collingwood
fans were furious, but the Demons' chequebook won the day. Moore would
go on and win a second Brownlow in 1984.
9. Kelvin Templeton
THE Footscray forward was a superstar of the 1970s. In 143 games for the Bulldogs, Kelvin Templeton
kicked 494 goals, won the 1980 Brownlow, two best and fairests, topped
the goal-kicking at the club five years in a row and won two Coleman
Medals. Then, in 1982, Melbourne came knocking. Moore and Templeton
were meant to bring the Dees a flag, but it never happened. In 34
games, he managed 99 goals, but injuries caught up with him.
10. North Melbourne
IN
1972, the VFL introduced a 10-year rule, allowing a player to swap
clubs after a decade of service. North Melbourne jumped at the chance,
and signed champions Barry Davis from Essendon, Doug Wade from Geelong and John Rantall
from South Melbourne. The trio was the foundation of the club's
premiership success of 1975. The VFL's 10-year rule lasted a mere one.
Last Modified on 30/09/2010 15:30
