Monday 11 August 2014

2014 Round 23, Quarter time.

12th August Birthdays.
 
Jamie Turner 1962, Shane Wakelin 1974.

 PLAYER OF THE DAY. Troy Cook, born 12th August 1976.
It was probably a disappointment for Troy to miss out on being drafted when he first tried in 1994, but 2 years later, after coming second in the Sandover Medal, he was picked up by Sydney.  

Working on improving his skills, when he did make it into the senior team he played 20 games in his first season. He became an important part of the Swans midfield and from 1997 to 1999 he played 43 games for 11 goals.

The year 2000 saw him move back west to join Fremantle and he was able to notch up another 150 games up until 2007 and kick 66 goals. Winning the clubs Best and Fairest in 2000, he averaged 20 possessions a game in 2002 and played in every fixture game in 2005, just missing out on playing in the finals due to injury.

Source: The Encyclopaedia Of AFL Footballers.

 
McKenna V Lepitsch.
Round 18 2014, a local derby between the Brisbane Lions and the Gold Coast Suns.  The Suns had a good start to the year but injuries were starting to take their toll.  Conversely, the Lions had a poor start to the season but were starting to win a few games.
In the coaches boxes two red headed ex-players, one a coach with a few years experience, the other in his first season.

Guy McKenna, coaching the Suns, was a champion in the early years of the West Coast Eagles.  Always seeming to be in control he fitted  well into a strong back line and from 1988 to 2000 he played 267 games for 28 goals.
During his career he was Best and Fairest twice, All Australian three times, captained the club in his last 2 seasons and was in the Premiership teams of 1992 and 1994.

Justin Leppitsch was back coaching at the club where he had played 227 games from 1993 to 2006 and kicked 194 goals.  Though he will probably be best remembered as a solid defender he was actually the clubs leading goal scorer in 1997 and ’98.
Other personal achievements include, 3 time Premiership player, Best and Fairest in 1999 and 3 time All Australian.


And just for the record, Justins Lions took the honours on the day.
Source: The Encyclopaedia Of AFL Footballers & Wikipedia.

‘Bucky’.
Gary Buckenara was just one of the many great players to be in the Hawthorn teams of the last 30 years.
Playing between 1982 and 1990, he was part of 4 Premiership winning teams out of his 154 games and 293 goals.
Despite having knee problems during his career he was still a fine player and a long kicker of the ball.
A state player for Western Australia, he did a short stint as coach of Sydney in 1992-93 but only managed a winning percentage of 12%.
Source: The Encyclopaedia Of AFL Footballers & Wikipedia.
 
 
3 X 35 for North.
Jack Edwards donned the number 35 jersey for North Melbourne in 114 games from 1951 to 1959 and kicked just 1 goal.
As you would expect from the low number of goals, he played in the back line, doing a particularly good job at full-back.
He won the Best and Fairest in 1956 and represented Victoria in 1959.

John Longmire was a prolific goal scorer for the Kangaroos and won the Coleman medal in 1990. 
With the club from 1988 to 1999 he played 200 games for 511 goals, missing the whole of the 1996 season due to a knee reconstruction.
A Premiership player in 1999 he also won the clubs goal kicking from 1990 to 1994.

Troy Makepeace stepped into big shoes when he took on the number 35 in 2000 and did it quite well, notching up 139 games and kicking 37 goals up to the end of the 2006 season.
Working his way into the team he became a solid, reliable player as a utility/defender and placed well in the Best and Fairest a number of times.
Source: The Encyclopaedia Of AFL Footballers & Wikipedia.

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