Dane Swan was an unconventional footy figure. Kelvin Templeton was a classical player. The pair headline the inductees this year to the hall of fame.
As of Tuesday night, he’s in the Australian Football Hall of Fame, but he was already a legend in the unofficial Hall of Tattooed Fame, alongside Martin, former teammate Dayne Beams, and long preceded by Fitzroy grandee Kevin Murray and Footscray and Richmond hard man Robbie McGhie.Acclaiming Swan on Tuesday night, you could say words painted a thousand pictures. But initially, those tattoos hid a formidable footballer.
But the times suited him; they were dominated by mass-possession midfielders frequently rotated via unlimited interchange. Swan averaged nearly 27 a game, second only to Greg Williams, and in some games it was nearly 50 as the crowd counted them out loud. At his best, he was as compelling a figure as any in the game.He was also the first footballer I heard complain about getting stuck in a game, far from the pitstop of the bench.
Templeton began prodigiously. His parents had to drive up from the Latrobe Valley to take him to his first game, against Collingwood at Victoria Park. He was 17. He kicked six goals. He was just 24, but already injuries were hobbling him. In the last six years of his career – two for the Dogs, three for Melbourne after a big-money, high-profile move – he played just 54 games.Unquestionably, fame is harder won in the lower reaches. Templeton’s career has been somewhat obscured because he played for two unfashionable clubs in lean times. In his century year, the Dogs finished second last. In his Brownlow year, they were last. He only played in one final.
Michael Graham, aka “The Flash”, played footy the year round, for Sturt in the winter and St Mary’s in Darwin in the wet. It makes his game count rubbery, but he did win a slew of premierships and medals, and is in the Indigenous Team of the Century.
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