Hi all, long time stalker first time poster. Hope I survive my first outing.
Looking back at images of a young Dusty being drafted, essentially the first player in after Dimma's appointment, it occurs to me that after 244 games Damien Hardwick is still the only head coach he has played under at AFL level. This is actually a bit of a rarity.
I hope you guys will correct me if I'm wrong, but a bit of a quick check tells me that the Gordon Coventry/Jock McHale partnership looks like the most enduring player/coach relationship in VFL/AFL history with 306 (or 305, I'll explain the discrepancy) games. I've checked some of the obvious ones - Harvey/Pagan, Tuck/Jeans, Hodge/Clarkson. None of them really come close. Even Fletcher/Sheedy ended at about 286 games. I'm thinking that if Hardwick maintains the desire to keep coaching, and Martin keeps playing, they could well own this record within 3 seasons, certainly 4.
The Coventry/McHale discrepancy stems from the 1930 Grand Final in which McHale was absent with illness. He's still credited with being that seasons Premiership coach, but he wasn't even in attendance at the ground that day, and Bob Rush took charge of the Pies. With this in mind, it's also possible, maybe with some dispute, that Dustin Martin could become the first player to play from debut to game number 300 under the one coach.
I know I'm jumping the gun and a lot can happen in 3 seasons, but their relationship as player and coach is one already celebrated by Tigers fans, and to have actual statistics back up what most of us already think would make celebrating their relationship even sweeter. Anyway, I've nerded out enough. If any of you have any data that says different I'd honestly love to know. Thanks guys.
Looking back at images of a young Dusty being drafted, essentially the first player in after Dimma's appointment, it occurs to me that after 244 games Damien Hardwick is still the only head coach he has played under at AFL level. This is actually a bit of a rarity.
I hope you guys will correct me if I'm wrong, but a bit of a quick check tells me that the Gordon Coventry/Jock McHale partnership looks like the most enduring player/coach relationship in VFL/AFL history with 306 (or 305, I'll explain the discrepancy) games. I've checked some of the obvious ones - Harvey/Pagan, Tuck/Jeans, Hodge/Clarkson. None of them really come close. Even Fletcher/Sheedy ended at about 286 games. I'm thinking that if Hardwick maintains the desire to keep coaching, and Martin keeps playing, they could well own this record within 3 seasons, certainly 4.
The Coventry/McHale discrepancy stems from the 1930 Grand Final in which McHale was absent with illness. He's still credited with being that seasons Premiership coach, but he wasn't even in attendance at the ground that day, and Bob Rush took charge of the Pies. With this in mind, it's also possible, maybe with some dispute, that Dustin Martin could become the first player to play from debut to game number 300 under the one coach.
I know I'm jumping the gun and a lot can happen in 3 seasons, but their relationship as player and coach is one already celebrated by Tigers fans, and to have actual statistics back up what most of us already think would make celebrating their relationship even sweeter. Anyway, I've nerded out enough. If any of you have any data that says different I'd honestly love to know. Thanks guys.
