On the eve of Sir Doug Nicholls Rounds, where a celebration of Indigenous culture will be on show across the nation, it’s appropriate that in the lead-up to the annual Essendon-Richmond Dreamtime at the ‘G clash, we hear from one of the most decorated players in football history - Gavin Wanganeen.
Speaking from Windy Hill for the twelfth episode of historical podcast Fabric of the Essendon Football Club, Wanganeen said he retains “really happy and positive memories” of his six seasons (1991-96) and 127 games at the club. “I just love to get back here. It’s very spiritual. You’ve got that energy and that spiritual feeling when you come here; that connection.”
Back in 1991, however, the shy and polite teenager who arrived from SANFL club Port Adelaide received an immediate culture shock in the form of Essendon’s dual premiership coach Kevin Sheedy.
“‘Sheeds’ expected you to be hard and tough and relentless,” Wanganeen explained. “He wanted you to play hard, tough footy. It was rugged, it was tough, it was not taking a backward step. But he was also able to mix things up and give players an opportunity in different positions. He wasn’t scared to mix it up, so he was creative.”
An example of Sheedy’s creativeness was when he sent Wanganeen from the forward line to a back pocket, sensing he could utilise his attacking flair to provide rebound out of the Essendon back half.
“He thought, ‘Hang on, we’ll give you a go in defence, Gav. You might be able to have a bit of freedom here.’ And so, I went back into defence and just took the game on. I didn’t have much time to think about it, because the call came in [the middle of] a game. It wasn’t like we’d had a team meeting during the week and he’d said, ‘Gavin, you’ve gotta play in defence.’ It was spur of the moment. The runner, Bryan Wood, came out and said, ‘You go into the back pocket on so and so,’ and so I ran up there - he had to show me where to go, because I’d never played there before. I played on this guy and, whenever the ball came near, I just left him, got the footy and I ran it out and took them on.”
The move of Wanganeen to defence proved yet another Sheedy masterstroke. In 1993, Wanganeen became the first Indigenous player to win the Brownlow Medal, with his attacking flair and remarkable courage key components in the famous 'Baby Bombers' team that captured the attention of everyone throughout that memorable season.
“It certainly was an amazing time in my life, and in the club’s history,” Wanganeen said. “That 1993 Baby Bombers side is so well known, because it was a premiership that came from nowhere. It was a year that was full of excitement and full of unknown, and we jagged a premiership with a bunch of kids and a bunch of old fellas who could still play at the highest level. Sheeds liked the young fellas having a go and not being restricted in any way, not being held back, and he was positive in regards to playing with a bit of flair - he liked that. Trying to break the game open. Full credit to Sheeds for allowing the young fellas to play that way, because I think that’s what, in a way, really did worry the opposition - our speed and our flair and our energy.”
On Grand Final day against Carlton, another Indigenous star in Michael Long turned in a Norm Smith Medal-winning performance, bouncing and weaving his way into football history. Long’s goal in the first quarter has been replayed countless times and still brings a chill to the spine. But, as Wanganeen explained, only partly in jest, he almost eclipsed Longy’s brilliance with his own memorable run in the final quarter. Starting in the back pocket, Wanganeen worked the ball the length of the field and it appeared a certainty that the skilful ball-user was set for one of the greatest Grand Final goals of all-time.
“I ran all that way, full speed, kicked it to Longy, got the handball back off Longy, kept running, kicked it to Hirdy, he dropped it then he recovered and I ran past him for the handball, he gave me the handball and I kept taking these bounces. I had to get around big Earl Spalding, which was easy enough to do, because he was seven-foot-seven, then I tried to roll it across the goals from about 30 metres out, when I could have just ran over [to] the line and kicked the greatest Grand Final goal of all time. But I fluffed it, and I’ll never, ever forgive myself for that.”
Long was a mentor from the moment Wanganeen arrived at Windy Hill. In 1995, after Long was racially abused on Anzac Day against Collingwood, the courage he demonstrated post-game to bring the issue of racism in sport on to the national agenda was an act that Wanganeen remains appreciative of to this day.
“It was so important for 'Longy' to make a stand, because Indigenous players had copped it from time to time; it was sort of almost like the norm back in the day and they were the times. And Michael Long changed that for the better, to push towards equality. For him to make that stand, and for the footy club to support him, and for the AFL to step up and show unbelievable leadership in our great code of AFL to bring in the Racial Vilification Act (known as Rule 30), was such a great thing. And it’s pretty much stamped out racism on the footy field to this day. It’s just that we get the odd silly person in the crowd who feel they can make some comments.
“I think, as a rule, it’s getting better and better and we’re heading in the right direction. Longy was the pioneer [of that], and also Nicky Winmar [at St Kilda], but it was great that Longy was the one who actually made it happen.”
Fabric of the Essendon Football Club is a weekly 20-episode series powered by Liberty, featuring in-depth chats between club historian Dan Eddy and 20 of the club’s most adored names across multiple decades. You can listen via Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.
