BACKS
Andrew Bews
Nicknamed 'The Rat', he was a great prankster around the Brisbane change-rooms. He once pinched my car keys from my training bag and went to get a second key cut at the locksmith across the street, before slipping the keys back into my bag. After every training run for the next month I found my car parked in a different position from where I had originally parked it in the car park. A strong, quick and agile player.

Danny Frawley
It was tough in those days playing at full-back against great full-forwards like Dunstall, Ablett, Salmon and Modra. Midfielders were not encouraged to push back and fill holes, so it was pretty much left to the defenders. Danny could hold his own with strength and competitive aggression and I don’t recall a time when a bag of goals was kicked on him.

Dale Kickett
Loved taking a grab above the packs and started his football career in the forward 50. At Fremantle moved to the defensive 50 and forged a stellar career with his rebounding run. Extremely quiet off the field but when he crossed that white boundary line, he was one of the great competitors who never left anything in the tank. Very loyal.

HALF-BACKS
John Gastev
There wasn’t much body size to Johnny but he had the ability to compete against much stronger opponents. He could either mark the ball in one-on-one contests or win it on the ground, then distribute to breaking midfielders on the wing. Struggled to see the football under lights due to pretty bad eyesight. Contacts would have been handy! A wonderful fella who also loved getting away from the pressure of the modern day game by catching a wave.

Richard Champion
Had the ability to play at centre half-back or full-back and loved the challenge of playing on superstar key forwards. Loved the counter-attack style of the game by pouncing on the loose ball, gathering with the one hand (a trait that Champion loved) then having a few bounces out of the defensive area before delivering to the forwards (skipping the wingmen).

James Clement
Had arms on him that you could run on. Started out as a forward but finished as an All-Australian defender. He would use his body strength one-on-one to manoeuvre the forward under the football, thus gathering the advantage to mark the ball. He would quickly run off to set up attacking moves for his team. A booming right foot that launched the pig skin long distances forward.

CENTRES
Nigel Lappin
One of the 'Fab Four' alongside Voss, Akermanis and Black during the premiership era at the Lions. A great player over a long period of time, through an output that not many direct opponents could sustain. Had excellent pace with a great side-step from approaching tacklers that allowed him to hit those low projectile passes to the forwards.

Nathan Buckley
Destined to get what he deserved in football as a player, as his work ethic to improve his game was meticulous and always professional. Had a football entrenched in his hands on all occasions, except when going to the toilet. A raking right-foot kick, strong body, focused and competitive, he loved competing on the big stage. A perfectionist.

Gilbert McAdam
A St Kilda and Brisbane teammate and one of the great characters of the game. Extremely elusive with his movements when in possession of the football and a great decision-maker. He would keep teammates on their toes if not distributing the ball to him when in a better position as he loved running with the football and kicking a goal. A happy character that was always up and about on game day.

HALF-FORWARDS
Nicky Winmar
Swooped on loose ball gets with speed and precision, then weaved his way through the congestion to launch a 50m missile through the big sticks. If he was out of goal range, it was a bullet pass onto Plugger Lockett’s chest. He had skinny legs but they were loaded with fast twitch fibres that propelled him around the football field.

Matthew Pavlich
The jack-of-all-trades man – where do you play him? Can play in the midfield, but is just as damaging at centre half-forward. Has a strong body that is difficult to shift once his feet are planted firmly on the ground. Has repeat speed to burn for the full 120 minutes of the game. Mr. Versatility.

Alan Didak
Played with him during his developing years at Williamstown (affiliated feeder club to Collingwood). Even at a young age he had an uncanny ability to kick soccer goals in mid-air that Pele would have been proud of. Has a low centre of gravity that allows him to step around opposition players with a quick shimmy of the hips. He was that good at it that he could do it in a phone box without any problems. The left-footer is a special player that brings people through the gates. The game-breaker.

FORWARDS
Tony Modra
Excelled when the football was in the air. Would launch himself at the pig skin with no fear of sending himself into orbit. Being a contender for ‘mark of the year’ was pretty much the norm. Loved his surfing during the week when not training. He kicked 124 goals one season.

Tony Lockett
A great athlete for such a big and powerful unit. One game, St Kilda v Essendon at Waverley, a melee broke out and Plugger came in to assist teammates. He grabbed the closest Essendon player in a bear hug and squeezed all the wind out of him, dispersing him like a matchstick and then going on the prowl for the next victim.

Gary Ablett Sr
Changed much football philosophy during his stellar career. For instance, coaches always preached to us the harder you worked during the training week, the greater the benefit on game day. Well, Gary made a liar of any coach who lived by this adage. During the week if the football went below his knees he would let it go through to the keeper, however, on game day he would pick the ball up at full steam, back to goals and hook the ball over right shoulder on his non-preferred foot, 40 metres out for a goal. Try writing that in the coach’s manual! One of the best.

FOLLOWERS
Matthew Clarke
A veterinarian by trade, he made many small players look great with his soft taps and perfect precision around stoppages. Would glide across the ground from one ruck contest to the next. He was the only player that would do nothing over the off-season break and come back leaner and fitter for the first pre-season session – much to the envy of all he played with.Mr. Intelligent.

Michael Voss
Nicknamed 'The Boss' at an early age for his fearless attack on the ball, and by the way he brought teammates into the game through a long left handball or his trusty right foot. He had power, strength and being such a great competitor, this mix could only have been a concern for opposition teams. An exceptional performer over a long period of time, with a much decorated trophy cabinet as testimony to this career.

Robert Harvey
The only player that I have seen put the sandshoes on after a training session and run a 6km loop around St Kilda. Had this amazing ability to get to a stoppage and look extremely tired, with hands on his knees. But once the ball was thrown into play he would disperse with fantastic speed and run long distances to get involved.

INTERCHANGE
Brodie Holland
Had a big impact in his first season with the Dockers, but really flourished after being traded to Collingwood and proving his ability to get under packs and win the ball.

Paul Couch
Brilliant and skilful, moved into the centre for the Cats to replace Greg Williams where he shone as a possession-gatherer. Won the 1989 Brownlow.

Paul Hasleby
Lived up to his reputation during his first year at Fremantle, coming runner-up in the best-and-fairest in his debut season at AFL level. Struggled with injury but fought through to later earn All-Australian selection.

Jess Sinclair
Showed confidence and ability early with Fremantle but really developed into a classy running defender after moving to the Kangaroos.

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.