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IMPORTANT // Please look after your loved ones, yourself and be kind to others. If you are feeling that the world is too hard to handle there is always help - I implore you not to hesitate in contacting one of these wonderful organisations Lifeline and Beyond Blue ... and I'm sure reaching out to our PRE community we will find a way to help. T.
PUNT ROAD END | Richmond Tigers Forum
Many people spent the weekend rubbing shoulders with our Tiger Treasures and I was fortunate to spend Saturday night with the person who would have won “Greatest Treasure Of All” if my vote was the decider. No disrespect at all intended towards Jack Dyer, I love him too, but to me while Jack is a legend I’ve heard about Tommy is a legend whose efforts I experienced first hand.
I wasn’t at Crown or the Hilton, I was in a small footy clubroom. There weren’t thousands and thousands of people, an estimate of a hundred would probably be exaggerating. I didn’t wear a formal frock and high heels. I wore my polo fleece footy jumper, jeans and runners. I didn’t dine on caviar and champagne. I shared party pies and cups of tea. (ok and a glass of wine for me too).
I, like many others who experienced their best Richmond do ever, will always treasure the night I spent with Tommy Hafey.
Tommy rang our local footy president and offered to come up and give a talk. After the late function Friday night, all the festivities on Saturday as well as discussing our game on radio he got in his car and made the 2 or so hour trek up here….and drove home again afterwards, leaving around 12.30 am. A massive effort….but there’s more. He crammed a heap of framed memorabilia into his car too, I can’t for the life of me work out how he got it all in, to auction to raise money for the club. (The nice auctioneer looked after me)
Tommy spoke passionately about his love for country footy. His time at Shepparton, and 3 premierships there, meant as much to him as his time in the big league.
I don’t want to divulge too much of what Tommy had to say in case others are lucky enough to attend one of his talks. It’s fair to say he’s not a fan of cheap possession gathering and stuffing around with the ball and he thinks every player in a team should do the hard stuff, get at the bottom of the packs, chase and run harder although it hurts etc.
What impressed me most was Tommy’s passion for the game and for grass roots footy. I’m sure we’d have all walked over hot coals after listening to him talk. I just wish so much Tommy could address our players and share that passion and team spirit with them.
Tommy made a point throughout the evening of going around and introducing himself to every single person in the room and having a chat with them. He remembered names, who they barracked for, where they came from and made everyone feel special and an important part of his evening. I’m in awe of Tommy but he made me feel like I’m his true Tiger mate.
I hope I haven’t bored everyone too much with my waffling but I wanted to share my really special experience in what has been a very dark and tragic weekend..
Thanks to those who posted questions on the message board for Tommy. He’s more than happy to oblige and he’ll mail me his replies to me when he gets a chance to write them down.
I wasn’t at Crown or the Hilton, I was in a small footy clubroom. There weren’t thousands and thousands of people, an estimate of a hundred would probably be exaggerating. I didn’t wear a formal frock and high heels. I wore my polo fleece footy jumper, jeans and runners. I didn’t dine on caviar and champagne. I shared party pies and cups of tea. (ok and a glass of wine for me too).
I, like many others who experienced their best Richmond do ever, will always treasure the night I spent with Tommy Hafey.
Tommy rang our local footy president and offered to come up and give a talk. After the late function Friday night, all the festivities on Saturday as well as discussing our game on radio he got in his car and made the 2 or so hour trek up here….and drove home again afterwards, leaving around 12.30 am. A massive effort….but there’s more. He crammed a heap of framed memorabilia into his car too, I can’t for the life of me work out how he got it all in, to auction to raise money for the club. (The nice auctioneer looked after me)
Tommy spoke passionately about his love for country footy. His time at Shepparton, and 3 premierships there, meant as much to him as his time in the big league.
I don’t want to divulge too much of what Tommy had to say in case others are lucky enough to attend one of his talks. It’s fair to say he’s not a fan of cheap possession gathering and stuffing around with the ball and he thinks every player in a team should do the hard stuff, get at the bottom of the packs, chase and run harder although it hurts etc.
What impressed me most was Tommy’s passion for the game and for grass roots footy. I’m sure we’d have all walked over hot coals after listening to him talk. I just wish so much Tommy could address our players and share that passion and team spirit with them.
Tommy made a point throughout the evening of going around and introducing himself to every single person in the room and having a chat with them. He remembered names, who they barracked for, where they came from and made everyone feel special and an important part of his evening. I’m in awe of Tommy but he made me feel like I’m his true Tiger mate.
I hope I haven’t bored everyone too much with my waffling but I wanted to share my really special experience in what has been a very dark and tragic weekend..
Thanks to those who posted questions on the message board for Tommy. He’s more than happy to oblige and he’ll mail me his replies to me when he gets a chance to write them down.