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Tigers honour 'Captain Blood'

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Mr T.

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Tigers honour 'Captain Blood'
24 August, 2003, Jordan Chong

The leaders of Richmond – both on-field and off – have paid tribute to club great Jack Dyer, who passed away on Saturday.

Tigers president Clinton Casey and injured skipper Wayne Campbell spoke in glowing terms of this giant of the game at the club's pre-match function at Telstra Dome on Sunday.

Casey went first and said the word `legend' was inadequate to describe Dyer's impact on the game.

"He was fearless, committed and honest, and no person wore the yellow and black with more honour than Jack Dyer," Casey said.

"There were none bigger and few better than `Captain Blood'."

"I think legend is often a word that's overused but in the case of Jack Dyer, legend somehow seems inadequate."

Casey wasn't lucky enough to see Dyer play, but was provided with stories of his achievements by his father.

"(My father) would say to me `son, when Jack Dyer's at his best, Richmond was at its best'."

"Today is a very sad day for the Richmond football club because today we start to pay tribute to the late Jack Dyer."

Campbell, a winner of four Jack Dyer medals as the club's best and fairest, said he was shocked to hear of Dyer's passing.

"He made the footy club, I suppose. He made the `eat `em alive', the Tiger spirit and all that sort of stuff," Campbell said.

"Our club's struggling a little bit at the moment, but it's a famous club and we're a famous club because of him for a start and because of a lot of people like him as well."

As the club was about to take the field against Port Adelaide, Campbell thought the players would be desperate to produce a performance worthy of commemorating his life.

"The current day players haven't had a lot to do with Jack over the last probably 10 or 15 years. I think he had such a high profile for such a long time that I think he wanted his last decade or so to be a private time."

"I don't think you need to mention too much to (the players), you can just see in their eyes they want to do something for him."

John Raymond Dyer 1913 – 2003
  • Retired as the game's longest serving player with 312 games in 1949
  • Won a record six best and fairest awards at Richmond
  • The Richmond Football Club Best and Fairest award is named "The Jack Dyer Medal" in his honour
  • Was an inaugural legend in the AFL Hall of Fame
  • The inaugural `Immortal' in Richmond's Hall of Fame
  • A member of the AFL Team of the Century
  • Captain of Richmond's Team of the Century
  • Premiership player in 1934
  • Premiership Captain-coach in 1943
 
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