Conversations with Cornesy - Des Tuddenham

Good and welcome to conversations. Really excited about today's guests because I love talking to old footballers and legends of the game from maybe from another year, played against this guy in state games. He's a legend of the Collingwood Football Club, captain of the Collingwood Footy Club and Collingwood Team of the Century. In the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Dere's Tuddenham joins us studdy, how are you?

Yeah, good Grahame, thank you?

How are you going these days? What's what's happening in Tuddenham's life in this day and age.

Well, yeah, I'm still working, still run my scrap metal business here in Melbourne, still doing my training, still enjoying life. And I got my family and my grandchildren are all good and nine grandchildren.

One great gwen daughters or good Grahame.

Everything's terrific, in good health and everything's going fine.

You're eighty two and you're still I mean you're if you were known as a fitness fanatic. What should what's your day look like these days in terms of fitness wise?

Yeah, you get up a morning and I'm inclined boarding to me, I do four hundred sit up to there in morning. Then I I gave the beach and have a run in the sand, I do a Cliver Young shuffle.

And have a swim.

And I'll probably go the gym maybe four or five times a week.

At the boxing gym.

Oh okay. And still you don't know you're not You're not getting knocked around though, surely in the boxing gym.

No, No, I do the speedball, I don't. I don't do the other stuff.

But it's I enjoy it. I'm very lucky. I enjoyed my training and it's not a chore for me. I've always enjoyed my training and I love being fit. If I wasn't fit, I wouldn't have made I wouldn't have made a league.

Football if I was a bit slower and I had to get a bit quicker.

How's your body in terms of injuries and things like that? Are they knees and ankles? How are they standing up?

Yeah? Pretty good.

One had knee replacement and doctor Baller did that and it's good. I've had that now for probably six seven years. And yeah, that's why I run in the sand. You know, I'll keep moving anyhow, but no, no otherwise, Yeah, very good.

Can we go back to the start. I'm always intrigued a journey that footballers go on from the from the early days. Now. You're from a large family, aren't you.

Yeah, one of nine, seven boys and two girls.

From a place called Ross Creek. Can you tell us about Ross Creek?

Ross Creek is just out of ballaratte be for doing probably twenty five k's out of Ballarat. We were brought up on a farm, sheep and cattle and cause milking.

Cows in those days and when we're young. My dear mum, she's a wonderful woman.

She performed in the sun area many times. And dad was a counselor and yeah, they served the community at the same time and bringing up nine children, you know. So we're a very close family and it was a wonderful I think what it does is you get up the morning, you have to milk the cows and then you run to school.

And yeah, it's good discipline.

And I think that's where it all came from, to be honest, and you have wonderful respect for your parents.

See as somebody listened to this then, like a young person listening to this would have no idea about milking cows. Did you do it by hand?

Yeah? We did.

Yeah, I'm a twin and my twin brother and I I'd get the hard cows and he get the easy ones. I used to tell him. But yeah, we'd milk by your hand. Then we'd carry the milk and separate the milk. And I think one of the I used to carry the milk probably maybe eight hundred meters to the to the pig side, and I think it really held my shoulders and under. Now you're getting strong as you're walking along carrying them carrying the milk buckets.

So of the nine children, where were you in terms of on the third last? The third last? So you were elder brothers, elder sisters.

Yeah, but yeah, there.

Were seven boys and two sisters one two of them passed on and my eldest sister has passed on. So yeah, otherwise you know we're still still together fairly well.

See big brothers and notoriously hard on the little brothers. Did that make you tougher?

Yeah?

When we actually we always went a mess of Sunday and come back home and we have our roast lunch with mom and dad and then the seven of us to get down have a game with footing and they were they were making it very hard for me all the time, but it probably was a good lesson and tough.

With me up with it.

Were they good footballers?

Your older brothers, they all played better road football.

And my brother David, he trained at Collingwood and probably would have played in the reserves. And yeah, Rose he was going to playing, but he did his angle the follow week.

If he would have made it, I'm sure he would have gone on a beautiful.

Left foot kick, and Andy a bit quicker than maybe.

So, so it was just what were your schooling years?

Like?

You talk about how far away was the school You said you run to school? How far it.

Would have been probably two and a half mile. We'd run to school and run home up and down the hills. Yeah, it was a good grounding.

What was school footy?

Like?

We were dominant as a kid.

We only only played very very limited amount of football then and we'd play maybe two or three matches a year.

But yeah, and I used to play some half back and then, so yeah, it was okay.

But probably when I started with the WU in battle Rat that that's where I started to you know, I didn't I didn't really start foot well until I was probably thirteen and a half, for before I started playing real competitive football.

Now there's a story that five of your brothers played in the same cricket team. Is that was that right?

We did? Yes? I used to open the bowling and come in last for bedding.

What's of bawl? Yeah?

I played the country ree cricket in nineteen sixty one before I came to Collywood.

And it's interesting, Graham went. I went and played country rear cricket.

We played at Collingwood this particular day and I think we played Wangaretta and after the game, of course there was Ken Hans and Noel McMahon and Bobby Skilton all came to see me that day.

And of course Collywood got.

An interest the same well you must be you know want and played bleue footy. So of course I buried for Collywood and I went up in the rooms and met Ray Aperton and Murray Whedham and so that was a thrill.

And they came to the farm on the Sunday and my.

Gordon, carl On and Jack Burns and we're dipping sheep and dad, my mom come in, said the people from Collingwood to see you this and and Dad said, tell them to come back next week.

We're dipping sheep.

He came back next week. What's the story about the Carlton footy club? You could? You would have signed for Carlton.

With hands came to the farm and he came to the farm.

And when we finished chatting with mom and dad and he came to the out of the car.

I went out of the car to see.

Him off, and in the in the boot of the carry had four brand new footballs and I said, can give me those footballs? And I was signed for Carlton. He said no, these were training tomorrow night.

They didn't do.

So for four for four footballs that cost you your signature.

Yeah, exactly.

So Collingwood came along obviously, can you did you get a signing on fee or can you remember?

No? No, what they did?

Jack Burns came to home the following week and I signed and they paid me paid me one shilling a mile to drive from Ballarat to Melbourne to compensate me.

Petroel, what do you was that?

That's a nineteen six coming on to nineteen sixty two.

Okay, so one shilling a mile? Have we hamm is sixty or seventy miles, isn't it?

Here is about eighty two eighty five miles.

So I was getting it more money playing driving up and back than I wasn't playing football.

There's Touttenham's my guess. We'll take a break, We'll get him started on this illustrious footy career back shortly. My guest on conversation today is there's Touttenham. The AFL great or VFL great in those VFL days. Legend at Collingwood if you just tuned in, he grew up on a farm with one of nine kids, signs with Collingwood. They're going to pay him a shilling a mile to drive from Ballarat or ross Creek down to the training. Can you you remember your first training session at Collingwood?

Yes, I do.

And I went to training and I ran on the Grand and Graham fellows and was running around the ground and I joined in with Graham and we did a couple of lefts with the Grand fellows and yeah, so I remember that night.

Of course, was Mary Gia and all.

Those players here and Billy Saroon and told Merriton, you know, they were all at the club, and of course I've become oh Harry Collier become great friends with him.

So that period of.

Time there with Collingwood here and Fonts kind of course was coach at that.

Time, Great Fonts kind Murray Wham of course, settled into how Australia has very good friends to a lot of us over here. What was it like meeting him because he wasn't really he was an absolute star at the time, wasn't he.

He was great, lady, wonderful player.

I played my first well I did play my first game at North Melbourne of four game.

I sat in the bench at for long, but then I got a game.

And Murray with him. You know, he's so helpful to you. You tell you where to push your body and get in and you know I was lucky enough.

To first kick him in lead football. I kicked the goal.

So that was the North Melbourne So that Murray was, you know in those times it was a great leader.

And fitness wise, no, no good.

Were You're always a fitness fanatic. I mean you're renown in your time as a player and when you coached and now you're renowned as a fitness fanatic. But when when did that start to develop. When did you realize you could push yourself a bit harder than what was normally expected on a training track.

Well in after my first year in sixty two and Jack Burns, yeah, Jack Byrne said come to me and said, look, you son.

You're going to get quicker. You're too slow.

If you don't if you don't do that the training, I don't think you'll make it, you know.

So it was good advice. And I went back to Ballarat.

And because I was playing cricket then and with Rex Hollyoat. Do you know the Hollyoak family is a great cricketing family. We just lost next. He was a great example of fitness and leadership. But then I started running with Belle Stewart. I took it, gave our cricket and took on foot running and to get faster, get quicker, and which I loved.

And so Bell Sewart was enormous help to me in bellaratte So he's.

Was here an athletics coach, was he?

He He was a professional coach here part tom of course.

But in those days, but and then I started doing professional running, the pro running.

I did the circuit with the bell and.

I run the four hundreds and the half miles, and yeah, that was a difference. It made an enormous difference and my game and my fitness.

Want you won a few of those races, didn't you?

I did?

I did, yeah, And then I won the Wangaretta, I won the four hundred, eight hundred and the mile. So I finished up when that time I ran four twenty for a mile, which is pretty good.

Oh wow, A bit of skullduggery goes on the pro running now in terms of betting and the like. Did you get involved in any of that sort of stuff, Not me personally.

And then then when I came to Melbourne, I joined through John Tolman, a great mate. I got the opportunity to train with Bill Mitchell with Bob Skilton train for many years and Bill was renowned for his unique fixing your players and injuries and all that in South Melbourne. And I got to training with him with and that was that was fantastic.

You started in sixty two at Collingwood, you won the best and first in sixty three. Tell us about that. She's so much potential at Collingword, but they didn't win the premiership in those years. What what was the problem, do you think.

Well, I sixty two, of course, and then I had that year, and then sixty three was fons Coin and Fonse was.

You know he was he was on the old traditional guys.

You'd have to that that asked for everyone be quiet, and he'd stand up on a still an address you with his take his hat off. You know that was that was a tradition, sitting in your spots on the ground. Then of course Bob Roys came in sixty four, and yeah, Bob was. You know, we got us going and a good team work. But I think my opinion is all

You know, I run eighteen miles there after training.

Tell us about Bobby Riise, I mean, I don't think I've ever ever met the man, but everything I read about him and hear about him is so glying as a as a person. I mean, you talk about the fact that he didn't train your hard enough. But just tell us a bit more about him, because he I mean, he had to suffered terribly when his son was injured later in life. But give us, give us a snapshot of Bobby Rose.

Well, Bob Rose was. He was loyal.

He of course he loved Collingwood, being a great player himself. He was an outstanding footballer.

It was fair you played for him, and you know, I would love to see him.

I used to say that would come some on, you know, give me a free and he said I can't do that, but I wanted to say, look, the other players don't know.

But you know he was that.

He was a kind man and yeah, and overall he was. He was very unlucky, he was. He had his foot on then till every time. You know, in sixty four when Ray Gabig's friend in the ground and actually kicked the ball to Gabbo that day when he was bouncing the ball and he nearly lost it about five time game.

But it's legendary.

Yeah. And then he said to me about I think end of season fifty said I I realized, He said, I hope I was running the right way.

Well, he said, like a real character. Tell us about some of those characters, of those of those eras. I mean, that's the sixties when footy was.

Oh yeah, of course you had you had ray Ya, which he was. It was a great star, you know. And when when I his come to Collywood and he had players like in the sixties he had Lorrie Hill and Kenny turn and played with us and Errol Hutchinson and and of course he had Big Jobber, great Gray gablish Aud Graham, Fellows Graham.

They called him job because of his elbows or whatever.

But yeah, they were great, great, great players, you know, great icons around Collingwood, you know. But my first time there and we lost Maryweedam and in the end of sixty three and he went coaching up at Aulbry.

But had we kept him, you know, the club should have kept him.

And I think that's one thing over the years that Collingwood the administration was really strong enough to hold.

Their great players. And the amount of money went he got up there.

We could have doubled the money at Collingwood at that time, but they didn't do it.

They did him go. And if he had played in sixty four, with doubt we would have.

Won sixty six, of course, the one point lost to Securita. What were your emotions like that after that?

Yeah, of course when you lose the game, but of course when your captain.

And I played well in the second semi and not not boasting, but I did kick seven from the flank that day.

And then of course I knew they were.

Going to tag me with someone and I wanted to play in the center on Ian Stewart and Bob Rose would let me. But yeah, well I had the ball, we hit, we hit the front and then you know we're surely we're going to hang on here. But of course the ball went down and Barry Breen and Potter were contesting the ball and they gave Brien no no, they balled up, you know, but I still think pot of market.

But then again it's it's but in here.

Briene kicked it and then I was running down the ground and I had one.

More bands probably I shoot for goal, and.

And I kicked it down by Murray and Ian Graham and by Murray marked it and kicked it out and the winging the sron went.

So yeah, it was really disappointing.

Yeah, probably the most famous point in Barefield history that point of Barry Barry brains and then that's the only flag they've ever won. That's amazing when you think about it.

Yeah, it is so. Yeah, I think even caboy Neil that day. I think I know that Breen gets all the all the praise for it. Kevil Nil kicked five goals. He is a great player. And yeah, so I think that's a very unique photo too, gram which we dropped. We swap jumpers and bulldog and I bulldogs in the colle jumper with thick cap, which amazing.

Have you still got that jumper?

Yes, I have.

You've got Darryl Bolldock's Securita jumper.

Well, I put it this way, I had it and that and a friend of mine turned forward and she was man man Seld. I gave him the jumper and she had the wisdom to give it to Seculda. It's in the museum there now. And Bullock before we pass away, he sent a jump my jumper back to me and I have my jumper.

Oh well that's great. The famous fight of people haven't seen it. You've swapped jumpers sett in the cup and I love those stories. Des Tuttenham is my guest folks, we'll take a break back shortly. Welcome back to conversations everybody. If you just tuned in, we're chatting with Des Tuttenham. Des Tuddenham, one of the legends of the Collingwood Football Club and member of the Australian Football Hall of Fame.

You He had elaborate and that was nineteen sixty nine, end of the nineteen sixty nine and I had a solicitor and at the time he was managing Bob Skilton and Bob Skoot was getting probably three times amount of money that I had I was getting and he said, well, captain of the greatest club, you should be getting more money. And so I took it on board with him, and then Len Thompson came with me. We asked for maybe six thousand dollars a year on the table. Of course,

Managers, you know. So anyhow, as.

It worked out and they wouldn't pay that money and they stood me down as captain.

So that was about it would have been about child and fifty dollars a week, is that right?

That's right?

Okay? And you were what were getting.

Well, I was probably getting around about three thousand a year before then, you know, so, but I was going to sign for four years, so that would have been but that would have been a.

Steel So there was a bit of druggers. Peter Eggans came over from w Way and he was being paid a lot more.

Yeah, it wasn't really to do with Peter. Peter and I were good mates and a lot of people confused themselves over that, and it was on my decision, not nothing to do with Peter, because what he was getting he was a good player and a good guy and we've always been great friends.

And it was it was my decision probably now.

Looking back, Graham, if if I'd had my time over again, I wouldn't have done it, because I think it probably stopped my career a little bit in the fortune of Collingwood as far as my opportunities were concerned. If I'd have if Golly and Frank Gobelly had a won in sixty nine, we had an election at that year and we got beaten, and I campaigned for Frank because we

So he was he was a lawyer, wasn't it lawyer? And he was still still for president.

Lovely man, all the family for years that have been the traditional Collingwood.

He'd walk in when he's entourage before a game.

He was just a beautiful man with it, you know, and he'd say, cutting them, you're going to win the day, you know.

He was just a wonderful man.

But anyhow, if he if he had won, he was going to make me playing coach of Clayvid in nineteen seventy.

Oh, okay, did you get your Did you get a raise? Did you actually get a raise in pain?

No, I didn't.

I played We played on in sixty six in seventy without any extra money. You know, you had to play foot once you once you down, run down the race and put money. Money doesn't come into it. It's your game, it's your sport and the team, you know, or what you want to do for yourself and the team. So no,

Committee weren't happy with you asking for more money by the sounds.

Of that, No, probably not so.

Were you and led good mates then Thims.

And were then then and I a great friends.

Yeah, of course we ran together with John Tolman when Bill Mitchell stopped John Toleman.

We trained at the Corfield Racetrack every night. You know. We had Sam Kekey.

Rich and we had Big McK nolan and John Murphy and Robert Dean and and Carmen trained with the Phil Carmen and you know, so and Tom I trained with us all the time, ran Corfield, very Goodingham.

Even trained with us simply just running. I can't imagine me Coland doing too much running.

Yeah, we used to move along. He kept going and he was he was. He was a fronty man, lovely man because.

She would have known him.

Remember clearly at North Melbourne night, bra Brass made us to ten laps and and Mick well, he trailed the he trailed the team, but he just kept plugging along. And I had an admiration for him because he didn't It was such a big man. He didn't. He didn't give up. He finished the ten laps.

But yeah, no, he trained, he trained, He trained terrific and just a quick story on meck. He trained with us and he'd lost I think probably about twelve or ten kilos. With John, we used to run three or four lefts, which was probably six seven mile every night and Mick used to do that. Anyhow, he didn't drink for about two months and he asked John, I'm going back home to see me a fameric and I have a drink. And John wade him and say he was one hundred and twenty kilos. And when he came back

He said, yeah, but not two barrels.

So John Toman, he was an athletic.

Leticach year and any great runner himself. You know he's still he died last year, but he you know, good mates.

We trained together every day in the summer and he worked for Audadats too. He did all the footwear promotions for Adadadas at the football clubs, so he was very much involved with football too.

Tell us a bit more about Lenn Thompson. I mean those of us who knew him and played with him, it was just a wonderful athlete, great player. But tell us as a as a teammate. Give us a perspective of him for a younger generation who would not have seen him play.

Yeah, well, if he's playing today like he was so quick and so magile for his hid. You know, he could bend down and he could even touch his toes and picked the ball up on the run.

And he was he was just a good, good competitor. You know that there was no Nats in his in him he was fair.

All the time and he was a beautiful mark and a good kick. And he's one of those players who very reliable every week. He was a good he'd play every well. You rely on him doing well from the sender. Like all the road Wayne Richardson and Pricing and all those guys, they just love Tom Array like he was just a beautiful rutman, you know, the way he palmed the ball and in the day's game, he'd just be a super player.

So I had to sell all these medals in the end, though I always thought that was a bit sad.

Yes, yes, well he run in a few bit the hard times at the end then and actually worked for me. He worked for me at the end of his probably the end of his career. He's working for me when he unfortunate when he had the heart attack. And yeah, so he was with me for probably five years and I was very happy about it. Was helping him and support him over the last few years. And his family, all his children get on terrific with them, and you know, so they were they're very close to my family.

So they stripped you of the Collingwood Captain c. But I played against you in nineteen seventy one at the MCG and you were the Victorian captain. How did that happen?

Well, thanks Tommy Hafey. He was Jim Crowe was chairming and selected from Commingwood and of course I wasn't captain and Jim asked Tom Avey, said who are we going to make captain? And tom said there's only one good captain in Australia. He said that's studdy. He said, well, he said he's not captain of their club. And Tommy Havevey said that said e f and silly you guys are, and he made me captain, Tom Hayfey. So that's where I got. And Tommy was a beautiful man, lovely coach and a good man.

You know.

Well you we liked his fitness regimen. It sounds like you're doing pretty much the same stuff that Tommy used to do every morning. You're running and your push ups and you Yeah.

I started with Tommy in nineteen seventy two after the state came that I was leaving in Mentor and we went down there and I started and he started me on the way with that morning regime and it's been terrific. You know, but Tommy was straightforward. She's demands were good and that everyone just played for him, because I think he said a wonderful example himself, in his own character and his own presence.

Graham Tuttenham's my guest, folks back shortly we're speaking with Des Tudenham. One of the greats of the game is in the Australian Football Hall of Fame. Is in the Collingwood Team of the Century Collingwood captain, although when he asked for a bit more money they took the captaincy off him. Captain Victoria, you moved to Essendon there for a while. What caused that?

Well, so Tommy's credit game in We were playing state football in Perth in prior to the game, and of course Big John Nichols. This is a team that there, John Nichols and Wedley, Matthews and Sheedy and all those.

They run to me.

And tom maybe asked me to address the players before the game. I did, and Alan Hurd was there, the president of at that time James father, and he listened to me. He speaks to the players and address him. And probably a week later he gave me a call and said you're instant Coachingdon and that's where it started.

Joe Have was it to leave?

It was hard?

Yeah, I probably at that time Conny would I think they pointed neil Man will neil Man compared to my regime in football and fitness and was a long way away.

And I would love to coach Connie at that time.

That's a great players like mckinna and Carmen, which some brothers and Potter and all those great players you know. And mckinna of course, he was just a grateful forward and and by the way, a very good friend of mine, Peter. So that's where yeah, I went to went to and Jim Matthews and David Shaw because David played for Incident and they got.

Me into Yeah, it was.

I didn't enjoy the time. There was wonderful the time of rebuilding.

But you went back to Collingwood. How did it end? It was?

I went back to Collingwood as captain.

That was in nineteen seventy six when Murray Whedon was of course coach. That was that was That was when they won the Wooden Spirit the first time. So I had a great corrector Wooden Spiren. But thankfully legit Nathan

When did you know it was the end?

Well, the Tom Tommy came in seventy seven and then I played three games, three games with Tom down sin Kilda and I did my need and I'm sorry they didn't. I might have been ready for the I would have got ready for the Grand Final, the finals, you know it would have been But no, that was the end.

You knew straightaway go and that was the end. And I hung on the boots up and that was it, you know.

And did you play afterwards in the completely?

Yeah, I gave away. Yeah, a few few clubs wanted me to play. But now I've done. You know, you know when you're done. And now I gave it away and that was that was it, you know.

And I coached the local team that put Melbourne Colts and for two years and yeah we went all. I brought all the young boys up and we won a premiership undefeated actually the second year.

So yeah, I enjoyed befooting.

And I'm still now involved with the Life Members AFL Life Members. I've been president of that now for number of years and I enjoy that mensely.

So your son Paul played for Collywood.

Too, Yes he did. Paul played forty three.

Games and what of the sort of pressure he was under.

I always wanted him to go maybe another club isn't or something like that, but he wanted to play Collingwood.

Yeah, he was probably had He handled it pretty well. I never went near him, you know.

It was his choice and I never interfered him. Only once his boots at home one morning and said throw him on the roof and he said, what are you doing, d I said, you'll never make league football on is you train hard?

And John Toleman.

He went and trained with John Tolman and did the running a game too and made the difference. And he's done well in business. He's on the board actually now at Collingland on the committee.

So he's doing a.

Great jobs a hotel here, is he not?

He buys the properties and leases them out he has. Yeah, so he's been property development for another years. And yeah, I've done all his demolition work for him. No freed back yet.

I want to go back to you through his boots on the roof.

Yeah, well if he didn't, he was too slow and he was a beautiful reader of the game and and and a beautiful kick, but he wasn't quick enough and he took on the running and that's where that's where he went forward.

How did he get the boots down?

Probably? Still?

So you went into business after foot heat, did you not?

Yeah?

Yeah I did.

Yeah. Yeah, I've been in scrap metal for a number of years now, you know, buy and sell in Melbourne.

Yeah, it's a good industry. I love it.

I really enjoy it still every day involved in and you meet wonderful people and you know, probably opens the doors, but you still have to do the work.

Yeah exactly. But did you have not have a plastic manufacturing business as well?

Yes? I did. Yeah.

We made plastic football for for three or four years Irons on Soul, but I used to sell the coals. We used to do the ones that weren't the heavy projection ones. We used to do injection molding with the bit heavier one. But yeah, we used to sell seventy eighty thousand footballs a year.

What did you know about plastic football making?

Nothing? Nothing.

I just bought it and one of the guys that worked there was very talented and very capable and taught me how to run the machines or whatever you get.

So do you go to the footy? Do you watch the footy?

Oh?

Yeah, yeah, go go each week, go with my family.

They my daughter Megan and her family and of course Paul Goes been on the committee.

But yeah, I go to football every week.

My friend in Melbourne's Carlton, So I go and watched the Carlton games too.

So I that that can be frustrated watching Carton play at times it is.

Yeah, I don't say much, but I am we watching Mois years.

What do you think of the modern game?

I Graham, the football never change. When I say never change. If you haven't got the football, you can't win. And I know it's a running game and the movement game.

And not as positional as what it was.

And I just at the game the other the night with colly Wood and port Adelaide, and.

I said, they don't I look at the look at the look at the ground.

You know, from the center square up there is no one, you know, so we'd probably like to see players drop back a little bit.

But yeah, the game is still good to watch. I enjoy it. I'm a modern thinker.

I don't think of the past, and you've got to and the young players that playground, the terrific guys you know, like the Going and all those guys you meet, they're terrific guys and they're part of our community. And I know their game is really good still and I like it.

Yeah, I think they have to be fitter, faster, stronger, skills have to be better. But it's I mean, I'm a bit the other way. I mean, I mean I liked them the modern game. Obviously we watch it, but I mean I love talking about the old days. I love the nostalgia footy as it used to be. And we'll speaking to someone like yourself. I mean, it's a that's a great interest to me.

Yeah, I agree.

I'd love to see you full forward saying that square once you know, just and they have to go mind him, you know.

Now they're all there.

Robots as such, you know, they just up and down the ground. But yeah, in our time was terrific. You had to go and play on like our the peoples for instance, that incident, you know, like the cooker barrow. He never stopped talking and you pick up a player each week and Francis Burke he wouldn't say word, but he wouldn't like a.

Leech on you. So those days are terrific.

But now, of course tagging and all that stuff, Yeah, it is there, but not as much as when we play ground when you.

Catch up with old teammates. What's what's the crowd look like? Who do you? Who do you? Who's in the crowd?

Oh?

Yeah, of old teammates, Yeah.

Wayne Richardson and Peter mckinner And sometimes one of your emouth comes out over he's a character of his characters ever. And but yeah, I see a lot of the pass players, if you you know. And of course we're them involved with the life members too, Big John Nichols on our committee and we're good friends.

And Collins and you know all the players.

That David Park and although yeah, I get the mixes them a lot, and you know, get the opportunity to meet Andrew Dillon and as chairman the CEO, and he's very good to communicate with.

He's fantastic to the game. So yeah, I'm still involved in all that, which is it's a great interest for me.

Well, I don't I don't want to harp on the past. But if you had one memory, if you've got one, one memory, one great memory of your of your time in footy, just as we wrap it up.

Yeah, probably you know, Captain of Victoria.

I think I was the first way ever to be Captain of Victoria, not Captain Rige Club.

But that was a great shrill from my mom and dad.

I think that's a film for your family and you know, to run down the race and the big brillion. Prior to the game, Tom Hovey got my dad in and he took him around introducing all the.

Players and said this is a captain you know, like to see dad do. That was a marbles thrill for me, you know.

So yeah, And of course Captain of Collingwood and played a few games, had had a wonderful time in football and logs of Ted Whitten and Knuckles Curly and I were great mates, and Barras all those all those guys you know, skills to really time and I think you'd probably highlight one. But we're very lucky. In our time it was on television. We did everything together with Mirke Wimson, so that period of time was amazing.

It's been a great career Tuddy. So it's great to see you in such good health. I mean, eighty two years young, you've still got all your hair, still doing all that fitness work. It's a it's an amazing career and thank you so much for joining us.

It's a great pleasure, Graham.

I've enjoyed immensely just Tuttenham was my guest. Folks, thank you for joining us.