Podcast Episode 4: An Evening With Mero

Was a pleasure getting to host this one, and as discussed if anyone has any questions for Mero (or myself), feel free to comment them below. :)
 
This is my favourite pod so far, very different in style to other pods but a great bit of insights to one of our board legends. Really interesting to hear about the footyjumpers website and how it could have become a book, as someone who loves their design books, I'm kinda sad that it isn't but the fact that the website can be continually updated in an instant makes it so much more useful and practical for documenting this sort of stuff.

Was quite happy to hear that Mero was the one behind the jumpers in the AFL Premiership 2007 game, I think this was where my interest and love of footy jumpers came from which moved into a passion for design more generally and now through school and uni into a career. I don't think I would have ever taken any notice of jumpers and tried my hand at making my own designs on paint back in the day without seeing them all on that game. Sounds really strange but would be really interesting to think about what direction my life would have taken without mero's stuff.

Also, 10/10 Dr Evil impression by Freight Train in this pod which is almost worth listening for alone.
 
Jul 17, 2006
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Outstanding podcast! Thank you both for speaking so freely and giving some great insights.

I too emailed Mero when I was a very young teen, back when footyjumpers.com was still an angelfire site. Unfortunately the email appears lost, but I asked why he didn't have the Crows late-90s pre-season jumper on there, only for him to politely point out that it was on a secondary page. I remember feeling pretty chuffed that this random guy had actually taken the time to respond so kindly though, and it was definitely a huge factor in my burgeoning love of footy jumpers. So I have to express my thanks for that!
 

DiamondGuy

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Don't take this the wrong way, Mero, but given the astronomical time you put into your website, I always imagined you as a soft-spoken recluse. My vision even extended to you moving to Canada due to not fitting into the bogan footy world... I certainly did not expect you to sound like Tony Leonard! Apparently there is a Footscray accent!

I never knew the power ranger was based off the Chelsea third kit, that's fascinating.

So now we have the "baggy wings", well I've always referred to the West Coast "gradient eagle" as the "vomit eagle", to me it clearly looks like someone threw up on themself. This is the beginning of my campaign to get "vomit eagle" into the lexicon.

Now let's see those early Freight Train designs!
 
Jul 9, 2003
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I'm just waiting for the picture of 12 year old Freight Train and the design he emailed Mero.

Matt 7:7

1595254739295.png
This is the 12 year who emailed me in 2007.
These are the helpful images he put together and sent me to advise me what Port & Freo were wearing in Heritage Round that year
1595254920222.png
1595264247176.png

The final footyjumpers versions were:
http://www.footyjumpers.com/images/Port-Adelaide-Heritage-2007.gif and http://www.footyjumpers.com/images/Fremantle-Heritage-2007.gif
 
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Jul 9, 2003
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Don't take this the wrong way, Mero, but given the astronomical time you put into your website, I always imagined you as a soft-spoken recluse. My vision even extended to you moving to Canada due to not fitting into the bogan footy world... I certainly did not expect you to sound like Tony Leonard! Apparently there is a Footscray accent!

I never knew the power ranger was based off the Chelsea third kit, that's fascinating.

So now we have the "baggy wings", well I've always referred to the West Coast "gradient eagle" as the "vomit eagle", to me it clearly looks like someone threw up on themself. This is the beginning of my campaign to get "vomit eagle" into the lexicon.

Now let's see those early Freight Train designs!
LOL.
I'm telling my mum this.
She may try to contact you.
 
Jul 9, 2003
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I've often wondered why there's no SANFL section on the website, although I have seen images of SANFL jumpers in your format elsewhere. Is it a typical pissant SANFL attitude where they won't let you use their intellectual property, or do you just hate South Australia? ;)
I only included WA because a local guy did the research and provided images of what jumpers should look like, and in what years.
I have worked with historians from North, Norwood and obviously Port to develop pages for their Home jumpers like the WA ones.
I also researched a couple of the newer teams myself, so I have Centrals & Woodville done as well.
They are not on the site because SA is still incomplete, and then I'd get emails from people asking me to finish their team.

 
Jul 9, 2003
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Was a pleasure getting to host this one, and as discussed if anyone has any questions for Mero (or myself), feel free to comment them below. :)
It was a pleasure to be a guest.
There's not many opportunities over here to talk for an hour and a half about footy jumpers, certainly with someone as knowledgeable as Freight Train.
 
Jun 24, 2011
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I only included WA because a local guy did the research and provided images of what jumpers should look like, and in what years.
I have worked with historians from North, Norwood and obviously Port to develop pages for their Home jumpers like the WA ones.
I also researched a couple of the newer teams myself, so I have Centrals & Woodville done as well.
They are not on the site because SA is still incomplete, and then I'd get emails from people asking me to finish their team.

Man, that reminds me... I really need to finish Sturt :(
 
Apr 20, 2017
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Fantastic episode, possibly the greatest one so far. Great to hear Mero reinforce the 'AFL is not the sport' idea and in fact great to hear Mero explain his story with footyjumpers.com. It's safe to say since I've been young I've loved the jumper that makes our sport distinctive and great. Without Mero's research and great in depth collection of history, me and many others on this board probably wouldn't have pursued designing jumpers. "If I kid can draw it, then it's a good guernsey" is the perfect description of what makes our sport great. I have a story that comes with the drawing of guernseys, however, would be hard to explain in words. Fantastic episode and just a big thank you to Mero for everything he has done in preserving important history. Without the site I wouldn't be aware of why Footscray only wore the striped and yoke guernsey for one year. Stories like that make this history great!
 
Jul 9, 2003
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The Chelsea Third Kit 2012-2013 which was also the Power Ranger

Swap the Black for White and the Yellow for Gold and/or Brown.
1595344916482.png

Then add a whole bunch of little pills made up of a Gold & Brown gradient.
1595344981927.png
 
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DiamondGuy

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Straying off topic, but if anyone wants some context for my Tony Leonard comment, I've got four minutes of entertainment for you here. I had to include it for the Dannie Seow reference.




In before both teams playing in home shorts.
 
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El_Scorcho

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Aug 21, 2007
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Really enjoyed this one, fantastic insights. Thanks to you both.

Speaking of Hawthorn having a reused Chelsea 3rd design, Port's least interesting guernsey in history, the 2008 era teal and grey "fountain" clash guernsey was a reused Reebok design that they'd used for trainingwear for several European soccer clubs. It always irked me that not only was it the most boring Port guernsey ever, it was just a straight copy paste recolour job.
 
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Matt 7:7

View attachment 916170 This is the 12 year who emailed me in 2007.
These are the helpful images he put together and sent me to advise me what Port & Freo were wearing in Heritage Round that year
View attachment 916172View attachment 916193
The final footyjumpers versions were:
http://www.footyjumpers.com/images/Port-Adelaide-Heritage-2007.gif and http://www.footyjumpers.com/images/Fremantle-Heritage-2007.gif
Weren't you just a little cutie with those designs lol

Awesome insights and amazing work Mero :)
 

DiamondGuy

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Sep 25, 2013
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the 2008 era teal and grey "fountain" clash guernsey was a reused Reebok design that they'd used for trainingwear for several European soccer clubs. It always irked me that not only was it the most boring Port guernsey ever, it was just a straight copy paste recolour job.
Wow, do you have any images or do you remember which clubs it was?
 
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