While I'm reminiscing about Collingwood "moments" in my life, I may be the only supporter who has ever received a handwritten letter from a Collingwood player who challenged me to say what I said in my letter to his face (it wasn't remotely bad) and a promise that he would soon sort me out if I was man enough to do it! He finished by calling me a chickenshit (some on this forum would concur).
We had lost a close game against the powerhouse Essendon at Vic Park when I read an interview with our gun recruit Mike Richardson. In the article he was quoted as saying he was disappointed by the lack of skill of his teammates as he came from a state where kicking skills were top priority (Western Australia). He more or less blamed other players for blowing what would have been a memorable victory against the powerful Bombers of the early mid-eighties.
I remember Mike making a number of errors in the last quarter. I was annoyed by his public bagging of his mates so I sat down and wrote him a letter in which I said I recalled a certain blonde mid making a few skill errors himself. I added I would prefer a bleed for the jumper heart and soul player like Tony Shaw over a selfish, flashy player who publicly bagged his own teammates. I then suggested he go back to the open, highly skilled game back in WA if he was unhappy.
That was it.
Weeks later I received a letter in the mail. It was a page long response from Richardson who explained to me in his opening line that he didn't have time to respond to letters like mine but finally had a moment. I immediately thought "this bloke has sat on this response for five or six weeks" while telling me he didn't want to waste time on a hater like me!
Mike preceded to inform me of his stellar year in the black and white and that was followed by the challenge to walk up to him face to face next time I was at Victoria Park and repeat the sentiments of my letter. He said he would happily "accommodate me" if I did.
He signed off
Mike "has had another Great year for the Collingwood Football Club" Richardson.
I still have the letter. I went to Vic Park the following week and stood in my usual spot on the fence in the pocket where the old donut van used to park not far from the scoreboard. During the game the pill actually got kicked on the full and rolled into the gutter a metre from where I leaned on the fence. Who wandered over to pick it up and take the kick? The very superstar himself. I was so tempted to call out "I'm the chicken s**t who wrote you that letter!" but of course I didn't.
I often wondered what he would have done had I asked a mate of mine who was built like a brick shithouse and was a bit of a lad to approach him at training and tell him he was me!
Anyway, I think it was the very next year Mike left us to go to Essendon along with Geoff Raines.
A bit of a less positive story but I laughed when I first read his letter and still smile now. Talk about a lack of resilience.
We had lost a close game against the powerhouse Essendon at Vic Park when I read an interview with our gun recruit Mike Richardson. In the article he was quoted as saying he was disappointed by the lack of skill of his teammates as he came from a state where kicking skills were top priority (Western Australia). He more or less blamed other players for blowing what would have been a memorable victory against the powerful Bombers of the early mid-eighties.
I remember Mike making a number of errors in the last quarter. I was annoyed by his public bagging of his mates so I sat down and wrote him a letter in which I said I recalled a certain blonde mid making a few skill errors himself. I added I would prefer a bleed for the jumper heart and soul player like Tony Shaw over a selfish, flashy player who publicly bagged his own teammates. I then suggested he go back to the open, highly skilled game back in WA if he was unhappy.
That was it.
Weeks later I received a letter in the mail. It was a page long response from Richardson who explained to me in his opening line that he didn't have time to respond to letters like mine but finally had a moment. I immediately thought "this bloke has sat on this response for five or six weeks" while telling me he didn't want to waste time on a hater like me!
Mike preceded to inform me of his stellar year in the black and white and that was followed by the challenge to walk up to him face to face next time I was at Victoria Park and repeat the sentiments of my letter. He said he would happily "accommodate me" if I did.
He signed off
Mike "has had another Great year for the Collingwood Football Club" Richardson.
I still have the letter. I went to Vic Park the following week and stood in my usual spot on the fence in the pocket where the old donut van used to park not far from the scoreboard. During the game the pill actually got kicked on the full and rolled into the gutter a metre from where I leaned on the fence. Who wandered over to pick it up and take the kick? The very superstar himself. I was so tempted to call out "I'm the chicken s**t who wrote you that letter!" but of course I didn't.
I often wondered what he would have done had I asked a mate of mine who was built like a brick shithouse and was a bit of a lad to approach him at training and tell him he was me!
Anyway, I think it was the very next year Mike left us to go to Essendon along with Geoff Raines.
A bit of a less positive story but I laughed when I first read his letter and still smile now. Talk about a lack of resilience.
