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Libba gets life
2:34:15 PM Tue 11 March, 2003
afl.com.au
One of the toughest, but greatest Western Bulldogs of all, Tony Liberatore, has been awarded life membership of the Australian Football League.
He qualifies for life membership after clocking up 308 AFL matches (283 premiership, 23 pre-season and two state-of-origin) for the Bulldogs between 1986 and 2002.
He won the 1990 Brownlow Medal and made history by becoming the first player to win the competition best and fairests in the VFL/AFL senior, reserves and under 19 competitions.
He won the Gardiner Medal for the reserves competition in 1986 and 1988, and the Morrish Medal for the under 19 competition in 1984 while at North Melbourne.
‘Libba’ was one of the shortest players of the modern era but compensated for that enormous, heart, grit and some of the finest tackling skills seen in the competition.
His career was at the crossroads at the end of 1996 when Terry Wallace took over as permanent senior coach of the club, so Liberatore reinvented himself as a tagger/run with player without peer.
His hardline tactics won him few fans outside the Whitten Oval, but was widely admired by players and coaches throughout the rest of the AFL.
Liberatore switched camps at the end of 2002 and joined the Box Hill Hawks as senior coach. In that capacity, he is now a part-time assistant coach at Hawthorn.
He will receive his life membership at the AFL’s annual general meeting on 20 March.
2:34:15 PM Tue 11 March, 2003
afl.com.au
One of the toughest, but greatest Western Bulldogs of all, Tony Liberatore, has been awarded life membership of the Australian Football League.
He qualifies for life membership after clocking up 308 AFL matches (283 premiership, 23 pre-season and two state-of-origin) for the Bulldogs between 1986 and 2002.
He won the 1990 Brownlow Medal and made history by becoming the first player to win the competition best and fairests in the VFL/AFL senior, reserves and under 19 competitions.
He won the Gardiner Medal for the reserves competition in 1986 and 1988, and the Morrish Medal for the under 19 competition in 1984 while at North Melbourne.
‘Libba’ was one of the shortest players of the modern era but compensated for that enormous, heart, grit and some of the finest tackling skills seen in the competition.
His career was at the crossroads at the end of 1996 when Terry Wallace took over as permanent senior coach of the club, so Liberatore reinvented himself as a tagger/run with player without peer.
His hardline tactics won him few fans outside the Whitten Oval, but was widely admired by players and coaches throughout the rest of the AFL.
Liberatore switched camps at the end of 2002 and joined the Box Hill Hawks as senior coach. In that capacity, he is now a part-time assistant coach at Hawthorn.
He will receive his life membership at the AFL’s annual general meeting on 20 March.
