What They're Saying - The Bulldogs Media Thread - Part 4
- Thread starter ExRoyboy
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- Sep 22, 2008
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Ah wot - You absolutely can create more space in the forward line with faster ball movement. It doesnt matter how well you try and spread the defence when you’re entering a forward line full of 18 Melbourne players because we’ve slowly propped the ball up the wing no one is finding space. Marra is clearly our best at it but even he struggled to work with our terrible ball movement. Fast ball movement is literally the key to an open forward line before the defence is set
lachy
Premiership Player
No, you can't create space with faster ball movement. The space is already there. All quick ball movement does is allow for one v one, if the forwards don't move to separate defenders or take the space, kicks will still go to a contest. Lack of movement in front of the ball ensures no space is created
Forwards and movement creates space no matter how slow the ball movement, when it is done well.
Defensive movement accross the ground tries to close space. Against Melbourne we did neither well
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- Sep 22, 2008
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Create space/use existing space
who gives a s**tObviously yes you still have to work together to spread the defence but this still relies on quick ball movement to give the forwards space to work into No team is relying consistently on creating space in a completely flooded forward line, when the defence is set 90% of inside 50s are going to the hot spot, that’s not exclusive to this team that’s every single team. You cannot consistently work over a defence to create space which does not exist when you move the ball slowly along the wing and there’s 30 campaigners in your forward 50.
lachy
Premiership Player
Quick ball movement only occurs when it is spread to someone in space. How do you think that actually occurs?Create space/use existing spacewho gives a s**t
Obviously yes you still have to work together to spread the defence but this still relies on quick ball movement to give the forwards space to work into No team is relying consistently on creating space in a completely flooded forward line, when the defence is set 90% of inside 50s are going to the hot spot, that’s not exclusive to this team that’s every single team. You cannot consistently work over a defence to create space which does not exist when you move the ball slowly along the wing and there’s 30 campaigners in your forward 50.
who gives a s**tWhat do you think development on line coaches spend the first year and a bit teaching draftees. They are teaching them the importance of movement, work rate of you want to use journo language, as the very nature of the TAC level is they do not have to work hard to create space whether at stoppages, movement from the backline or into the forward line which is critical in Quick ball movement.
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- Sep 22, 2008
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No s**t
Bulldogs welcome Itinerant Spirits as a 2024 partner
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.
Itinerant Spirits is a world class distillery and cocktail bar, housed in recently opened Goods Shed in central Ballarat, and the producer of Gallivanter Gin, Vansetter Vodka and, in time, Wayfarer Whiskey.
The one-year deal will see exclusive member offers available throughout the season, while strengthening the Club’s connection through the western corridor.
“Itinerant Spirits is all about showcasing the great produce and people of Ballarat and Western Victoria. Given the Western Bulldogs’ continued investment in our region, it's a great fit,” said Brad Wilson, founder of Itinerant Spirits.
“Here’s to both parties kicking goals for 2024.”
Bulldogs Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer, Kon Karavias, echoed the sentiment.
“We are proud of all of our connections with Ballarat and are delighted to partner with one of the up-and-coming businesses that make the region unique,” he said.
“We look forward to raising a glass with everyone at Mars Stadium in Round 2.”
The Itinerant Spirits brand will be showcased in the AFL matchday function at Mars Stadium on Sunday 24 March.
threenewpadlocks
Brownlow Medallist
A one-year Official Spirits Partner. We're rolling in the dough!Bulldogs welcome Itinerant Spirits as a 2024 partner
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.www.westernbulldogs.com.au
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.
Itinerant Spirits is a world class distillery and cocktail bar, housed in recently opened Goods Shed in central Ballarat, and the producer of Gallivanter Gin, Vansetter Vodka and, in time, Wayfarer Whiskey.
The one-year deal will see exclusive member offers available throughout the season, while strengthening the Club’s connection through the western corridor.
“Itinerant Spirits is all about showcasing the great produce and people of Ballarat and Western Victoria. Given the Western Bulldogs’ continued investment in our region, it's a great fit,” said Brad Wilson, founder of Itinerant Spirits.
“Here’s to both parties kicking goals for 2024.”
Bulldogs Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer, Kon Karavias, echoed the sentiment.
“We are proud of all of our connections with Ballarat and are delighted to partner with one of the up-and-coming businesses that make the region unique,” he said.
“We look forward to raising a glass with everyone at Mars Stadium in Round 2.”
The Itinerant Spirits brand will be showcased in the AFL matchday function at Mars Stadium on Sunday 24 March.
Dogs_R_Us
Space Traveller
I read the first sentence and thought we were bringing in supernatural assistance (let’s face it, we need all the help we can get). Perro loco’s voodoo potions and yebiga’s gypsy half-sister may not be strong enough.
ossie_21
Premium Platinum
A bottle of that might get me through a quarter of Bevball
Bulldog in Kiev
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- May 22, 2011
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Will need a pharmaceutical partner to get through an entire season of Bevball!
Dogs 13
Premium Platinum
Bulldogs welcome Itinerant Spirits as a 2024 partner
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.
Itinerant Spirits is a world class distillery and cocktail bar, housed in recently opened Goods Shed in central Ballarat, and the producer of Gallivanter Gin, Vansetter Vodka and, in time, Wayfarer Whiskey.
The one-year deal will see exclusive member offers available throughout the season, while strengthening the Club’s connection through the western corridor.
“Itinerant Spirits is all about showcasing the great produce and people of Ballarat and Western Victoria. Given the Western Bulldogs’ continued investment in our region, it's a great fit,” said Brad Wilson, founder of Itinerant Spirits.
“Here’s to both parties kicking goals for 2024.”
Bulldogs Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer, Kon Karavias, echoed the sentiment.
“We are proud of all of our connections with Ballarat and are delighted to partner with one of the up-and-coming businesses that make the region unique,” he said.
“We look forward to raising a glass with everyone at Mars Stadium in Round 2.”
The Itinerant Spirits brand will be showcased in the AFL matchday function at Mars Stadium on Sunday 24 March.
Mother’s Ruin
- Jan 19, 2014
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Do we have an official beer partner? If not, I'd like nominate Asahi as a suitable candidate. I think the alcohol content aligns with our values as a club and Super Dry has the word super in it. I get regularly p1ssed drinking it, just as I get regularly p1ssed watching us play. Seems like a no brainer, just as you will have no brain left if you drink enough of Asahi Super Dry. Available at all good or good enough liquor outlets.Bulldogs welcome Itinerant Spirits as a 2024 partner
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.
The Western Bulldogs have welcomed Itinerant Spirits as the Club’s Official Spirits Partner for 2024.
Itinerant Spirits is a world class distillery and cocktail bar, housed in recently opened Goods Shed in central Ballarat, and the producer of Gallivanter Gin, Vansetter Vodka and, in time, Wayfarer Whiskey.
The one-year deal will see exclusive member offers available throughout the season, while strengthening the Club’s connection through the western corridor.
“Itinerant Spirits is all about showcasing the great produce and people of Ballarat and Western Victoria. Given the Western Bulldogs’ continued investment in our region, it's a great fit,” said Brad Wilson, founder of Itinerant Spirits.
“Here’s to both parties kicking goals for 2024.”
Bulldogs Chief Commercial and Strategy Officer, Kon Karavias, echoed the sentiment.
“We are proud of all of our connections with Ballarat and are delighted to partner with one of the up-and-coming businesses that make the region unique,” he said.
“We look forward to raising a glass with everyone at Mars Stadium in Round 2.”
The Itinerant Spirits brand will be showcased in the AFL matchday function at Mars Stadium on Sunday 24 March.
my plums
Debutant
- Nov 19, 2016
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I know a guy who’s wife works for Asahi should try hook it up.
Absolutely gut-wrenching.... 
It kind of puts in to perspective our ranting and raving about team selections, etc., I think.
Dementia, CTE symptoms, early Parkinson’s, depression: Former Bulldog Nigel Kellett living a concussion nightmare
Mark Robinson, Chief Football Writer10 min read·32 minutes ago
News Corp Australia Sports Newsroom
https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/...-story/308272e66c36aae21c64babdaf381ee6#start
Former Bulldog Nigel Kellett is only able to remember fragments of his 154 games in red, blue and white due to repeated head knocks. Kellett and partner Sue Rudolph tell their harrowing story to MARK ROBINSON.
Nigel Kellett, the former Bulldog, sits in a comfy chair in his living room in Newport.
He looks normal. Short-haired, fit and healthy.
Then you notice the little things. Like, his face doesn’t move. He doesn’t smile. His eyes wander to the ceiling, to the walls and to the floorboards.
“He’s searching for words,’’ Kellett’s partner Sue Rudolph says.
“He’s lost his language.”
At 54, he has frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and CTE symptoms, depression and early Parkinson’s disease, a horror-show of symptoms that neurological experts say he has likely acquired from repeated collisions and subclinical concussions suffered during a 10-year career with the Western Bulldogs.
At home in Newport, Kellett struggles to recapture even fragments of what should be momentous and vivid memories.
Ex-footscray footballer Nigel Kellett at his Newport home. His partner Sue Rudolph says he has “lost his language” and is dealing with debilitating symptoms as a result of concussions. Picture: Michael Klein
Robinson: What’s happened Nigel?
Kellett: “(long pause) … I can’t remember 99 per cent of people and other stuff.”
Do you remember playing (1989-1997)?
Kellett: “Not really. Watching Foxtel (old games), I can’t remember 90 per cent of the players.”
Sue: “I tell him who they are. He has flashes. He’ll remember that he dropped a mark and Billy Brownless kicked the goal in a final in 1994.”
How do you feel about having memory loss?
Kellett: “(long pause) … will tell you this because I can’t remember where I played. I know where it is (on the ground), but I can’t remember what it is.”
On the wing?
Kellett: “Yes, that’s it.”
Can you remember your coaches?
Kellett: “Terry Wallace and Terry Wheeler. I can’t remember the other bloke, I think he came from Hawthorn.”
Can you remember Mick Malthouse?
Kellett: “No …. is that the Hawthorn bloke?
No, that was Alan Joyce.
Kellett: “Who’s the bloke you said?”
Mick Malthouse?
Kellett: “Who’s that?”
He coached you at Footscray, then coached West Coast, Collingwood and Carlton
Kellett: “Oh, yeah, that was my first one.”
Can you remember who your captains were?
Kellett: “(long pause) Is it Doug Hawkins? (long pause) there’s one who was a mate of mine, he won the Brownlow.”
Scott Wynd. There was another Bulldog who won a Brownlow Medal when you were there.
Kellett: (long pause)
Short fella?
Kellett: “I don’t know where someone else won it.”
Tony Liberatore?
Sue: You know, Libba.
Kellett: “Ohhh … Libba. Do you know the best player was Scotty West. His son is playing now, Rhylee.”
Do you remember Brad Johnson?
Kellett: “Brad Johnson (whispers) … Brad Johnson (whispers) …. Um, I think that was the one. When he started training, he was in Hoppers Crossing, because that’s where I was from. That’s right, he’s on Foxtel.”
Sue: There’s little sparks there, it’s really nice.
Nigel and partner Sue at beach over looking Williamstown. Picture: Michael Klein
That is a snapshot of Kellett’s world. At one time he was an exuberant, happy and popular teammate, and before that a school prefect and captain of the first XVIII at Geelong College.
Now, he is a ghost of sorts.
Kellett also suffers depression, isolation and a low sense of worth. But it’s the words, the language, the people he once knew, that hide from him. Somewhere in his banged-up brain is another lifetime that he cannot find, and it can’t find him.
He’s good with numbers, though. He plays sudoku every day and enjoys a punt. He places multibets for $10 a throw. But like most punters, if Kellett loses he chases.
“It’s not just the memory loss, it’s impulsivity,’’ Sue says. “Impulsivity is a symptom of his FTD (dementia). I don’t mind Nige doing the multis because that’s research and brain work.
“Numbers are a different part of the brain to words. The brain is a mysterious organ and we know that different parts are responsible for different functionalities.
“The frontotemporal is responsible for emotion, memory, empathy, words, mood and behaviour. It is also contributes to his suicidal thoughts.”
THE PLAYER
Kellett played 154 games all-up in the seniors and reserves at the Whitten Oval. He wasn’t an in-and-under type, but he wasn’t timid either.“Nigel was a flashy ball carrier, a good user of the footy,” Terry Wallace says, not knowing Kellett’s current state. “In today’s footy, he would be a high metres-gained (player).
Nigel Kellett on the park for the Western Bulldogs against Fremantle in 1997.
“Him and his family were totally committed to the club. Probably one of my coaching regrets was to let him go (in 1997). His commitment to the club should have given him the right to fight for his position. It hurt the family.’’
Kellett was never completely knocked-out in his career, but he suffered multiple concussions. There are limited medical records from back then. But it was recorded in his 100th game that he took a heavy knock. “I got crunched and got a bit of blurred vision,” he told the media at the time. “There was not much point staying on (the ground).’’
Another time, he had an eye socket smashed in a game in 1994. He returned to the field that day and after the game was taken to emergency by his father, Doug.
Sue didn’t know Kellett, the footballer. They met at a Sunday session in 2016 at the Vineyard in St Kilda. Their first official date was at ex-Bulldogs teammate Paul Dimattina’s restaurant. “We had a lot of fun initially,’’ Sue said. “But we had a lot of challenges along the way because Nigel had these emotional outbursts. We didn’t know it was early dementia. He had no filter. He would say things that were offensive to people. It was like he had two personalities. You’ve got this beautiful man who is kind, funny, clever, really caring and generous. And then you had this impulsivity, like some sort of Tourette's with words, and a lack of empathy for example.’’
His outbursts cost him friendships. “He’s lost a lot of them (friends) and I don’t blame them because Nigel was sometimes out of control,’’ Sue said. “We knew something was wrong with Nige – we knew he had mental health problems – but he was misunderstood and misdiagnosed. On the other hand, he was still a kind, beautiful, gentle man.’’
One night, bouncers at the Young & Jackson hotel swooped on him because he was falling asleep at the bar. Kellett erupted. They kicked him out. The police came. Sue was overwrought as she tried to tell them Kellett had mental-health issues. Their night ended in the lockup.
“We got home and we both cried, hugging each other,’’ Sue said.
She cried again telling the story, while Kellett sat in his comfy chair and didn’t say a word.
Words are stuck all over the house to help Kellett remember things. There are stickers on the “fridge’’, the “water”, the “pantry”, “car keys”, “drawer’’, “table”, “chair” and “glass door’’.
“I label everything, so it’s not just a thing,’’ Sue says.
In the bathroom, there’s a cheat sheet to help Kellett know what is deodorant and what is moisturiser and what they are for — and there’s another cheatsheet on how to defrost frozen meals. It’s childlike with its simplicity.
Sign around Kelletts house remind him how to do simple everyday things. Picture: Michael Klein.
Nigel Kellett and Andy Lovell go for the ball in a Footscray v West Coast game in 1996.
Nigel Kellett at his Newport home. Picture: Michael Klein
LIVING IN FEAR
Kellett has attempted suicide – and continues to think about killing himself.At different times, there’s been a rope, a belt and a knife. Once, he was found by a family member at the place he wanted to end his life. Also, he has sent money and emails to family members with his suicide plans and basic suicide notes have been found his car.
“This is graphic and hard to talk about,’’ Sue says. He was institutionalised after two attempts and hospitalised after other attempts or plans. And Sue has dealt with others attempts at home.
Sue describes caring for Kellett as being in a constant state of “hyper-vigilance’’. She herself was in hospital for five weeks last year after suffering an intense panic attack.
She stutters when she is anxious or fretful. She stutters now.
“I ended up in the clinic for five weeks in care. They told me it was a manifestation of trauma, carer burnout and ambiguous loss associated with Nigel’s dementia,’’ she says.
When she was in hospital, Kellett was cared for by family and friends, and National Disability Insurance Scheme workers checked on him regularly.
Nigel Kellett (right) and his dad Doug watch the Bulldogs take on Melbourne on the round 1 match at the MCG this year. Picture: Michael Klein
Kellett hasn’t worked for three years and Sue, at the time, held a senior role at a global software company. She now works two days a week.
“Hyper-vigilance is back … I’m too scared to go to the office now. I work from home mostly,’’ she says, crying.
“I’m mostly consumed with thinking about Nige. He talks about there being no purpose for him. I’m sad for his loneliness and dark thoughts. All you think about is killing yourself, you say that, don’t you darl?’’
Kellett: “What?”
Back to the question and answer.
Robinson: How often are you thinking about that, Nigel?
Kellett: “Consistently.’’
Why?
Kellett: “(long pause) … I was 100 per cent doing it a week before the Grand Final last year.”
Why do want to kill yourself?
Kellett: “Because there’s nothing to do … because (long pause) my memory is no good. I know everyone dies at some stage.”
WHERE’S THE AFL?
Eighteen months ago, Kellett and Sue met with Peter Gordon who, as well as being the Western Bulldogs president when Kellett was at the club, was also representing the AFL in his case. A legal document signed by Gordon in November 2022 declared that Kellett would receive a monthly allowance and be also “eligible for significant capital provisions’’, a figure believed to be more than $1 million.Gordon wrote the arrangement would be “bedded down” in the first half of 2023 when the AFL was expected to complete its new hardship “scheme’’.
Nigel Kellett and Tony Liberatore embrace during an AFL game in the 1990s. Kellett, now 54, can hardly remember his Brownlow Medal-winning former teammate due to repeated head knocks across his career.
The monthly payments are being paid. The lump sum has not.
For the past 12 months, the situation has been lost in a quagmire of legal emails.
Also, impassioned letters and text messages from Sue to the AFL’s leadership – to Andrew Dillon, Richard Goyder, Stephen Meade and Brian Walsh – have been largely ignored.
Sue says the AFL is effectively demanding that Kellett jump through hoops that were never part of Gordon’s original deed.
The AFL was on Friday contacted for comment.
“It’s rolled on and on,’’ Sue said. “The financial situation is dire. I’m trying to have a semblance of a relationship with Nige before his lights go out, in so far as he can’t talk anymore.’’
Kellett has the same disease as Hollywood star Bruce Willis.
A recent meeting with a leading neurologist shared the gruesome prognosis that people with FTD of this variant typically live between seven and 12 years, sometimes longer, sometimes less. Sue has been told Kellett has likely lived with the disease for about nine years.
“We don’t have a long future together,’’ she says. “We don’t get to grow old together. We just have the now.’’
“In recent correspondence to AFL executives, I asked what they’d do if they were me and Nigel was their partner. I expect the AFL to uphold their word and deliver on what they promised.
“That they haven’t is shameful.
Nigel and Sue at beach over looking Williamstown. Picture: Michael Klein
SUPPORT GROUPS
Sue knows she’s not the only wife or partner living with a former player who is dysfunctional because of repeated head-knocks suffered when they were playing.She’s on the board of the Community Concussion Research Foundation and through that group is planning to start support groups.
For Kellett, she hopes his former mates can forgive him for his outbursts, which itself is muddling because he has forgotten why they dumped him in the first place.
“I’m looking for those people to have an understanding about why Nige acted like he did, and I’m hoping for compassion and forgiveness,’’ Sue says.
“He behaved like he did because his brain was impacted. He needs social engagement, and yes, I know it’s awkward.
“Men like Nigel need to come together,” she adds, “and we will build a support group for wives and partners who are also going through this hyper-vigilance, so we can share stories, build trust and hold hands.
Nigel Kellett and partner Sue. Sue says Nigel is suffering after repeated head knocks across his 10-year career at the Western Bulldogs. Picture: Michael Klein
“The AFL knows about Nigel’s brain damage. They’ve seen his medical file and reports. Gordon Legal has seen him in person.
“We spoke to Peter (Gordon) earlier in 2022. He knew Nige as a loveable, popular, happy, friendly person, and he knew Nige’s parents. When he saw Nige, he appeared blown away by Nigel’s decline.
“The AFL promised to help provide financial support and, yes they have with the allowance, and we are grateful, but we need more and we need it fast because time is running out.’’
For the 90 minutes of this interview, Nigel sat in his comfy chair and barely spoke 300 words.
When asked who the current Bulldogs coach was, he smiled slightly because, presumably, he found the words so easily.
“Luke Beveridge”, he said.
And who’s the captain?
Kellett: “(pause) Bont or something, what’s his name?”
His name is Marcus Bontempelli.
Kellett: “He wears No. 4 doesn’t he? Because that was me, I was No.4.”
NIGEL KELLETT
Born: December 18, 1969Recruited from: Hoppers Crossing, Geelong College
Club: Footscray/Western Bulldogs
Career: 1989-97
Positions: wing, half-forward
Games: 101
Goals: 41
Brownlow Medal: Kellett polled 12 votes in 1992, his highest single-season tally.
- Oct 30, 2014
- 4,193
- 8,206
- AFL Club
- Western Bulldogs
As damning an article you’ll read on a coach as Mick McGuane’s on Luke Beverage this morning.
Bazzas Lovechild
All Australian
Hard to read. Poor bloke.Absolutely gut-wrenching....
Dementia, CTE symptoms, early Parkinson’s, depression: Former Bulldog Nigel Kellett living a concussion nightmare
Mark Robinson, Chief Football Writer
10 min read·32 minutes ago
News Corp Australia Sports Newsroom
https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/...-story/308272e66c36aae21c64babdaf381ee6#start
Former Bulldog Nigel Kellett is only able to remember fragments of his 154 games in red, blue and white due to repeated head knocks. Kellett and partner Sue Rudolph tell their harrowing story to MARK ROBINSON.
Nigel Kellett, the former Bulldog, sits in a comfy chair in his living room in Newport.
He looks normal. Short-haired, fit and healthy.
Then you notice the little things. Like, his face doesn’t move. He doesn’t smile. His eyes wander to the ceiling, to the walls and to the floorboards.
“He’s searching for words,’’ Kellett’s partner Sue Rudolph says.
“He’s lost his language.”
At 54, he has frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and CTE symptoms, depression and early Parkinson’s disease, a horror-show of symptoms that neurological experts say he has likely acquired from repeated collisions and subclinical concussions suffered during a 10-year career with the Western Bulldogs.
At home in Newport, Kellett struggles to recapture even fragments of what should be momentous and vivid memories.
Ex-footscray footballer Nigel Kellett at his Newport home. His partner Sue Rudolph says he has “lost his language” and is dealing with debilitating symptoms as a result of concussions. Picture: Michael Klein
Robinson: What’s happened Nigel?
Kellett: “(long pause) … I can’t remember 99 per cent of people and other stuff.”
Do you remember playing (1989-1997)?
Kellett: “Not really. Watching Foxtel (old games), I can’t remember 90 per cent of the players.”
Sue: “I tell him who they are. He has flashes. He’ll remember that he dropped a mark and Billy Brownless kicked the goal in a final in 1994.”
How do you feel about having memory loss?
Kellett: “(long pause) … will tell you this because I can’t remember where I played. I know where it is (on the ground), but I can’t remember what it is.”
On the wing?
Kellett: “Yes, that’s it.”
Can you remember your coaches?
Kellett: “Terry Wallace and Terry Wheeler. I can’t remember the other bloke, I think he came from Hawthorn.”
Can you remember Mick Malthouse?
Kellett: “No …. is that the Hawthorn bloke?
No, that was Alan Joyce.
Kellett: “Who’s the bloke you said?”
Mick Malthouse?
Kellett: “Who’s that?”
He coached you at Footscray, then coached West Coast, Collingwood and Carlton
Kellett: “Oh, yeah, that was my first one.”
Can you remember who your captains were?
Kellett: “(long pause) Is it Doug Hawkins? (long pause) there’s one who was a mate of mine, he won the Brownlow.”
Scott Wynd. There was another Bulldog who won a Brownlow Medal when you were there.
Kellett: (long pause)
Short fella?
Kellett: “I don’t know where someone else won it.”
Tony Liberatore?
Sue: You know, Libba.
Kellett: “Ohhh … Libba. Do you know the best player was Scotty West. His son is playing now, Rhylee.”
Do you remember Brad Johnson?
Kellett: “Brad Johnson (whispers) … Brad Johnson (whispers) …. Um, I think that was the one. When he started training, he was in Hoppers Crossing, because that’s where I was from. That’s right, he’s on Foxtel.”
Sue: There’s little sparks there, it’s really nice.
Nigel and partner Sue at beach over looking Williamstown. Picture: Michael Klein
That is a snapshot of Kellett’s world. At one time he was an exuberant, happy and popular teammate, and before that a school prefect and captain of the first XVIII at Geelong College.
Now, he is a ghost of sorts.
Kellett also suffers depression, isolation and a low sense of worth. But it’s the words, the language, the people he once knew, that hide from him. Somewhere in his banged-up brain is another lifetime that he cannot find, and it can’t find him.
He’s good with numbers, though. He plays sudoku every day and enjoys a punt. He places multibets for $10 a throw. But like most punters, if Kellett loses he chases.
“It’s not just the memory loss, it’s impulsivity,’’ Sue says. “Impulsivity is a symptom of his FTD (dementia). I don’t mind Nige doing the multis because that’s research and brain work.
“Numbers are a different part of the brain to words. The brain is a mysterious organ and we know that different parts are responsible for different functionalities.
“The frontotemporal is responsible for emotion, memory, empathy, words, mood and behaviour. It is also contributes to his suicidal thoughts.”
THE PLAYER
Kellett played 154 games all-up in the seniors and reserves at the Whitten Oval. He wasn’t an in-and-under type, but he wasn’t timid either.
“Nigel was a flashy ball carrier, a good user of the footy,” Terry Wallace says, not knowing Kellett’s current state. “In today’s footy, he would be a high metres-gained (player).
Nigel Kellett on the park for the Western Bulldogs against Fremantle in 1997.
“Him and his family were totally committed to the club. Probably one of my coaching regrets was to let him go (in 1997). His commitment to the club should have given him the right to fight for his position. It hurt the family.’’
Kellett was never completely knocked-out in his career, but he suffered multiple concussions. There are limited medical records from back then. But it was recorded in his 100th game that he took a heavy knock. “I got crunched and got a bit of blurred vision,” he told the media at the time. “There was not much point staying on (the ground).’’
Another time, he had an eye socket smashed in a game in 1994. He returned to the field that day and after the game was taken to emergency by his father, Doug.
Sue didn’t know Kellett, the footballer. They met at a Sunday session in 2016 at the Vineyard in St Kilda. Their first official date was at ex-Bulldogs teammate Paul Dimattina’s restaurant. “We had a lot of fun initially,’’ Sue said. “But we had a lot of challenges along the way because Nigel had these emotional outbursts. We didn’t know it was early dementia. He had no filter. He would say things that were offensive to people. It was like he had two personalities. You’ve got this beautiful man who is kind, funny, clever, really caring and generous. And then you had this impulsivity, like some sort of Tourette's with words, and a lack of empathy for example.’’
His outbursts cost him friendships. “He’s lost a lot of them (friends) and I don’t blame them because Nigel was sometimes out of control,’’ Sue said. “We knew something was wrong with Nige – we knew he had mental health problems – but he was misunderstood and misdiagnosed. On the other hand, he was still a kind, beautiful, gentle man.’’
One night, bouncers at the Young & Jackson hotel swooped on him because he was falling asleep at the bar. Kellett erupted. They kicked him out. The police came. Sue was overwrought as she tried to tell them Kellett had mental-health issues. Their night ended in the lockup.
“We got home and we both cried, hugging each other,’’ Sue said.
She cried again telling the story, while Kellett sat in his comfy chair and didn’t say a word.
Words are stuck all over the house to help Kellett remember things. There are stickers on the “fridge’’, the “water”, the “pantry”, “car keys”, “drawer’’, “table”, “chair” and “glass door’’.
“I label everything, so it’s not just a thing,’’ Sue says.
In the bathroom, there’s a cheat sheet to help Kellett know what is deodorant and what is moisturiser and what they are for — and there’s another cheatsheet on how to defrost frozen meals. It’s childlike with its simplicity.
Sign around Kelletts house remind him how to do simple everyday things. Picture: Michael Klein.
Nigel Kellett and Andy Lovell go for the ball in a Footscray v West Coast game in 1996.
Nigel Kellett at his Newport home. Picture: Michael Klein
LIVING IN FEAR
Kellett has attempted suicide – and continues to think about killing himself.
At different times, there’s been a rope, a belt and a knife. Once, he was found by a family member at the place he wanted to end his life. Also, he has sent money and emails to family members with his suicide plans and basic suicide notes have been found his car.
“This is graphic and hard to talk about,’’ Sue says. He was institutionalised after two attempts and hospitalised after other attempts or plans. And Sue has dealt with others attempts at home.
Sue describes caring for Kellett as being in a constant state of “hyper-vigilance’’. She herself was in hospital for five weeks last year after suffering an intense panic attack.
She stutters when she is anxious or fretful. She stutters now.
“I ended up in the clinic for five weeks in care. They told me it was a manifestation of trauma, carer burnout and ambiguous loss associated with Nigel’s dementia,’’ she says.
When she was in hospital, Kellett was cared for by family and friends, and National Disability Insurance Scheme workers checked on him regularly.
Nigel Kellett (right) and his dad Doug watch the Bulldogs take on Melbourne on the round 1 match at the MCG this year. Picture: Michael Klein
Kellett hasn’t worked for three years and Sue, at the time, held a senior role at a global software company. She now works two days a week.
“Hyper-vigilance is back … I’m too scared to go to the office now. I work from home mostly,’’ she says, crying.
“I’m mostly consumed with thinking about Nige. He talks about there being no purpose for him. I’m sad for his loneliness and dark thoughts. All you think about is killing yourself, you say that, don’t you darl?’’
Kellett: “What?”
Back to the question and answer.
Robinson: How often are you thinking about that, Nigel?
Kellett: “Consistently.’’
Why?
Kellett: “(long pause) … I was 100 per cent doing it a week before the Grand Final last year.”
Why do want to kill yourself?
Kellett: “Because there’s nothing to do … because (long pause) my memory is no good. I know everyone dies at some stage.”
WHERE’S THE AFL?
Eighteen months ago, Kellett and Sue met with Peter Gordon who, as well as being the Western Bulldogs president when Kellett was at the club, was also representing the AFL in his case. A legal document signed by Gordon in November 2022 declared that Kellett would receive a monthly allowance and be also “eligible for significant capital provisions’’, a figure believed to be more than $1 million.
Gordon wrote the arrangement would be “bedded down” in the first half of 2023 when the AFL was expected to complete its new hardship “scheme’’.
Nigel Kellett and Tony Liberatore embrace during an AFL game in the 1990s. Kellett, now 54, can hardly remember his Brownlow Medal-winning former teammate due to repeated head knocks across his career.
The monthly payments are being paid. The lump sum has not.
For the past 12 months, the situation has been lost in a quagmire of legal emails.
Also, impassioned letters and text messages from Sue to the AFL’s leadership – to Andrew Dillon, Richard Goyder, Stephen Meade and Brian Walsh – have been largely ignored.
Sue says the AFL is effectively demanding that Kellett jump through hoops that were never part of Gordon’s original deed.
The AFL was on Friday contacted for comment.
“It’s rolled on and on,’’ Sue said. “The financial situation is dire. I’m trying to have a semblance of a relationship with Nige before his lights go out, in so far as he can’t talk anymore.’’
Kellett has the same disease as Hollywood star Bruce Willis.
A recent meeting with a leading neurologist shared the gruesome prognosis that people with FTD of this variant typically live between seven and 12 years, sometimes longer, sometimes less. Sue has been told Kellett has likely lived with the disease for about nine years.
“We don’t have a long future together,’’ she says. “We don’t get to grow old together. We just have the now.’’
“In recent correspondence to AFL executives, I asked what they’d do if they were me and Nigel was their partner. I expect the AFL to uphold their word and deliver on what they promised.
“That they haven’t is shameful.
Nigel and Sue at beach over looking Williamstown. Picture: Michael Klein
SUPPORT GROUPS
Sue knows she’s not the only wife or partner living with a former player who is dysfunctional because of repeated head-knocks suffered when they were playing.
She’s on the board of the Community Concussion Research Foundation and through that group is planning to start support groups.
For Kellett, she hopes his former mates can forgive him for his outbursts, which itself is muddling because he has forgotten why they dumped him in the first place.
“I’m looking for those people to have an understanding about why Nige acted like he did, and I’m hoping for compassion and forgiveness,’’ Sue says.
“He behaved like he did because his brain was impacted. He needs social engagement, and yes, I know it’s awkward.
“Men like Nigel need to come together,” she adds, “and we will build a support group for wives and partners who are also going through this hyper-vigilance, so we can share stories, build trust and hold hands.
Nigel Kellett and partner Sue. Sue says Nigel is suffering after repeated head knocks across his 10-year career at the Western Bulldogs. Picture: Michael Klein
“The AFL knows about Nigel’s brain damage. They’ve seen his medical file and reports. Gordon Legal has seen him in person.
“We spoke to Peter (Gordon) earlier in 2022. He knew Nige as a loveable, popular, happy, friendly person, and he knew Nige’s parents. When he saw Nige, he appeared blown away by Nigel’s decline.
“The AFL promised to help provide financial support and, yes they have with the allowance, and we are grateful, but we need more and we need it fast because time is running out.’’
For the 90 minutes of this interview, Nigel sat in his comfy chair and barely spoke 300 words.
When asked who the current Bulldogs coach was, he smiled slightly because, presumably, he found the words so easily.
“Luke Beveridge”, he said.
And who’s the captain?
Kellett: “(pause) Bont or something, what’s his name?”
His name is Marcus Bontempelli.
Kellett: “He wears No. 4 doesn’t he? Because that was me, I was No.4.”
NIGEL KELLETT
Born: December 18, 1969
Recruited from: Hoppers Crossing, Geelong College
Club: Footscray/Western Bulldogs
Career: 1989-97
Positions: wing, half-forward
Games: 101
Goals: 41
Brownlow Medal: Kellett polled 12 votes in 1992, his highest single-season tally.
Dogs_R_Us
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Totally lifted from Bigfooty
- Sep 28, 2014
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Yeah I was thinking that is exactly what I wrote on here myself and so have lots of other people. But it’s true, Bevo is a stubborn prick and he will not make this move. He is going to die on this mountain that he has created for himself. He will have to be sacked eventually, he is not going to change now.Totally lifted from Bigfooty
ossie_21
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Absolutely heartbreaking reading that.
MYOB
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That is heart breaking to read about Nigel Kellet. He was always a happy go lucky person.
I hope some of the people that have abandoned him can find it to reconnect with him.
On SM-G781B using BigFooty.com mobile app
I hope some of the people that have abandoned him can find it to reconnect with him.
On SM-G781B using BigFooty.com mobile app
- Jan 13, 2004
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Geez that was a sad read about Nigel.
One of my favourites back in the day.
Poor guy, hope his life can get better.
One of my favourites back in the day.
Poor guy, hope his life can get better.
