Australian Football League's Hall of Fame

By Garrie Hutchinson Ed, Sydney: Harper Sports, 2000, 160 pages, hardback, $32.95. Reviewed by Debbie Hindley in the September 2001 issue.

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This book is a walk through a hall of fame without leaving the lounge. It has all the elements you would expect: legendary figures, statistics, photographs and memorabilia. It is a snapshot of the AFL's notable players. Australian Football League's Hall of Fame is a tribute to the greatest game's greatest.

Editor, Garrie Hutchison, has written and edited many books on Australian Football, including 100 Years of Australian Football produced for the centenary of the AFL in 1996. He has also written From theOuter and the Barrackers Guide to Football.

A brief foreword is provided on theHall of Fame, instituted by the AFL in their centenary year. This book was then produced when the Hall was expanded in 2000. The first part is for the sixteen legends -- Barassi, Bartlett, Bunton Sr, Cazaly, Coleman, Coventry, Dyer, Farmer, Hudson, Matthews (surprisingly a legend), Nicholls, Pratt, Reynolds, Skilton, Stewart and Ted Whitten. The second is formembers, that is, outstanding players, coaches, umpires, media and administrators.

Each legend, member player or coach has a double page spread of their career. These include an honour board with details of their careers with clubs, number of games and goals, their awards and state representation. There is also a short narrative covering their backgrounds, style of play and their sporting character and prowess. Each page has a number of illustrations, including photographs, cartoons and of private memorabilia. Umpires, administrators and media follow the players with a photograph and a short paragraph on their contribution to the game.

It is the selection of wonderful illustrations that makes this book because there is not a lot of text. There are photographs from the press (for example the poignant moment when the late Ted Whitten said goodbye at the MCG) and of classic marks, perhaps the most distinguishing feature of Australian football. There are family photographs of players as youngsters and with their own youngsters. The high emotion of the game is also revealed through the illustrations of action shots, clashes between players and the jubilation of a great goal, mark or win. It also provides a pictorial history of the suburban grounds before the game went national and into big stadiums.

This book is a collector's item for devotees of the game, although sports historians and those studying Australian popular culture may appreciate it. The editing and presentation of the visual material is outstanding and the book finds its mark as a record of Australian football.

Citation

• Debbie Hindley. 'Review: Australian Football League's Hall of Fame by Garrie Hutchinson ed' [online]. Network Review of Books (Perth, Australian Public Intellectual Network), September 2001. Availability: <please cite the web address here> ISSN 1833-0932. [accessed 06 September 2010].

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