Royce Hart’s elevation to ‘Legend’ status in the Australian Football Hall of Fame, at last night’s gala function in Canberra, prompted Tony Greenberg to reflect on his formative years as a Richmond supporter, idolising the champion centre half-forward.
Royce Hart is the best player I’ve ever seen in nearly 50 years of watching league football . . .
Like so many other Richmond ‘Baby-Boomer’ barrackers, Royce Hart was my football idol when I was a kid.
I had Royce’s No. 4 sewn on the back of my Richmond jumper before he’d even played a senior game, such was my hero worship of the then teenage sensation from Tasmanian club Clarence, who had kicked the winning goal for the Tiger reserves in the 1966 grand final. And, I even taught myself to kick left foot (albeit not very well) as a youngster, just so I could be like him.
Hart had an instant impact on the senior league scene, kicking 55 goals in his debut 1967 season (winning the Club's goalkicking along the way) and playing such a pivotal role in Richmond’s drought-breaking premiership side.
Spend a unique night with two greats of the game – AFL Legend, Royce Hart and 2013 inductee, Ian Stewart - at Richmond’s Hall of Fame Dinner. Click here to book now.
That classic mark Hart took over Geelong opponent Peter Walker in the desperate last quarter of the '67 Grand Final, is indelibly etched in the minds of all Richmond supporters fortunate enough to have been there on the day. He also kicked three vital goals and was in the Tigers’ top three players on the ground.
The Royce Hart legend was born that glorious late September Saturday afternoon. Over the next decade, he was to thrill the Tiger Army with his breathtaking football exploits.
Richmond won four premierships during that period, and Hart’s dominance up forward was one of the major factors in the greatest era in the Club's history.
Royce was among Richmond's best players in each of the five Grand Finals he played in (four wins, one loss). The informative Club history book, ‘The Tigers Of Old’, listed Hart's individual Grand Final stats as:
- 1967 – 13 kicks, 7 marks, 6 handballs, 3 goals
- 1969 – 14 kicks, 5 marks, 3 handballs, 1 goal
- 1972 – 13 kicks, 4 marks, 5 handballs, 2 goals
- 1973 – 16 kicks, 7 marks, 3 handballs, 3 goals
- 1974 – 19 kicks, 5 marks, 4 handballs, 3 goals
I honestly can't remember a big occasion when Royce didn't produce that “something special” for the Tigers. He was the consummate big-occasion player, with an uncanny knack of lifting the Tiger team with an inspirational act of brilliance, just when it was needed most.
Possessing an ice-cool temperament, he repeatedly absorbed the most intense pressure imaginable from opponents without batting an eyelid.
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I never saw Hart get flustered, or “do his block” on the field, and it must have frustrated the life out of opposing backmen, who just couldn’t get him sucked in, no matter how hard they tried.
He would simply respond to ultra-tight defensive tactics by tapping into his vast repertoire of silky skills and producing something out of the ordinary, which hurt the opposition where it really counted – on the scoreboard!
The Tiger Army was enraptured with him . . . My bedroom was littered with Royce Hart posters, photos, newspaper clippings, etc. I also idolised the likes of Bartlett, Bourke, Sheedy and Clay – but Hart was something else!
It’s amazing to think that Hart, at 187cm tall, was the same height – or smaller – than current-day Tigers such as Brett Deledio, Daniel Jackson,Dustin Martin, Shane Tuck and Nick Vlastuin. But he played in the on-field position widely regarded as the most difficult to occupy – centre half-forward – and he consistently outmarked the biggest, strongest players in the competition back in his day.
And, he could mark the ball seemingly from any position – over the top of a pack (or hapless opponent), sweeping across the front of a pack, or backing into a pack with astonishing bravery.
But Royce’s game didn’t revolve solely around his aerial supremacy . . . his ground play also was exquisite . . . He had the ability to apply fierce pressure to opponents when he didn't have the ball, in much the same way as today’s hard-working midfielders ply their trade.
Then, of course, there was Hart’s kicking for goal – text-book, left-foot drop punts, which split the big, white sticks, seemingly from any angle or distance.
It was a sheer privilege to have watched Royce in almost every one of the 187 games he played throughout his illustrious career at Tigerland.
When it comes to the greatest players in Richmond’s 105-year league football history, Royce Hart is right at the top of the tree. Now, rightfully, he is officially recognised as a Legend of our great game – one of only 25 in the Australian Football Hall of Fame. It’s the ultimate accolade for the ultimate footballer.
On behalf of all of us Tiger supporters fortunate enough to have seen Royce weave his on-field magic, I congratulate him on his elevation to Legend status, and thank him for the wonderful memories . . .
