The man widely regarded as the greatest Tiger of them all - Jack Dyer - was born on this day 99 years ago.
John Raymond Dyer entered the world on November 15, 1913, the second child of Ben and Nellie Dyer (they had an older son, Vin, and later had a daughter, Eileen).
The Dyers lived in the Melbourne suburb of Oakleigh at the time of Jack’s birth, but moved to the timber district of Yarra Junction, when he was a baby.
Jack attended Yarra Junction Primary School and subsequently won scholarships at secondary level, to attend St Ignatius College in Richmond, followed by De La Salle College in Malvern. Those scholarships were given more for his football talent, than scholastic ability.
It was that football talent, which eventually resulted in young Dyer being invited to train at Richmond (the league club he was residentially tied to) by then Tiger senior coach, the great Frank ‘Checker’ Hughes.
Dyer officially joined Richmond in 1931 and made his senior debut in Round 2 of that season, against North Melbourne at Punt Road, as 19th man.
Richmond kicked a then-record league score of 30.19 (199) that day, with full-forward Doug Strang booting a record 14 goals for the Club, but the gangly 17-year-old Dyer spent the entire match on the bench watching the Tigers hammer their opponents by 168 points.
He had to wait until the return clash with North that season, at Arden Street, for his first full game of league football.
This time, it was a bit closer, with Richmond winning by ‘only’ 39 points. Dyer kicked a goal and showed why he was so highly regarded, producing an impressive display.
The Dyer legend was born . . .
“Captain Blood”, as he was subsequently dubbed, due to his swashbuckling style of play, would go on to carve out a magnificent 312-game career with Richmond, from 1931-1949.
His list of football achievements (see below) speaks for itself, but to paint the picture of Dyer’s true worth as a player, here’s how six-time Melbourne premiership coach and AFL Team of the Century coach, Norm Smith, described him . . .
“He was one of the three greatest footballers the game has produced, probably the greatest,” Smith said.
“I feel he would undoubtedly have stamped himself as the most brilliant footballer in the game had he played as an individual rather than for his team.
“It has always been Richmond first, Dyer last, with Captain Blood.
“He was a breathtaking footballer, a strong, attacking player with amazing pace and stamina.
“His dedication made him one of the most accurate kicks in the game.
“His marking was as brilliant and consistent as any I have seen.
“As a ruckman, he was without peer. He put the ball to his rover with uncanny accuracy.
“For a big man, his handling of the ball was a treat.
“If I were picking a side from the greatest players the game has produced, Jack Dyer would be the first picked.”
The doyen of football writers, the Melbourne Herald’s Alf Brown, was similarly lavish in his praise of Jack Dyer.
“Dyer rode to football fame on his great ability and cold-blooded, ruthless, relentless vigour in a football era of rough, tough strongmen,” Brown wrote.
“Dyer was not just a rugged he-man. He was amazingly fast for a six-footer - he roved for Richmond in his first year - he was a fine mark, a good kick and he had the football brain of the champion that made him instinctively do the correct thing.
“He could play in any position and could lift his side and win matches with sheer brilliance.
“In addition to his great football attributes, he had what some champions have lacked - a single-minded determination to do the best for his side. He was a wonderful team man . . .”
It’s fair to say that no player in league football history has epitomised his club more than Jack Dyer.
He was the embodiment of the famous Tiger ‘Eat ‘em Alive’ spirit.
The tough, inner-city, working-class suburb of Richmond, and the rugged, raw-boned Dyer, were a match made in heaven.
Dyer ignited a passion within the Tiger tribe that has been passed down from generation.
Even today, 10 years after his death in August 2003, at age 89, Dyer is still revered by the Yellow and Black faithful . And, as long as there is a Richmond Football Club, he always will be . . .
JACK DYER PROFILE
Born: 15/11/1913
Height: 185cm
Playing weight: 89kg
Recruited from: St Ignatius
Guernsey number at Richmond: No. 17
Debut at Richmond: Round 2, 1931 v North Melbourne, Punt Road
Games played (1931-49): 312
Goals: 443
Games coached: 225 (134 wins, 2 draws, 89 losses)
Honors: Six-time Best and Fairest winner (1932, 1937-40, 1946); dual premiership player (1934, 1943); two-time winner of the Club’s Leading Goalkicker award (1947-48); Club captain 1941-49 (160 matches all-up); Club coach 1941-52; Victorian State representative 16 times; Victorian captain twice (1941, 1949); captain of Richmond's Team of the Century; inaugural Tiger Hall of Fame inductee; inaugural Richmond 'Immortal', member of Australian Football Hall of Fame; Australian Hall of Fame Legend, member of the AFL’s Team of the Century, awarded the Order of Australia for his services to Australian Football.
