His year ended on a sour note when he was suspended for striking St Kilda rover Nathan Burke in the first week of the finals, and he subsequently missed Geelong's finals defeats to Hawthorn and West Coast. In a 134-point victory against Richmond, Ablett scored 14 goals, breaking a 22-year club record, and moving club legend and former club premiership coach Bobby Davis to laud Ablett as the equal of the legendary Graham 'Polly' Farmer,[5] the finest footballers he had seen at Geelong. Ablett was slotted back into the senior side in Round 13. Ablett's eldest son, Gary Jr., has followed in his footsteps to play for Geelong. The Bombers humbled Geelong by 76 points to force the Cats into a sudden-death Semi Final showdown with Melbourne. He failed to recapture his best form, however, and he kicked just 28 goals throughout 12 appearances. [citation needed], In 2006, Ablett was honoured with the naming of a terrace in his name within the newly renovated Skilled Stadium. Against the reigning premiers Hawthorn in the 1989 VFL Grand Final, Ablett asserted himself from the opening bounce, leading out from full forward, marking the first centre clearance kick and slotting through the game's first goal. The 1989 season was marked by the arrival of Ablett's third coach, former North Melbourne Brownlow Medallist Malcolm Blight. [2], Playing mostly on the half forward flank, Ablett won the club's goalkicking award for the following two seasons with 82 and 65 goals respectively. A noted big game player, Ablett kicked 43 goals in 11 State appearances. After establishing a two-goal lead at half-time, the Cats failed to sustain their momentum during the second half, eventually going down by 28 points to the fast-finishing Eagles. In doing so, he became one of only four players (the others being Maurice Rioli −1982, Nathan Buckley −2002, and Chris Judd −2005) to win the medal playing for the losing side. McMaster convinced Ablett to give the game another shot, this time in the confines of the rural city of Geelong. Gary booted 7 goals but injured his knee. By half-time, Ablett had kicked four goals, but the Cats trailed at the main break by 37 points. 1990 Stimorol AFL #16 Gary Ablett What we overlook is the degree of difficulty, as a twisting, falling Ablett plunges to earth while still retaining the, Induction into the Australian Football Hall of Fame. The move up forward proved to be a master-stroke, with Ablett thriving in his goal-kicking role, reaching the 50-goal mark in just six games, equalling the sixty-year record of South Melbourne legend Bob Pratt. [10], He performed well again the following year, kicking 4 goals against South Australia. In 2001, Ablett was named in the Geelong Team of the Century, on a half forward flank. He was also awarded both club and competition best and fairest awards for Drouin at the under-11s, under-12s and under-14s levels. 1990 Select AFL Stickers #6 Robert DiPierdomenico / Gary Ablett Sr. 1990 Select AFL Stickers #110 Gary Ablett, 1990 Select AFL Stickers #253 Garry Ablett. history (4.22 goals per game), 4-time runner-up in Carji Greeves Medal (1985, 1993, 1994, 1995), 3-time third-place getter in Carji Greeves Medal (1986, 1989, 1990), This page was last edited on 17 October 2020, at 11:31. [2] He played 15 games and kicked 33 goals in the 1984 season, and was awarded the Carji Greeves Medal as the Geelong Football Club's "best and fairest" player of the year. His 1989 VFL Grand Final appearance, during which he kicked a grand final record nine goals for a losing side, is regarded as one of football's greatest individual performances, earning him the Norm Smith Medal. Nathan initially refused to play AFL Football because of his father's experience with the media, but, with encouragement from the club, was signed ahead of the 2005 AFL Season and established himself in the full forward role Gary Sr. made his own. In March, Geelong confirmed that Ablett would play in 1997. He remains Geelong's all-time leading goalkicker, with 1021 goals; and, in 2006, was voted by past and present Geelong Football Club players as the greatest Geelong footballer of all time. Two of Ablett's brothers played in the Victorian Football League – Kevin Ablett, who played for Hawthorn, Richmond and Geelong, and Geoff Ablett, who played for Hawthorn, Richmond and St Kilda. Designated trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners. Copyright © 2020 Trading Card Database LLC — Jon Ralph on Ablett's 1994 Mark of the Year[7], Ablett continued his dominance as a full-forward in 1994 and 1995 by winning the Coleman Medal in each year. ", "One part beauty, nine parts drama. He returned to Hawthorn in 1982 and made his senior VFL debut versus Geelong in Round 2, kicking 1 goal and helping the Hawks defeat the Cats by 19 points. [5] Ablett's public acknowledgement of his faith, in particular the influence of God in his life, during his acceptance speech for the Norm Smith Medal in the 1989 Grand Final, was also much publicised. Being chosen to be inducted into the Hall of Fame is one of the highest honours a player could dream of. Nedless to say, I continued to hold on as much as I could, for fear of getting knocked out. [citation needed], With his contract expiring at the conclusion of the 1987 season, Ablett shocked the VFL by signing a new five-year contract with his former club, Hawthorn. He turned around to me and said, 'If you do that one more time, I'm going to knock you out'. In the following few years Ablett was largely out of the side, apart from 1987, when he kicked 2 goals against South Australia. However, he struggled to adjust to city life and retreated to Myrtleford the following year. His end-of-season total of 124 goals, achieved in just 17 appearances, earned him his first Coleman Medal as the League's leading goal-scorer, the Leigh Matthews Trophy, the AFMA Player of the Year Award, and a top-ten placing in the Brownlow Medal.

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