| Gary Ablett Sr. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Sculpture of Ablett by artist Stu James at an exhibition of football art | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Gary Robert Ablett | ||
| Nickname(s) | God[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 1 October 1961 | ||
| Place of birth | Drouin, Victoria[2] | ||
| Original team(s) | Myrtleford/Drouin | ||
| Debut | Round 2, 3 April 1982, Hawthorn vs. Geelong, at Princes Park | ||
| Height | 185 cm (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Weight | 97 kg (214 lb) | ||
| Position(s) | Half-forward flank|full-forward | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1982 | Hawthorn | 6 (11) | |
| 1984–1997 | Geelong | 242 (1021) | |
| Total | 248 (1032) | ||
| Representative team honours | |||
| Years | Team | Games (Goals) | |
| 1984–1995 | Victoria | 11 (43) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1996. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Gary Robert Ablett (born 1 October 1961) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who represented Hawthorn and Geelong in the Australian Football League (AFL). Nicknamed "God", Ablett is widely regarded as one of Australian football's greatest players,[3] and was especially renowned for his high-flying spectacular marks and his prolific goalkicking.[1]
After playing for several country teams in and around his hometown of Drouin, Victoria, Ablett was recruited by Hawthorn and made his Victorian Football League (VFL) debut in 1982. However, he struggled to adjust to city life and retreated to Myrtleford the following year. The Geelong Football Club managed to lure him back to professional football in 1984, and by the late '80s, he had become one of the VFL's biggest stars. His 1989 VFL Grand Final appearance, during which he kicked a grand final record nine goals for a losing side (and tying the outright grand final record with Gordon Coventry), is regarded as one of football's greatest individual performances, earning him the Norm Smith Medal.[4] At the beginning of the 1991 season, Ablett shocked the football world by abruptly announcing his retirement from the game, but he made a comeback midway through the year. He went on to appear in the 1992, 1994, and 1995 grand finals, before officially retiring after on September 25, 1997.[5]
Ablett's individual accolades and achievements include an induction into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, an AFL Team of the Century selection, the 1993 AFL Players Association MVP award (now known as the Leigh Matthews Trophy), and three Coleman Medals. 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.[6]
- ^ a b Haigh, G, "Playing God: The Rise and Fall of Gary Ablett" Sunday Morning Herald, 19 July 2003, accessed 9 October 2007
- ^ Ablett, G, "Gary Ablett – Ironbark Legends", Ironbark Legends, Sydney, 1996. pgs. 20, 24, 33, 36, 39, 47, 50.
- ^ "Player Profile: Gary Ablett". Geelong Football Club & Bigpond. Retrieved 9 October 2007.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Lovett, Michael, ed. (2005). AFL 2005. Australian Football League Publishing/Geoff Slattery Publishing Pty Limited. p. 610. ISBN 0-9580300-6-5.
- ^ "Gary Ablett SNR retires from football. September 25, 1997". YouTube. 6 June 2023.
- ^ "Ablett named greatest Cat", abc.net.au, 11 June 2006; accessed 6 October 2007. Archived 19 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine