Jimmy and John and 'that' day...

[Dave McNamara]

Yeah that wasn't "t a great moment,John Greening ,sad day!

Maybe one of the Saintsatonalists can help me out here...

I have no idea who initiated whatever led up to that blow. But years ago I do remember hearing, that the reason John Greening was so badly hurt as a result, was that he should not have even been playing... was concussed in a car accident earlier that week, Collingwood knew, and should not have played him.

Jimmy O'Dea has had to live with the stigma, yet he did no worse (nor better) than what hundreds of footballers before and since have done. If what I heard is true, then it's actually the Skunks who should be living with that stigma.

Can anyone shed any more light on this...?





As a side point, from memory, that was also the day our (IMHO) greatest ever ruckman John McIntosh did his knee and never played for us again. Pretty sure we also lost the game(?) Sad day on so many fronts...

[stinger]

don't actually remember except both incidents occurred in 1972...jimmy got 10 weeks...the incident marred his whole career.......john originally did his knee in the 1971 second- semi injured but then injured it again early in the 72 season....he never played again.......at the time we recruited him he was rated in the top three players in the country....barry robran was another one...can't remember the third...a victorian i believe.....

[oldie60]

It was a sad day for all but it was great to see Jimmy come back and play a couple of seasons at Dandy and then returning to be a regular senior player again. He was a real hard nut and quite often had to take guys bigger than himself.

[plugger66]

Yeah that wasn't "t a great moment,John Greening ,sad day!

Maybe one of the Saintsatonalists can help me out here...

I have no idea who initiated whatever led up to that blow. But years ago I do remember hearing, that the reason John Greening was so badly hurt as a result, was that he should not have even been playing... was concussed in a car accident earlier that week, Collingwood knew, and should not have played him.

Jimmy O'Dea has had to live with the stigma, yet he did no worse (nor better) than what hundreds of footballers before and since have done. If what I heard is true, then it's actually the Skunks who should be living with that stigma.

Can anyone shed any more light on this...?





As a side point, from memory, that was also the day our (IMHO) greatest ever ruckman John McIntosh did his knee and never played for us again. Pretty sure we also lost the game(?) Sad day on so many fronts...

Harsh to blame the pies because O'dea hit a player behind play whether he should have played or not. Sometimes our players can be in the wrong and in this case im pretty sure O'dea was. I was at the game but didnt see it but it seemed a pretty open and shut case of being hit begind play.

[Majority]

Dave McNamara wrote:
As a side point, from memory, that was also the day our (IMHO) greatest ever ruckman John McIntosh did his knee and never played for us again. Pretty sure we also lost the game(?) Sad day on so many fronts...

John McIntosh did his knee playing Collingwood at VFL Park.

How do I know?
I was there.

Very sad day, I still remember McIntosh being taken off the ground on a stretcher, more than the result of the game.
I think St.Kilda won though.

[BigMart]

Infamous day, no hiding from the fact it was a shameful act!

Greening was seriously injured by an intentional behind the play king hit..... No excuses... O'Dea has to live with the fact he ruined the career of a spectacular footballer... And really, that's what he's best remembered for....

Not sure why anyone would commit such an act on the footy field?

[stinger]

Infamous day, no hiding from the fact it was a shameful act!

Greening was seriously injured by an intentional behind the play king hit..... No excuses... O'Dea has to live with the fact he ruined the career of a spectacular footballer... And really, that's what he's best remembered for....

Not sure why anyone would commit such an act on the footy field?

ask duncan wright.......he hit summerviille in a final before a ball had been bounced...tried to blame it on sun stroke.....

[derby Street]

Infamous day, no hiding from the fact it was a shameful act!

Greening was seriously injured by an intentional behind the play king hit..... No excuses... O'Dea has to live with the fact he ruined the career of a spectacular footballer... And really, that's what he's best remembered for....

Not sure why anyone would commit such an act on the footy field?

ask duncan wright.......he hit summerviille in a final before a ball had been bounced...tried to blame it on sun stroke.....

Conveniently forgotten by the filth.

[stinger]

Infamous day, no hiding from the fact it was a shameful act!

Greening was seriously injured by an intentional behind the play king hit..... No excuses... O'Dea has to live with the fact he ruined the career of a spectacular footballer... And really, that's what he's best remembered for....

Not sure why anyone would commit such an act on the footy field?

ask duncan wright.......he hit summerviille in a final before a ball had been bounced...tried to blame it on sun stroke.....

Conveniently forgotten by the filth.

yep...spot on mate....

knocked him out too,,,so doubt if summerville would remember either....

[BigMart]

Does that excuse the Greening hit, or justify it?

[stinger]

Does that excuse the Greening hit, or justify it?

neither....you asked why someone would king hit a player behind play...i merely suggested that you ask someone who did just that........i actually played with duncan but never was game enough to bring the subject up....

[Enrico_Misso]

Legend has it there was some ongoing animosity between them.
They had bumped into each other in the car park before the game and words were exchanged.

I was at the game as a schoolkid standing on the southern members flank not too far from the incident but saw nothing.
No doubt O'Dea king hit him behind the play.
I've heard medical people speculate that most of the long lasting damage was done not from the blow but from his head hitting the ground.
Jimmy was unlucky in that regard but still clearly at fault.
Sad incident all round.
Greening was a genuine superstar and O'Dea deprived the sport of what seemed destined to be a spectacular career.

But Jimmy paid a huge price for this folly.
He wasn't the only player who threw a punch behind the play in that era.
I'm sure if knew the consequences he wouldn't have done it.
Sad thing is Jimmy was a good player in his own right.
But he will always be remembered for that incident.
He is still paying the price for it.
And he always will.

[Verdun66]

We had a very long thread on this a couple of years back. Maybe longer. Lots of comment, and recollections. It covered a lot of ground. Someone better than me could probably find it.

[thejiggingsaint]

The saddest thing is, that I often hear some folk lamenting the passing of this era, citing how "soft" the game has become. We all saw the hit on Kosi by Giansiracusa, and that hit (IMHO) contributed greatly to the decline in Kosi's career. Some of the stuff that I've seen in those old "biff and bash" compilation videos has nothing to do with being "tough" but rather thuggery (and underhanded thuggery at that)

[Mr Magic]

Sometimes sledging can create some unintended circumstances.
And I'm not saying that ever punching another person on a football field is an acceptable reaction (unless you are defending yourself from physical attack).

[wally]

I was at the game that day on the fence next to the stk race it was well and truly behind play.We lost the game.
mumblings around at the time about greening & O'Dea's wife but nothing public, probably crap.

[8856brother]

Infamous day, no hiding from the fact it was a shameful act!

Greening was seriously injured by an intentional behind the play king hit..... No excuses... O'Dea has to live with the fact he ruined the career of a spectacular footballer... And really, that's what he's best remembered for....

Not sure why anyone would commit such an act on the footy field?

The supposed greatest player ever to play the game, and 4 time premiership coach, did the same cowardly act.

[Mr Magic]

I was at the game that day on the fence next to the stk race it was well and truly behind play.We lost the game.
mumblings around at the time about greening & O'Dea's wife but nothing public, probably crap.

'

Greening had a free/mark, O'Dea was standing the mark.
Greening took his kick and ran forward.
Whatever was/wasn't said/done happened at that point in time and not, as has been repeatedly stated, 'well behind the play'.

The mumblings you refer to are correct, if my information at the time was to be believed.
According to a person I worked with, who was close to O'Dea back then, Greening chipped him about his wife and O'Dea lashed out.
Unfortunately for Greening the blow and the subsequent collision with the ground caused terrible injuries to Greening.

There was absolutely no 'intent' by O'Dea to 'maim' Greening, despite all the bs that's been alleged/printed/stated since.
In fact, I reckon it would be hard to categorize it as a 'king hit' in the true sense of that terminology.

[8856brother]

There was absolutely no 'intent' by O'Dea to 'maim' Greening,

MM what do you think he was trying to do then?

[borderbarry]

I was also at the ground, and like everyone else I saw nothing because I was watching the play. Apparently nobody at all saw the incident, so like the Baker/Farmer affair, the worst was imagined. I remember reading where O'Dea karate chopped Greene, king-hit him'''' Nobody knew then or now what exactly happened.

[PADDLEPOP1001]

I was there also and heard all the rumours ,plus another one which was Yabby told Boo to take him(Greening )out of the game!

[Majority]

I did not see the incident at Moorabbin that day.
But there is one person who would know exactly what happened.

It may be time for Jimmy O'Dea to produce an autobiography.
They could then make a telly movie with half the profit going directly to John Greening.

[PADDLEPOP1001]

I think Jim O"des only says he said "Boo" hence his nickname!

[BigMart]

The really was only one sad thing to come out of that incident. And only 1 victim.... The other was self inflicted...

His object was to knock Greening out, illegally.... It was callous and malicious....

It's that simple really!

Leigh Matthews incident was no different! Disgusting, and he's admitted as such!

[plugger66]

The really was only one sad thing to come out of that incident. And only 1 victim.... The other was self inflicted...

His object was to knock Greening out, illegally.... It was callous and malicious....

It's that simple really!

Leigh Matthews incident was no different! Disgusting, and he's admitted as such!

You actually dont know that at all. Shouldnt say such a thing without facts. Pretty poor form. O'Dea shouldnt have hit him but none of us would know he wanted to knock Greening out. I actually doubt many people would want to do that.