Open Mike - Leigh Matthews Extended Edition (2011)

[@johnclifford1537]

Princes Park, Sat Aug 7th 1982. Haw v Coll. My school was playing in the little league that day and I was so nervous before the game I honestly didn't think I could play. We were allowed to watch the 1st qr before getting changed. Leigh kicked 3, bulldozed his way through the Coll defence and set up the eventual win in just 30 mins. Any feeling of nerves I had were totally gone. After watching his inspiration I wanted to run through walls !! He was an extraordinarily gifted player.

[@SimonBrisbane]

Thanks Leigh for all the great memories. You turned this boy from NRL heartland into a lifelong Lions fan and an enthusiast of all things AFL.

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@J G Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@trship6274]

Tell you friends :-)

[@rtmachine2019]

Yep same here

[@alansimmonds9030]

You should have seen him playing At his peak.....Turned more games off his own boot than any other player I've seen...the very definition of a Champion & pure match-winner

[@stevelozevski8151]

​@JG-bw6luhow many countries you door knob🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@joememphis1571]

915 goals as a rover, centreman and forward pocket. Seven times from 1975 to 1983 he averaged 20 or more disposals and three plus goals per game for a season. 1977, he had almost 700 possessions and kicked 91 goals. Twice he had 40 disposals and kicked ten or more goals in the same game. 4 premierships with Hawthorn 1971, 1976, 1978, 1983 Premiership coach 1990 (Collingwood) , 2001, 2002, 2003 (Brisbane) 1975 Coleman Medallist AFL player of the 20th Century AFL Team of The Century in the forward pocket 8x club best and fairest 6x club leading goal kicker He was the alpha male from 1973-1978 and 1982-1985. If he didn’t have injuries from 1979 to 1981, he’d have kicked 1000 goals easily.

[@MattKonig1]

I love how analytical honest Leigh Matthews is. He's gotta be one of the most pragmatic people that have ever lived.

[@mikespearwood3914]

Fantastic analyst. A great footy brain.

[@johnnyneverletmedown53]

He was a pathetic dipshit sniper, and nothing more. His time will come.

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@J G Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@alansimmonds9030]

@J G That's Nice Dear, but this is an Aussie Rules forum.

[@martins8761]

was just watching Open Mike with K Sheedy talking about Robert Walls ' we were both dirty 11:40 .. thats how it was played. Seen in this light Matthews is a man of his time and the football culture that existed then. 915 goals 8 x club champion 4 playing flags and 4 more coaching including triple at Brisbane and player of the century. THUG indeed !

[@mikespearwood3914]

exactly. a dirty, thuggish culture was permitted back then.

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@J G Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@alansimmonds9030]

Champion with the occasional thuggish moments on the field.....Gave as good as he got...Meh, get over it.

[@petergrundy8081]

What an absolute legend

[@acohen1980]

Nice work all....thanx

[@Lozzie74]

I’d always been critical of LM until I saw this interview. A very reasonable and intelligent man it turns out. Respect.

[@jimmyspiteria9371]

you like king hitters do ya?

[@alansimmonds9030]

@@jimmyspiteria9371 Barney was a big hit.....there's been none bigger.....HeHeHe.

[@TARBUNNY2013]

Back in the Great days of Footy

[@Whoknowsuknow]

Mike Sheahan sounds surprised that a 60 year old man wants to be 20 years old again.

[@desiredrapfilms]

Haha I was thinking the same

[@zacdifabrizio8029]

@@desiredrapfilms i love it when collingwood choke its footballsgreatest

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@J G Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@michaelmarshall1713]

Funny how so many call him a thug ? He played tough hard football in an era where if you did not play that way you would dead. He is The Greatest Of All Time in the VFL/AFL . Best I ever saw .

[@osvnisaneek8254]

Thug

[@michaelmarshall1713]

@@osvnisaneek8254 Gave as good as he got . You wont like AFLW then ??? Talk about thugs ?

[@melaniew52]

There is a difference between being tough and being dirty. He was tough, but he was definitely a dirty thug.

[@michaelmarshall1713]

@@melaniew52 Along with many others from the era. He gave as good as he got.

[@melaniew52]

@@michaelmarshall1713 many but not all. A lot of his hits were behind play. So he gave a lot more than what he got.

[@malcolmbiddle2681]

Leigh has always been good at saying what he thinks people want to hear. Money is important and a few years ago when the game really started to change from a physical perspective Leigh's position as a commentator looked under threat. ie His pay was under threat. He changed and towed the AFL line tempered his comments to fit in with the modern era. Fair play to Matthews. But for me it said a lot about him. More an observation than a criticism.

[@rockhardrockmetalpop]

Best player I ever saw, by far. Good onya Lethal.

[@andrewattenboroughtwothumb4697]

What a legend

[@bowski8000]

What a legend!!

[@NoBody-ht1oh]

A true grub

[@morganalafey2177]

He is a very rude person and I have the proof. I've seen him a couple of times and both times he was rude and pathetic, me and my family saw him at the MSG, just outside of the stadium and my Dad noticed him first and said "Hello" too him but he looked at him like he was an Alien from Outer Space and just ignored him. The second time we saw him was almost identical too the first time, I was with my Mum, Dad and brothers and he did the same thing, he ignored us and He looked like a stuck up pig and from that moment on I have truly hated him, he's a monster through and through, trust me! He's the biggest fool in AFL history, absolutely pathetic!

[@philhudson...5017]

Absolutely..... Back door man....🪰🐁

[@alansimmonds9030]

a 4 time premiership player & coach....Legend of the game with his statue adorning the M.C.G....Get over it cry-baby.

[@PeterShieldsukcatstripey]

A fortunate life but hard work too.

[@jodythompson3351]

It was steve hocking who bunched him after the bruns incident, and well done I say

[@jodythompson3351]

that would be punched, sorry, I am drinking and reminiscing

[@twentyrothmans7308]

@@jodythompson3351 We all are.

[@alansimmonds9030]

The only memorable thing he's known for in his entire playing career..... Meanwhile, Barney has 4 Premierships & has coached 4....Zero comparison.

[@drdetroitcity]

Yes; I was there (Waverley) the day Lethal was lethal with 11 goals! playing Essendon....Funny thing was that was the only time I saw him play!But he was lethal ... He never really played full forward before that ... he was always on the ball

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@J G Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@alansimmonds9030]

@J G If you're trying to turn people off Soccer & hate Man United into the bargain- then you're certainly going the right way about achieving it.

[@frankruiz6646]

Reason he never won Brownlow, He was the best, not the fairest, win at all cost, he the man.

[@alansimmonds9030]

He gave the umps lip....that's why, numpty.

[@roderick2105]

A great player and a great interview

[@morganalafey2177]

but not a great man, I've met him a couple of times and he was rude too me and my family. About 15 years ago we saw him and tried talking too him cause, my Dad said Hello when he was walking near us but he just looked at my Dad Like he was an Alien, he obviously knew he was talking too him cause he looked at him but said nothing and walked away. My Mum and me had the same response from him another time, we were standing out side of the MSG like the first time when we saw him and we noticed he was standing near us and we said "Hello" but he looked at us like we were nothing and completely ignored us. He's a absolute monster. One of the most rude and pathetic AFL players ever!

[@samschutte5561]

are you able to watch the match between hawthorn and essendon in ‘73 where he kicked his 11 goals?

[@Al_Bundy_1966]

The All-Time Legend of the game. I had an awesome childhood growing up admiring Lethal. I actually had the chance to steal the goal post he broke but I couldn't imagine myself going unnoticed on the train ride home. I'm not sure if it's known where it is now but I can tell you it was sitting in a little shed at Glenferrie Oval.

[@noz6331]

I think that it was bought by ron barrasi for a museum

[@FreddyDUZ747]

Only player to have ever been charged by police for a on field thug action.Doesnt deserve the status he gained.

[@alansimmonds9030]

@@FreddyDUZ747 Your bitter salty tears are very delicious fare indeed..

[@jaydenmackay9303]

Yeah but did he ever score 4 touchdowns in a single game like the great man Al Bundy did.

[@PeterShieldsukcatstripey]

Well done to the soldier - throwing the ball back to Darren.

[@andrewbaverstock2672]

It's up for debate as to whether he is the greatest footballer ever. What isn't up for debate is whether he was a dirty footballer.

[@aussierhino471]

@J G And what's your point, champ? I'm guessing you think that makes you somehow better than us because you follow soccer and we follow AFL? Guess what - it doesn't. That equates with a flea claiming some sort of credit because he happens to live on the biggest dog. Find something useful to do, you flog.

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@J G Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@IsaacAsimov1992]

He admits he was dirty.

[@medullaoblongata9670]

It’s amazing he and Scotty had so much success together as they hardly ever spoke to each other. Mathews was probably the best I’ve ever seen not to win a Brownlow.

[@medullaoblongata9670]

Man U you are an attention seeker. And if you did know anything about ‘Soccer’ you would be calling it football not soccer. True round ball fans all over the world never call it soccer. Get your facts right and get all your attention needs elsewhere!

[@medullaoblongata9670]

Impressive and speedy Wikipedia search. If you are publicly broadcasting then why is your dialogue and the way you write so childlike in style. Why do you feel the need to attack other football codes and why do you feel the need to get attention for yourself in what is essentially a very remote feed from your own area of interest.

[@melaniew52]

@M lol WTF does soccer have to do with this?

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@M Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@hamishphistopholoes6540]

@M Soccer: beloved by lady boys the world over.

[@angusyates828]

Who wouldn't want to be 20 again?

[@alansimmonds9030]

Me.

[@dmcguire70]

Notice no one takes on Ablett during those melees . Reckon he could handle himself with the fists .

[@markdp1983]

Leigh Matthews was right, if Mike was going to bring up all of Matthew's incidents of dirty acts and thuggery, they'd be there all night doing the interview. Probably be a 25 part interview.

[@PeterShieldsukcatstripey]

Vossy so proud. Strewth earned your manhood.

[@CaffeineJogger]

on the subject of thuggery why wasn't the Steven Smith incident behind play mentioned. Legal reasons I suspect. Greatest thug to play the game of afl.

[@michaelmarshall1713]

Never watched a St Kilda team of the same era I gather ?

[@alansimmonds9030]

You can't have seen many players from the 60'S & 70's then....Probably zero to judge from your dumb comment.

[@CaffeineJogger]

@@alansimmonds9030 . Hardly relevant but good onya for making such an intelligent comment. Also watched Mathews nearly kill Neville Bruns in 1985 in what was the doggest act to ever grace a football field. Mathews woudn't survive in todays game, 3 umpires and cameras everywhere.

[@alansimmonds9030]

@@CaffeineJogger You can't have been at that game then, because Whacko Jacko' had lost all control & was throwing haymakers in trying to knock out all of Mew, ayres & Langers for a good 5-10 minute period in the second qtr. Your comments are both ignorant of the facts, & ill-informed..

[@gedglass9475]

least hes honest

[@PeterShieldsukcatstripey]

A fortunate life is a bonza book. Read it in high school.

[@IsaacAsimov1992]

You could fit everything these two don't know about football on a pin head.

[@joeanderson3049]

Barney never complained about getting hit whereas some liked to moan. It was mean't to be an unwritten code with all players. He gave as much as he got. In the 1971 Grand Final and the 1989 GF Hawthorn had a major casualty list. When Barney received maximum blame over the Bruns incident it broke that unwritten code and Barney was the scapegoat for this and the game got less brutal as a result.

[@chinboy66]

Joe Anderson he got the outcome he deserved. There is tough and there is dirty and their is what Matthew’s did to Burns. He has never tried to defend it, you shouldn’t either

[@gregclark3268]

Hitting a player on the field is one thing but Matthews was a sniper who always cloobered guys from behind and kept running. Nothing tough about that

[@_Chris_D_3004]

Never complained about getting hit because he was hitting players like a dog on the field his whole career

[@alansimmonds9030]

@@gregclark3268 He crunched & shirt-fronted plenty of blokes from the front too.

[@Antipodean33]

The sly shots is why he never got a Brownlow, That said i can't believe a player took it outside of the game and involved the cops, thats a real weak act i reckon. If Mathews or anyone else did that to me, it would be a case of pay back, i'd get my revenge. Couldn't imagine going to the cops, thats as they say is un-Australian

[@drdetroitcity]

+Antipodean33 He'd bury ya, Mate ... with just one of his tree trunksROFL!All v well ta talk Big behind a screen

[@Antipodean33]

DH Dowi BS, if i can't beat them face to face, i'll use my cunning brain and exact revenge without them knowing. You do realize i hope i'm only talking about someone wronging me in some way. If someone done something, i would have to get revenge, i couldn't live with thinking about what they'd done all the time.

[@michaelmarshall1713]

The Best Of All Time and thats a fact. He was Dermott,s role model at Hawthorn.

[@_Chris_D_3004]

Carey shits all over this dirty thug

[@michaelmarshall1713]

@@_Chris_D_3004 Slice of pepperoni ???? Speaks volumes .

[@alansimmonds9030]

& Dippers & Ayres & Ablett Senior.

[@michaelmarshall1713]

@@alansimmonds9030 I am certain that others idolised him as well. But look at the era ?

[@alansimmonds9030]

@@michaelmarshall1713 Barney had said to the group that they were born to do this - play finals that is.....Fair to say that our 1982-1991 Dynasty took those words to heart....But Derm, Dipper & Ayres - most especially - took up the mantle of being the teams enforcers once Barney retired, led by his example to them.

[@londonman7329]

how can thw player of the century be so dirty and have been charged by the police ?

[@ayatollahofarocknrolla403]

Because he was an awesome player dickhead

[@johnnyneverletmedown53]

@@ayatollahofarocknrolla403 You are the dickhead here Mullah. Dipshit thug and nothing more

[@chinboy66]

Johnny never let me down wrong........

[@DaleHardiman]

Never understood why the police got involved in a football game anyway!

[@wespaul9345]

Was that Percy Jones dropping Leigh?

[@IsaacAsimov1992]

Looks like it may have been big Perc'.

[@alansimmonds9030]

& Val Perovic....it took two 6'4 Orks to take down the 5'10 Champ....Barney then went on to win that game off his own boot; LOL...Cheerz Perc & Pero.

[@chirodavenz]

So Neville was upset someone broke his jaw? Who'd have thought? But after what he thought was killing a guy? Seriously.

[@alansimmonds9030]

Neville went to the press & was on the front cover of the Herald Sun the following Monday Morning, calling Barney the pits....1989 was some nice Karmic comeuppance for the little sniping turd.

[@Al_Bundy_1966]

What wasn't mentioned about the Bruns incident was the build up and reason behind it. All day Geelong were using dirty tactics and taking cheap shots at Hawks players and Lethal had simply had enough watching the dirt be handed out to his teammates. At least 3 Geelong players had already been reported and Lethal just thought he would join the action. Bruns can be butthurt as much as he wants but knowing what sort of a game his own team were already playing, allowing it to be taken further with the police is un-Australian and a pathetic thing to do. Under the circumstances, Leigh had no reason to let this play on his mind too much and if anything Lethal certainly chose the right caliber of person.

[@TheRammMan]

So that justified the assault eh?

[@Al_Bundy_1966]

Yes it did thanks. And no more Hawthorn players were felled, that's for sure. Same old sob story, they had no problem dishing it out but call foul when it comes back tenfold. They wanted it played that way, they got what they wanted.

[@TheRammMan]

That's funny. I didn't see any Geelong player assaulting a Dawk player 30 metres off the play. Maybe that's your style though eh?

[@Al_Bundy_1966]

+Scott Barker Stop talking shit if you don't know anything about the game. Jack was doing plenty off the ball. Matthews decided to hit back harder. The only person who should still be butthurt about this incident is Bruns. Are you Neville Bruns?

[@TheRammMan]

+Al Bundy You're a funny guy Bundo. Speaking of talking shit, damn boy, copious amounts coming from your direction. By the looks of it you're a one eyed Dawk fan who are the worst fans in Aussie Rules. You just can't have a decent conversation with someone like yourself.

[@kimharris2599]

Champion players like Leigh, have footy brains. And yes he is a proven coach as well. Shame those Freo,Dockers will never win a Grand Final on the basis they dont have footy brains.

[@PeterShieldsukcatstripey]

Liked the black piping in the shorts 1977.

[@gregclark3268]

Should ask Matthews about the State game where he crippled Barrie Robran, late and off the ball. no respect for this grub

[@alansimmonds9030]

I see he left a lasting impression on you then....hehehe.

[@jewdavid5627]

Have you read Accept The Challenge? It's a disappointing manuscript.

[@nathand4500]

Scraping the bottom of the barrel. Met him down in Hobart in 2015 at the Salamanca markets at a local cafe. Tried to cut the line in front of me. Total flog.

[@markfawcett5106]

No time for the ceee,

[@bdh15]

I would put Matthews best couch and ej whitten best player

[@mikespearwood3914]

coach?

[@seamusb1047]

yeah paul was the best couch

[@johnsmith-cv1lp]

sorry Norm Smith miles ahead and a man of impeccable character .never arrested nor charged .

[@IsaacAsimov1992]

Haydn Bunton Snr wasn't too shabby as a player.

[@tarantala111]

The thug that knocked Robran out of the game (the greatest player ever) by a deliberate crappy tackle. Aussie a....hole.

[@kimharris2599]

shirley leah Oh poor Robran. Hey we all give em and we all take em, part of the game Shirley.

[@IsaacAsimov1992]

I agree with your assessment that Barrie Robran was arguably the best player ever. Even the supremely gifted Alex Jesaulenko applauded him in a match. Never seen an opposition player do that.

[@my2cents198]

Dirty hit man, better players than him .

[@jonburrows6294]

THUG

[@Al_Bundy_1966]

+Jon Burrows Sook!

[@SingaporedivorcelawyerSg]

cheap shot

[@aidengarrison3088]

No westcoast player

[@nickstevenscomedy]

Good 😂 Didn't he interview Chris Lewis. That should be enough

[@jonm2522]

Come out of retirement Leigh and coach Carlton.

[@alansimmonds9030]

Too modest by far Barney.....You influenced far more Hawthorn wins than Carey ever did for North; & twice as many flags into the bargain.

[@Robert-mn8gc]

Mathews was touted as one of the best VFL/AFL Players of all time ⏲️. Rubbish 🗑 He was one of the Dirtiest Players of all Time ⏲️