With Kevin Sheedy’s elevation to Legend status in the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Tony Greenberg reflects on the significant impact he had throughout his playing days at Richmond. 

There’s one moment in Kevin Sheedy’s 251-game career with Richmond that encapsulated what he was all about as a player.

It came during the second quarter of the 1974 Grand Final against North Melbourne . . .

The underdog Kangaroos had seized the initiative and opened up a 12-point lead. With the crowd getting right behind them, the Roos’ confidence was soaring, and they appeared set to build substantially on their advantage.

But, just when the situation was looking decidedly grim for Richmond, wily Tiger Kevin Sheedy conjured up the most audacious act of trickery ever seen in a league Grand Final . . .

Sheedy was a 26-year-old veteran in his eighth season, and playing his 158th game of league football with the Tigers, in the 1974 Grand Final. 

He had been the catalyst for Richmond’s Grand Final triumph against Carlton 12 months earlier, kicking all three of the team’s first-quarter goals in his key ruck-roving role.

Now, with the ’74 Grand Final slipping away, it again was Sheedy who stepped up to provide the Tigers with some timely, immense inspiration.

The ball was kicked deep into Richmond’s forward line, where Sheedy bobbed up to take a clever mark, right next to the behind post.

Degree of difficulty for the shot at goal was severe, but if ever his team needed a six-pointer, this was it!

So, the crafty Sheedy hatched a plan that ultimately revived Richmond’s seemingly flagging fortunes, and knocked the stuffing right out of the Kangaroos.

Sheedy was a picture of concentration, with his head steady over the ball, as he ran in to take the crucial kick for goal from the tight angle.

At the last second, however, Sheedy stunned the crowd of 113,839 by handballing over the head of his North Melbourne opponent on the mark, Brad Smith, to Tiger teammate, Michael Green, who was unguarded on the goal line.

Green dribbled through the easiest goal you could ever see . . . and the pendulum swung completely back Richmond’s way after that.

The Tigers went on to record a 41-point victory over the Roos and capture their ninth league football premiership (back-to-back flag success).

Had there been a Norm Smith Medal handed out that day for best afield in the Grand Final (the inaugural one wasn’t until 1979), there’s every likelihood it would have gone to Sheedy, who had a game-high 29 disposals (17 kicks, 12 handballs), took six marks, including one that subsequently was nominated as one of the top 10 Tiger marks of the century, drew six free kicks, and booted two goals.

And that may well have made it back-to-back Norm Smith Medals for ‘Sheeds’, given his powerful performance in Richmond’s 1973 Grand Final triumph over Carlton – 24 disposals (17 kicks, seven handballs), five marks and three goals (3.3).

Not too bad for someone so famously described by ‘Immortal’ Richmond coach Tommy Hafey as a “bloody back pocket plumber”.

Sheedy had been a plumber, and a bloody good back pocket. So good, in fact, that he was selected there in the Tigers’ Team of the Century.

Another Tiger ‘Immortal’, Kevin Bartlett, a long-time friend and teammate of Sheedy, wrote in his book ‘KB: A Life In Football’: “I don’t think there has been a better back pocket player than Kevin Sheedy. He was innovative, cunning and antagonistic – mouthing off the opposition, falling on top of them when he took a mark, or scragging them to the ground, and it generally worked a treat. His opponents would give away silly free kicks; ‘Sheeds’ could act as though he had been poleaxed when an opponent touched him. He was an extremely smart player and worked the angles very well. He actually was quite skilful, although Tommy Hafey was more intent on the players kicking the ball a bit longer and deeper. Sheeds got into a bit of trouble because Tommy reckoned he was a little too fancy . . . He was always looking for something different.”

Sheedy’s capacity to constantly reinvent himself as a coach later in his wonderful AFL career, also was evident with him as a player.

After starring as a back pocket, and establishing himself as the competition’s best in that position, he made a seamless transition to the position of ruck-rover (midfielder in the modern-day football vernacular).

He quickly developed into a top-class ruck-rover, as evidenced by those dynamic displays in Richmond’s back-to-back Grand Final triumphs of 1973-74 mentioned above.

If you go all the way back to the start of Sheedy’s league football career, he actually arrived at Tigerland as a gun centreman from VFA club Prahran. And his arrival was steeped in controversy . . .

Sheedy had made his senior debut with Prahran at just 16 years of age and shown considerable promise.

With his home located in Melbourne’s metropolitan zone, Sheedy received, and accepted, an invitation to try out with the Demons.

But after playing a few practice matches at Melbourne, Sheedy opted to return to Prahran, and he went on to be a key member of the club’s VFA second division premiership team in 1966.

Richmond then became extremely interested in securing Sheedy’s services and approached Melbourne for permission to speak with him.

That was duly granted, and Sheedy subsequently agreed to join the Tigers.

There was a catch, however, because although Prahran agreed to release him, the VFA refused to grant his clearance because of a disagreement with the VFL at the time over transfer fees.

Sheedy moved to Richmond minus a clearance and, without the transfer fee of $5000 being paid, incurred an automatic five-year suspension from the VFA as a result.

He lined up with Richmond for the first time at senior level on Saturday, April 29, 1967, in Round 3 of what turned out to be a drought-breaking Tiger premiership season.

He was 19 years, 126 days of age, when he played his first senior game of VFL football with the Tigers, against Fitzroy at the MCG.

Richmond won a scrappy encounter that day by 25 points, with Sheedy a handy contributor in the centre as a replacement for injured Tiger star Bill Barrot, picking up 18 disposals (16 kicks, two handballs) and taking three marks.

Unfortunately for Sheedy, he managed only another five senior appearances for Richmond in 1967 – his season finishing prematurely due to a serious knee injury, thereby depriving him of the opportunity to be part of the Tigers’ glorious premiership triumph that year.

But, by the time Sheedy’s league football career at Richmond finished 12 years later, he had played in three premiership sides (1969, 1973 and 1974), won a Jack Dyer Medal (in 1976) and captained the Club (in 1978).

Along the way, he’d earned a stellar reputation for his toughness, fierce determination to succeed, professionalism, work ethic, team-first attitude, high skill level and cunning football brain.