It was interval at the Astor theatre where Tiffany and I had been joined by Grant for the Sandra Bullock retrospective. We had just finished watching Miss Congeniality, my third favourite film of all time. Tiffany had gone to get the choc tops so that she could sashay about in her “little black number” like the one Audrey Hepburn made famous in Breakfast At Tiffany’s that displayed a cleavage that would have dismayed Sandra and Audrey.
I had met Grant at training years ago – neither handsome nor repulsive but nearing seventy with all his own teeth and a thatch of white hair, but this evening without the adornment of his dangling field glasses that were the hallmark of his training attire.
Tiffany arrived with the choc tops (always vanilla) and I reached into my pocket for the little bag of chillies that we proceeded to insert into the top of the cones. The Nova has chilli choc tops – the Astor doesn’t, but the Nova is cramped and full of latte poseurs so we make our own at the lovely Astor.
Initially the talk turned to smiles – Audrey Hepburn had the most beautiful smile of the Twentieth Century with huge brown eyes and exciting caterpillar eyebrows. Sandra has the most beautiful smile of any living actress in this century that just makes you want to hug her. I ventured that the best Australian smile belonged to Tamara Oudyn who reads the ABC News and like many others I turn on for the last five minutes of the news to get her smile at the end. A group of her fans have taped her smile at the end of each bulletin and have over three hours of smiles. (Actually the last five minutes of the news sometimes features weather girl Jane Bun who turning sideways has been known to obliterate Sydney or Orbost but that’s another story.)
Naturally talk of Audrey, Sandra and Tamara led to the word “class” and it was agreed that all three were “classy” women. Strong, independent, warm and intelligent and one need look no further than Sandy divorcing Jesse James after his affair with a female tattoo artist to see this. This then led as it so often does to the topic of football and who in Essendon’s history had been a “classy” coach. ■■■■ Reynolds “Gentleman ■■■■” immediately sprang to mind but then Grant said:
“Barry Davis. I went to school at Essendon High when he was Head Prefect and was brought onto the stage at Assembly to congratulate him on selection for his first game in 1961.”
“What was he like? asked Tiffany.
“He was a fabulous footballer with a huge drop kick. I remember when they played end to end in the school yard I wasn’t good enough to get a kick but I would stand out in McCracken St. and when Davis got the ball he often kicked it over the fence into the street which was my opportunity to get the ball.”
“Tell us his stats” I asked and Grant obliged from memory.
Played on the half back flank but often kicked goals. 218 games, Crichton medal three times, captain 1970-71. Premierships in 1962 & 1965, and Team of the Century for both Essendon and North Melbourne where he went with the introduction of the “Ten Year Rule”. In fact he won the North Melbourne B & F as a ruck rover and captained them to their first premiership.
Tiffany smiled and licked her choc top.
“But you said he was a classy coach and I know he didn’t win a flag.”
“Just so” said Grant. “He coached from 1978 – 1980 and he was unsuccessful. I remember in 1978 that Jack Mihocek who was a really tough if somewhat rudimentary player walked out when Davis wouldn’t play him stating to the press “My body was covered with bruises.” from his herculean efforts in the two’s which were ignored. Barry was more for the “thinking type” of player. In Napier St directly across from Windy Hill there was a milk bar. I used to go in there for a milk shake after training as did some of the players in those days. I remember three players discussing a dud we got from Hawthorn called Kelvin Steele and one of them said “Steele gets games because he asks questions in meetings.”
“So where is the classy bit’, I asked, “I mean I can see he was a great player but what was classy about his time as coach”
Well he was innovative – actually the first coach to use witches hats at training which was ridiculed at the time but par for the course today. However what got the fans” backs up was his insistence on handball. Handball, handball, handball. He wanted a play on type of game which again was ahead of its time and not executed properly. His own fans who revered him as a player booed him towards the end of his career.”
“O.k.” said Tiff, choc top momentarily forgotten, but Classy? How?”
“In his third and final season he told the players that if they didn’t make the four and play finals (the equivalent of finishing in the top six in today’s eighteen team competition) he would resign as coach and he did just that.” Said Grant.
I realised what he was driving at. “So he publicly put his job on the line, told his players that if he wasn’t good enough as coach he wouldn’t blame them, or their youth or anyone else. He would take the blame and for the good of the club resign.”
“That’s right” said Grant. “He was an absolute champion of the club, loved as a player but like many great players crap as a coach. His record was w30 L36 D1. Classy enough to put his job publicly on the line and resign for the good of club being classy enough to admit he wasn’t up to it and not to hang on for the money or his ego.”
“That’s real class” said Tiff. “ Sheedy replaced him and the club had one of it’s most successful eras. Can we learn anything from this Jackie?”
“The future’s not what it used to be” I replied.
The bell rang for us to go back in for “Blind Side.” Grant smiled knowingly. Tiffany squeezed my arm. “I love it when you’re enigmatic Jackie.”
