Tony Lockett
Similarly, when he moved to Sydney in 1995, the Swans were struggling both on and off the field; they had finished bottom of the ladder in 1994 and were battling to stay relevant in the heart of rugby league territory.
After kicking more than 100 goals three times in four seasons and famously booting a point to send Sydney into the 1996 AFL Grand Final, Lockett helped to ensure Australian rules football would have a lasting future in the Harbour City.
Besides suffering from chronic asthma, he struggled to maintain his weight (which fluctuated from 95 to 112 kg over the years, according to listings in AFL Records) and required painkillers to manage the ongoing effects of a torn groin muscle.
When Lockett arrived at St Kilda in 1983, the club was going through a period of decline on and off the field; in his first four seasons at Moorabbin, the Saints would finish at the bottom of the ladder.
As a teenager coming out of Ballarat for the first time, Lockett was constantly homesick in his early years and eventually St Kilda conceded to his desire to travel from home when required.
There was a high degree of controversy surrounding this game since the Saints, after seeking legal advice, decided to include Sydney's Paul Morwood in their line-up without a clearance from the Swans or a permit from the League.
Lockett showed a glimpse of his explosive best in the third quarter when he kicked three goals in a four-minute spell, and beat a succession of opponents to be considered the Saints' best player.
In St Kilda's opening game of the 1986 VFL season against Footscray at Western Oval, Lockett was reported by four umpires for striking Bulldogs captain Rick Kennedy during the third quarter.
[10] St Kilda's fortunes were finally about to turn when premiership captain Darrel Baldock was appointed coach for 1987 while still serving in the Parliament of Tasmania.
He appointed Danny Frawley captain, having identified leadership qualities in the then 23-year-old full back, gave regular game time to newcomers Nathan Burke and Nicky Winmar, who would become club stalwarts for the following decade, and set about improving the general skill level of the playing group.
[12] According to champion Hawthorn full-forward Peter Hudson, who was St Kilda's club manager at the time, it was expected that Lockett would return for the following pre-season game.
In the Round 10 match against Essendon, however, before the biggest home crowd at Moorabbin since 1981, St Kilda suffered stage fright, conceding a 44-point lead at quarter time and eventually losing by 28 points.
[16] Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy sacrificed an extra player in defence to cut off the supply to Lockett (who only managed four goals), while the Bombers' team pressure and discipline also contributed significantly to the win.
[16] St Kilda rebounded strongly in Round 11, putting in a superb second-half display to beat Hawthorn at Princes Park for the first time at that venue since 1976.
Lockett kicked seven goals for the game to again be among the Saints' best players, but was afterwards cited by video for two incidents – clashing heavily with Hawks ruckman Stephen Lawrence in the first quarter and later with Greg Madigan.
[19] After the highs of personal glory and reaching the finals in 1991 and 1992, there followed two difficult seasons, which would turn out to be Lockett's last ones at the Saints, marred by long absences due to injury and suspension.
With Lockett unable to return after quarter time, and Stewart Loewe already absent with a groin injury, the Saints lacked a key target in attack and the Kangaroos won easily by 69 points.
In the first quarter, Swans defender Peter Caven was sprinting back to take an intercept mark when Lockett, who was charging towards the ball, appeared to hit him in the face with a raised elbow.
Caven was knocked unconscious with a compound fracture of the nose and immediately taken to St Vincent's Hospital for surgery,[21] ruling him out of action for 12 weeks.
The Swans responded on the scoreboard, at one stage leading by 51 points in the third quarter; only Lockett's seven goals up to three-quarter time had kept an inept-looking St Kilda in the contest.
Lockett did not take long to rediscover form, kicking 28 goals in a four-game stretch before being ruled out of the final game of the season against Fitzroy with a back injury.
With scores tied in the preliminary final game, Lockett famously kicked a point after the siren against Essendon to give Sydney a one-point victory.
He was a massive drawcard for the struggling Sydney Swans, who had previously found it difficult to attract large support in New South Wales's rugby league heartland.
He broke the record of 1,299 career goals (set by Gordon Coventry) at the SCG in 1999 and sparked one of the biggest pitch invasions seen in Australian rules football.
In one particularly famous incident in 1988, he was at the Mercy Private Hospital with his father to receive treatment for the serious ankle injury he had sustained against North Melbourne, but had not been informed by St Kilda club officials that a media contingent, which included Eddie McGuire as a reporter for Network Ten, would also be in attendance.
Howard Lockett, who himself played 500 games of country football,[42] then saw it fit to pass down the nickname once more to his son, and it serendiptiously became synonymous with his large size.
