Daryl O'Brien
Australian rules footballer and coach
Daryl O'Brien | ||
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Personal information | ||
Date of birth | ( 1941-09-10 ) 10 September 1941 (age 81) | |
Original team(s) | West Coburg | |
Height | 179 cm (5 ft 10 in) | |
Weight | 81.5 kg (180 lb) | |
Position(s) | Utility | |
Playing career 1 | ||
Years | Club | Games (Goals) |
1960–1969 | North Melbourne | 135 (8) |
International team honours | ||
Years | Team | Games (Goals) |
1968 | "The Galahs" | |
Coaching career | ||
Years | Club | Games (W–L–D) |
1972–1973 | Brunswick ( VFA ) | 40 (25–14–1) |
1
Playing statistics correct to the end of 1969.
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Career highlights | ||
North Melbourne
Brunswick
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Sources: AFL Tables , AustralianFootball.com |
Daryl Ernest O'Brien (born 10 September 1941) is a former Australian rules footballer who played 135 games for the North Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL) during the 1960s.
A tenacious utility player who often started on the half-back flank , he was also considered one of the toughest and most effective " taggers " of the period [1] and one of the hardest men to beat one-on-one in the league. [2] O'Brien's tagging role embodied a who's who of top players of that era, including Ron Barassi , Bobby Skilton , Peter Hudson , Alex Jesaulenko , Peter Crimmins , Darrel Baldock , Roger Dean , John Sharrock , Des Tuddenham , Ted Whitten and John Northey .
Recruited from West Coburg , O'Brien captained North Melbourne's under-19 side for two years before playing a handful of senior games as a half-forward flanker in the 1960 season. He was dropped to the reserves for the whole of 1961. In the lead-up to the 1962 season, O'Brien was invited to train by both Essendon and Footscray . O'Brien formally requested a clearance to Footscray, seeing that as an opportunity to again play at the senior level. This prompted a re-think by North Melbourne and he was retained, reinventing himself as a half-back flanker and utility player. He excelled in these roles, justifying North's decision to turn down the transfer. O'Brien became a stalwart in the Kangaroo side for the next eight seasons, and in 1964 was runner-up to Noel Teasdale in the Syd Barker Medal , North Melbourne's best and fairest award.
In 1968, O'Brien was selected to represent Australia as part of the Australian Football World Tour , the second of the international rules football series against Ireland .
In 1970, O'Brien joined Victorian Football Association (VFA) team Brunswick , and was appointed the dual role of captain-coach at the end of the 1971 season. [3] He led the side to a Second Division Grand Final appearance in 1973, after which he announced his playing days were over.
O'Brien went on to serve in the North Melbourne match committee as a team selector under premiership coach Ron Barassi .
While playing senior football, O'Brien studied to become a licensed realtor and auctioneer, eventually becoming a director and later partner of a real estate business in Melbourne , Victoria. He is now retired and lives in Gowanbrae , Victoria.
Notes
- ↑ "Taggers worth plenty – to a man", Mike Sheahan on Monday , The Herald , 14 June 1982
- ↑ "N-O" . Archived from the original on 10 February 2012 . Retrieved 19 September 2007 .
- ↑ "O'Brien coach of Brunswick", The Age , 25 November 1971
References
- Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (1998). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: Every AFL/VFL Player Since 1897 . Melbourne: Information Australia. ISBN 1-86350-243-2 .
External links
- Daryl O ' Brien's playing statistics from AFL Tables
- Daryl O'Brien player bio (and scan of 1968 Scanlen's bubblegum "footy card" )
- Super8 film taken during the 1968 'Galahs' Football World Tour by Daryl O'Brien