Footy Unites: Prayers Out for the Great Tony Modra
There are moments in footy that cut right through the tribal nonsense — the colours, the banter, the relentless arguments about whether your team got dudded by the umpires again — and remind you that we’re all just fans who love this game. The news about Tony Modra is one of those moments.
Modra’s family this week released a statement saying they are “extremely grateful” for the “overwhelming show of love” poured out by the footy community since the Adelaide icon was seriously injured in a crash. And fair enough too. The response has been something special.
A Legend of teh Game, Full Stop
Look, I’ll be straight with you. I’m a Pies man through and through. Carn the Pies. I bleed black and white. But even I — and every honest Collingwood supporter would back me here — knew exactly where Tony Modra sat in the pantheon of AFL footballers.
The bloke was an absolute freak.
If you were lucky enough to watch him play in his prime, you know what I’m talking about. If you weren’t, go and find the footage right now. Seriously. Stop reading this and go. I’ll wait.
Done? Yeah. That’s what we’re talking about.
What Made Modra So Special
Tony Modra played 173 games for Adelaide and a handful for North Melbourne at the tail end of his career, but it’s those Crows years — particularly the mid-to-late nineties — where the legend was truly forged.
He led the goalkicking in the competition in 1993 and again in 1996, booting a staggering 136 majors in that second season. Let that sink in. One hundred and thirty-six goals in a home-and-away campaign. In the modern era, where defensive structures have made 70-goal seasons look elite, that number sounds almost fictional.
But it wasn’t just the goals. It was how he kicked them. The bloke had hops that defied logic. He took marks that made your jaw hit the carpet. He had this beautiful combination of pace, courage and timing that made every contest he entered feel like must-watch television.
He was one of those players — like Dermott Brereton, like Matthew Lloyd, like Barry Hall — that you paid attention to even when they were wearing opposition colours. Even if watching him torch your side in a final wasn’t exactly on your wish list.
\h2>The Footy Community Does Itself Proud
What’s been really heartening to see in the days since the news broke is the way the footy world has rallied. Players past and present, coaches, commentators, fans from every club — the tributes and well-wishes have come flooding in from everywhere.
That’s what footy does, isn’t it? For all the sledging and barracking and carrying on we do at each other across 22 rounds of the season, when something genuinely serious happens to one of our own, the community pulls together. Always has, always will.
Modra’s family noting the “overwhelming show of love” they’ve received says everything. These are people going through an incredibly difficult and frightening time, and to know that an entire sporting community has their back — that’s not nothing. That means something real.
The Human Being Behind the Highlight Reel
It’s easy to talk about footballers as if they’re superheroes. Especially blokes like Modra, where the highlight package is so ridiculous it almost doesn’t seem human. But behind every great footballer is a person, a family, a life that extends well beyond the boundary line.
Tony Modra dealt with his own challenges after football — and he’s been pretty open about some of those battles over the years. He moved to Western Australia, lived a quieter life away from the spotlight, and by all accounts found a sense of peace. Which makes this recent news all the more gutting.
Nobody should of had to go through what his family is going through right now. And the fact that they’ve taken the time, in the middle of everything, to publicly thank the people who’ve reached out — well, that tells you something about them too.
What We Can Learn From Moments Like This
Here’s a question for you: when was the last time you reached out to someone just to let them know you were thinking of them?
I know, I know — Daz getting philosophical is not what you signed up for on a footy website. But bear with me.
Moments like this have a way of snapping things into perspective. The contested call you’re still cranky about from last Saturday. The heated comments section argument about whether your club’s best player should be on the trade table. The endless debate about the umpires that, definately, absolutely, no question, had it in for your side in the third quarter.
All of it fades a bit when you hear that a footy legend is fighting to recover from a serious crash.
It doesn’t mean you stop caring about the footy. You should care — that’s what makes the game great. But maybe it’s a reminder to hold it a little lighter when the going gets rough on the paddock. And hold the people in your life a little tighter off it.
Get Well, Big Fella
The football world is sending its love to Tony Modra and his family, and FootyTalk is no different.
From every Pies fan, every Crows fan, every supporter of every club in the competition — we want to see Tony Modra on the other side of this. We want to see him back doing whatever it is he loves doing with his life. We want to hear about his recovery and smile about it.
Because Tony Modra gave this game so much. He gave every single one of us memories we’ll carry forever — memories of taking marks no one else could take, of goals no one else could kick, of moments that made you leap off your couch and yell at the screen regardless of which jumper you wore.
He deserves every bit of love the footy community can give him right now. And from what his family is saying, the community is delivering.
Get well, Tony. The footy world is in your corner.
Carn the Pies — and carn the Modra family through this one.
