Justin Mark Madden (born 31 May 1961) is a former

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er and state politician. He played for the

Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed the Bombers, is a professional Australian rules football club. The club plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the game's premier competition. The club was formed by the McCracken family in their A ...

and the Carlton Football Club in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body and is responsible for controlling ...

(AFL).
After his retirement in 1997, Madden decided to enter Victorian politics, using the experience gained from his presidency of the AFL Players Association to run for candidacy as an

Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...

member. He served in both the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presidin ...

and

Victorian Legislative Council The Victorian Legislative Council (VLC) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative C ...

before retiring from office in November 2014. Madden is also a registered architect in the State of Victoria.

Early life

Madden was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

, he attended Primary School at St Christopher's in Airport West and had his secondary schooling at St. Bernard's College in

Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington *Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport *Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League United King ...

, a school renowned for its sporting prowess. He then studied teaching at the Institute of Catholic Education (now the

Australian Catholic University Australian Catholic University (ACU) is a public university in Australia. It has seven Australian campuses and also maintains a campus in Rome. History Australian Catholic University was opened on 1 January 1991 following the amalgamatio ...

VFL/AFL playing career

Madden was still at college when he made his VFL senior debut in 1980 with the

, where his older brother Simon was an established player. He graduated from college the following year and, in 1982, set about juggling the twin demands of teaching and football careers. In 1980 and 1981, Madden played 45 games for Essendon, but was concerned that he was not getting enough playing time, and transferred to Carlton part way through the

1983 VFL season The 1983 VFL season was the 87th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 26 March until 24 September, and comprised a ...

. Standing at 206 cm (6' 9") tall, Madden was one of the tallest men ever to play Australian Rules football, and his potential in this area was fully utilized by Carlton, who used him as their main ruckman. Over the next fifteen seasons, Madden became a mainstay of the Carlton side, and one of the most recognizable players in the league, playing 287 games for the club. He was a member of their 1987 and 1995 premiership teams, and came within one vote of tying with Brad Hardie for the 1985

Brownlow Medal The Charles Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal (and informally as "Charlie"), is awarded to the "best and fairest" player in the Australian Football League (AFL) during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by t ...

when he polled three votes in five consecutive games. Madden retired from teaching in 1988, and in 1990, became President of the AFL Players Association, (taking over the role from his older brother Simon) while still playing for Carlton and at the peak of his career. In his seven-year tenure, which continued until his retirement, he oversaw the increasing

professionalism A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and ski ...

of the game with the first players' collective bargaining agreement, and the expansion of the association to the point where it represented almost every eligible player in the entire league. Despite the increasing demands of AFL football, where most players were becoming professional players, Madden studied at

RMIT University RMIT University, officially the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology,, section 4(b) is a public research university in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1887 by Francis Ormond, RMIT began as a night school offering classes in art, scien ...

to become an

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

. After graduating, he worked in this field while continuing to play football.

Statistics

: , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC. * January 9 – In ...

, , 44 , , 5 , , 1 , , 2 , , 20 , , 7 , , 27 , , 5 , , , , 79 , , 0.2 , , 0.4 , , 4.0 , , 1.4 , , 5.4 , , 1.0 , , , , 15.8 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" , 1981 , , 44 , , 17 , , 2 , , 6 , , 93 , , 44 , , 137 , , 34 , , , , 436 , , 0.1 , , 0.4 , , 5.5 , , 2.6 , , 8.1 , , 2.0 , , , , 25.6 , , 4 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C ...

, , 44 , , 23 , , 17 , , 11 , , 177 , , 87 , , 264 , , 81 , , , , 631 , , 0.7 , , 0.5 , , 7.7 , , 3.8 , , 11.5 , , 3.5 , , , , 27.4 , , 9 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" , 1983 , , 44 , , 10 , , 18 , , 8 , , 66 , , 19 , , 85 , , 34 , , , , 133 , , 1.8 , , 0.8 , , 6.6 , , 1.9 , , 8.5 , , 3.4 , , , , 13.3 , , 2 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

, , 44 , , 22 , , 39 , , 19 , , 155 , , 53 , , 208 , , 86 , , , , 339 , , 1.8 , , 0.9 , , 7.0 , , 2.4 , , 9.5 , , 3.9 , , , , 15.4 , , 1 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

, , 44 , , 20 , , 12 , , 6 , , 224 , , 105 , , 329 , , 135 , , , , 275 , , 0.6 , , 0.3 , , 11.2 , , 5.3 , , 16.5 , , 6.8 , , , , 13.8 , , 21 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal en ...

, , 44 , , 24 , , 9 , , 8 , , 213 , , 91 , , 304 , , 128 , , , , 477 , , 0.4 , , 0.3 , , 8.9 , , 3.8 , , 12.7 , , 5.3 , , , , 19.9 , , 9 , - , style="text-align:center;background:#afe6ba;", 1987† , , 44 , , 23 , , 20 , , 10 , , 184 , , 111 , , 295 , , 99 , , 15 , , 415 , , 0.9 , , 0.4 , , 8.0 , , 4.8 , , 12.8 , , 4.3 , , 0.7 , , 18.0 , , 7 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" , 1988 , , 44 , , 22 , , 12 , , 7 , , 165 , , 107 , , 272 , , 122 , , 9 , , 380 , , 0.5 , , 0.3 , , 7.5 , , 4.9 , , 12.4 , , 5.5 , , 0.4 , , 17.3 , , 5 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress Street Viaduct, Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxo ...

, , 44 , , 19 , , 5 , , 6 , , 168 , , 70 , , 238 , , 90 , , 15 , , 327 , , 0.3 , , 0.3 , , 8.8 , , 3.7 , , 12.5 , , 4.7 , , 0.8 , , 17.2 , , 11 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicis ...

, , 44 , , 19 , , 7 , , 3 , , 165 , , 96 , , 261 , , 78 , , 11 , , 346 , , 0.4 , , 0.2 , , 8.7 , , 5.1 , , 13.7 , , 4.1 , , 0.6 , , 18.2 , , 8 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

, , 44 , , 22 , , 4 , , 3 , , 170 , , 149 , , 319 , , 109 , , 19 , , 419 , , 0.2 , , 0.1 , , 7.7 , , 6.8 , , 14.5 , , 5.0 , , 0.9 , , 19.0 , , 8 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment building in Amsterdam after two of its engin ...

, , 44 , , 14 , , 3 , , 1 , , 135 , , 59 , , 194 , , 65 , , 5 , , 194 , , 0.2 , , 0.1 , , 9.6 , , 4.2 , , 13.9 , , 4.6 , , 0.4 , , 13.9 , , 7 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" , 1993 , , 44 , , 22 , , 12 , , 5 , , 171 , , 139 , , 310 , , 93 , , 22 , , 363 , , 0.5 , , 0.2 , , 7.8 , , 6.3 , , 14.1 , , 4.2 , , 1.0 , , 16.5 , , 11 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nels ...

, , 44 , , 24 , , 21 , , 8 , , 163 , , 105 , , 268 , , 84 , , 19 , , 358 , , 0.9 , , 0.3 , , 6.8 , , 4.4 , , 11.2 , , 3.5 , , 0.8 , , 14.9 , , 12 , - , style="text-align:center;background:#afe6ba;",

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The Great Hanshin earthquake str ...

† , , 44 , , 25 , , 5 , , 4 , , 171 , , 95 , , 266 , , 65 , , 14 , , 354 , , 0.2 , , 0.2 , , 6.8 , , 3.8 , , 10.6 , , 2.6 , , 0.6 , , 14.2 , , 2 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone o ...

, , 44 , , 21 , , 3 , , 3 , , 104 , , 42 , , 146 , , 25 , , 14 , , 220 , , 0.1 , , 0.1 , , 5.0 , , 2.0 , , 7.0 , , 1.2 , , 0.7 , , 10.5 , , 3 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 332 ! 190 ! 110 ! 2544 ! 1379 ! 3923 ! 1333 ! 143 ! 5746 ! 0.6 ! 0.3 ! 7.7 ! 4.2 ! 11.8 ! 4.0 ! 0.7 ! 17.3 ! 120

Political career

After retiring from football in 1997, Madden continued to work as an architect. The Essendon and Carlton Football Clubs agreed to name future contests between the two clubs the ''Madden Cup'', in honour of both the Madden brothers. By this time, Madden was also a life member at Carlton. Madden's nomination as a Labor candidate for the Legislative Council seat of

Doutta Galla Province Doutta Galla Province was an electorate of the Victorian Legislative Council until 2006. It was abolished from the 2006 state election in the wake of the Bracks Bracks is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Kate Bracks (born 19 ...

in the leadup to the 1999 state election came as a surprise to many. However, he attained pre-selection, and was subsequently elected. When Labor won a surprise victory at the election, Madden found himself appointed Minister for Sport and Recreation, despite having no prior political experience. This was in spite of rumours that he had specifically requested not to be given Sport and Recreation, but instead had asked to be made responsible for Education. He was initially given the additional portfolio of Youth Affairs, but this was replaced with the Commonwealth Games after the 2002 election. In the wake of reforms to the Legislative Council which cut the number of members, Madden was initially placed in danger of losing his pre-selection, but was saved by intervention from

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Steve Bracks Stephen Phillip Bracks (born 15 October 1954) is a former Australian politician and was the 44th Premier of Victoria. He first won the electoral district of Williamstown in 1994 for the Labor Party and was party leader and premier from 1999 ...

. This initially saw him pre-selected for the Legislative Assembly seat of

Bundoora Bundoora is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Banyule, Darebin and Whittlesea local government areas. Bundoora recorded a population of 28,068 at th ...

, vacated by former minister Sherryl Garbutt. However, after the sudden retirement of another former minister, Mary Delahunty, in Northcote, another deal was arranged which saw Madden instead remain in a safe position on the Legislative Council ticket. At the 2006 Victoria State election he was elected to the Legislative Council as a member for the

Western Metropolitan Region Western Metropolitan Region is one of the eight electoral regions of Victoria, Australia, which elects five members to the Victorian Legislative Council (also referred to as the upper house) by proportional representation. The region was create ...

. In December 2006, he became the state's Minister of Planning. In early 2007, Madden criticised Victorians for building too many large homes. This statement became controversial after it was discovered Madden himself had a sprawling home and had in fact applied to renovate and conduct a major extension onto his home, thus creating much discussion on outspoken journalist Neil Mitchell's talk-back radio program on

3AW 3AW is a talkback radio station based in Melbourne. It broadcasts on 693 kHz AM. It began transmission on 22 February 1932 as Melbourne's fifth commercial radio station. The station is owned and operated by Nine Entertainment Co. Hist ...

. The Minister has since completed his extensions and defended his statements. Madden was a keynote speaker at the 2008 Metropolis Congress in Sydney October 2008. Madden addressed world mayors and industry leaders on urban development and Metropolitan Performance Management. On 25 February 2010 the ABC revealed an email mistakenly sent from Mr Madden's office containing a media strategy document. The document included strategy for dealing with a proposed development: The document said the government would claim it consulted with the community on the plans to develop the Windsor hotel then block the proposal and say it did so because it listened to community views. In the 2010 Victoria state election, when the Labor party was defeated, he moved from the Legislative Council and was elected to the Legislative Assembly seat of

. On 15 November 2013, Madden announced his intention to retire from politics at the next state election.

References

External links