Russell Frank Ebert (22 June 1949 – 5 November 2021) was an

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 coach. He is considered one of the greatest players in the history of

Australian rules football in South Australia Australian rules football in South Australia has long been the most popular sport in the state. Forms of football were played very early in the history of the Colony of South Australia pre-dating the organisation of Australian rules football i ...

. Ebert is the only player to have won four

Magarey Medal The Magarey Medal is an Australian rules football honour awarded annually since 1898 to the fairest and most brilliant player in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL), as judged by field umpires. The award was created by Willia ...

s, which are awarded to the best and fairest player in the

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...

(SANFL). He is one of four Australian rules footballers to have a statue at

Adelaide Oval Adelaide Oval is a sports ground in Adelaide, South Australia, located in the parklands between the city centre and North Adelaide. The venue is predominantly used for cricket and Australian rules football, but has also played host to rugby ...

, the others being

Ken Farmer Kenneth William George Farmer (25 July 1910 – 5 March 1982) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the North Adelaide Football Club in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). Dubbed the ' Bradman of football' in So ...

Malcolm Blight Malcolm Jack Blight AM (born 16 February 1950) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for and coached the North Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and Woodville Football Club in the South Australian Nati ...

and

Barrie Robran Barrie Charles Robran MBE (born 25 September 1947 in Whyalla, South Australia) is a former Australian rules footballer who represented in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) from 1967 to 1980. He won South Australian footbal ...

. Football historian John Devaney described Ebert as coming "as close as any player in history to exhibiting complete mastery over all the essential skills of the game," and he is widely regarded as the

Port Adelaide Football Club Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, South Australia, Alberton, South Australia. The club's senior men's team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), where they are nicknamed ...

's greatest ever player. Aside from his 392 games at Port Adelaide, Ebert played 25 games for in the

1979 VFL season The 1979 VFL season was the 83rd season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 31 March until 29 September, and comprised a ...

and collected over 500 possessions as a midfielder for the club, which reached the preliminary final. Ebert was an inaugural inductee into the

Australian Football Hall of Fame The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the Centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media personalities, coa ...

in 1996, and was

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award - an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication – material published after the author's death * ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1987 * ''Posthumous'' (E ...

elevated to

Legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...

status in June 2022, the highest honour that can be bestowed onto an Australian footballer.

Early life

The fourth of six children of Doreen and Albert Ebert, Russell was born in the

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

n river town of Berri. Russell's father Albert was a footballer with the

Alawoona Alawoona is a town in the Murray Mallee region of South Australia. At the , Alawoona had a population of 250. It lies on the Karoonda Highway and Loxton railway line where they both change direction from easterly to continue northwards for 35&nb ...

Football Club and captain coached the team to a premiership in 1953. At eight years old Ebert was in the crowd when Port Adelaide defeated Norwood in the 1957 SANFL Grand Final. Russell's family moved to Loxton during his high school years and the town was home to his junior football club, the Loxton Football Club, where he played with his brothers. As a teenager Ebert gained employment with the Bank of Loxton.Wood, John (1985). ''Russell Ebert Australian Record''. South Australia: Port Adelaide Football Club. p. 4. He was subsequently transferred to the Savings Bank at Waikerie.Wood, John (1982). ''Gentleman Jack: The Johnny Cahill Story 1958–82''. Plympton, South Australia: John and Wendy Wood. p. 43. . Ebert joined the

Waikerie Football Club The Waikerie Football Club is an Australian rules football club which compete in the Riverland Football League. The club was formed in 1908 and was a foundation member of the Mid Murray FL in 1910. It split into two teams in 1927 only to reform i ...

and played alongside Bruce Light, who eventually played for Port Adelaide with him.

Football career

Before Ebert agreed to join Port Adelaide, six other SANFL clubs (

North Adelaide North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands. History Surveyor-General Colonel William Light of the colo ...

, Central District, Woodville, Norwood, Glenelg and

South Adelaide The South Adelaide Football Club is an Australian rules football club that competes in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). Known as the ''Panthers'', their home ground is Flinders University Stadium In an interview with John Wood about this period in time, Ebert said he was set on joining North Adelaide but their representative "never came back".

Port Adelaide (1968–1978)

In 1968 Eric Freeman, Port Adelaide's

full-forward Full-forward is a position in Australian rules football and Gaelic football with a key focus on kicking goals. The Coleman Medal is awarded to the player, often a full-forward, who has kicked the most goals in an Australian Football League seaso ...

, was selected to play for the

Australian cricket team The Australia men's national cricket team represents Australia in men's international cricket. As the joint oldest team in Test cricket history, playing in the first ever Test match in 1877, the team also plays One-Day International (ODI) an ...

for the upcoming Ashes series. The absence of Freeman provided Ebert the opportunity, as an 18-year-old, to claim the full-forward position in the team. Ebert made his debut in the first round of the 1968 SANFL season against Glenelg on

Alberton Oval Alberton Oval is located in Alberton, a north-western suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. The ground is a public park and is exclusively leased to the Port Adelaide Football Club for Australian rules football. History With the nearby Queens ...

. Ebert remained in

Waikerie Waikerie ( ) is a rural town in the Riverland region of South Australia on the south bank of the Murray River. At the , Waikerie had a population of 2,684. The Sturt Highway passes to the south of the town at the top of the cliffs. There is a ca ...

during 1968, driving back and forth between the

Riverland The Riverland is a region of South Australia. It covers an area of along the Murray River, River Murray from where it flows into South Australia from New South Wales and Victoria (Australia), Victoria downstream to Blanchetown, South Australia ...

and Adelaide for training and match day. During that season Ebert kicked six goals in a game against both North Adelaide and Sturt. He played all but one senior game for Port Adelaide in his first season. In his first season of league football Ebert benefited from experienced Port Adelaide premiership players such as John Cahill,

Trevor Obst Trevor Obst (21 June 1940 – 1 December 2015) was an Australian rules footballer who played with Port Adelaide in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) during the 1960s and 1970s. Nicknamed "Bubbles", Obst was a back po ...

Peter Obst Peter Kenneth Obst (1937–2017) was an Australian rules footballer who played with Port Adelaide and Woodville in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). During his time at Port Adelaide he was a member of the club's record s ...

Ronald Elleway Ron Elleway was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Football Club. During his career he played 9 games for South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It ...

and Eric Freeman after his return from playing test cricket in England. In Ebert's first season with Port Adelaide the club qualified for the 1968 SANFL Grand Final against Sturt, reigning premiers for the past two seasons. Sturt won the match by 27 points. At the end of year Ebert was the recipient of Port Adelaide's leading goal-kicker award in his debut season after kicking 44 goals. He was also awarded the club's best first year player award. In 1969 Ebert moved from the forward line to the centre and consolidated the position as his own in the Port Adelaide line up. It was during the 1969 SANFL season that members of Port Adelaide's golden era were retiring from football en masse, resulting in

Fos Williams Foster Neil "Fos" Williams AM (21 February 1922 – 1 September 2001) was a leading Australian rules footballer who played for and coached the Port Adelaide and West Adelaide Football Clubs and coached South Adelaide in the South Australian ...

providing league debuts to 15 first-year players.Wood, John (1982). ''Gentleman Jack: The Johnny Cahill Story 1958–82''. Plympton, South Australia: John and Wendy Wood. p. 44. . As a result of this influx of junior players the club finished sixth, winning 9 of 20 games.Wood, John (1982). ''Gentleman Jack: The Johnny Cahill Story 1958–82''. Plympton, South Australia: John and Wendy Wood. p. 44. . In 1970 Ebert was selected for the

South Australian state football team The South Australia state football team is the representative side of South Australia in the sport of Australian rules football. South Australia has a proud history in interstate football, having a successful historical record. South Australia ...

for the first time. Port Adelaide finished the 1970 SANFL season as minor premiers for the first time since the club won the 1965 SANFL Grand Final. They would lose both finals to eventual 1970 SANFL Grand Finalists Glenelg and Sturt, the latter recording their fifth straight premiership. At the end of the season, Port Adelaide recognised Ebert as the club's best player during their finals series. During the 1971 pre-season Port Adelaide defeated

South Melbourne South Melbourne is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Port Phillip local government area. South Melbourne recorded a population of 11,548 at t ...

in a trial match in Victoria. On 26 June 1971 the publication ''Inside Football'' reported that Carlton had approached Port Adelaide with the intention of freeing Ebert from his contract to play for them in the VFL. Ebert confirmed that he returned to Melbourne, after South Australia played Victoria in that state earlier in the year, to meet Carlton officials but that nothing came of it, saying, "I haven't heard from Carlton since I went over after the State game. It was during this year that Ebert won his first

, awarded to the fairest and most brilliant player in the SANFL, receiving 21 votes from the league umpires, one more vote than runner up

Peter Marker Peter Marker (born 21 March 1949) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with and captained Glenelg Football Club, Glenelg in the South Australian National Football League, SANFL during the late 1960s and 1970s, captaining the Tiger ...

and Phil Haughan, who both received 20 votes each. In 1971 Ebert was also awarded his first Port Adelaide best and fairest. Port Adelaide reached the 1971 SANFL Grand Final but lost to minor premiers North Adelaide by 20 points. In 1972 Port Adelaide again reached the SANFL Grand Final and again lost to North Adelaide, this time by 56 points. North Adelaide went on to win the

1972 Championship of Australia The 1972 Championship of Australia was the 16th edition of the Championship of Australia, an ANFC-organised national club Australian rules football tournament between the champion clubs from the VFL, the SANFL, the WANFL and the Tasmanian Sta ...

defeating

Carlton Carlton may refer to: People * Carlton (name), a list of those with the given name or surname * Carlton (singer), English soul singer Carlton McCarthy * Carlton, a pen name used by Joseph Caldwell (1773–1835), American educator, Presbyterian ...

. At the end of the season Ebert was awarded his second club best and fairest.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 136. . For the 1973 SANFL season Port Adelaide finished the minor round fourth. On 8 September 1973 the club faced fifth place Norwood, at Norwood Oval, in the Elimination Final. Norwood won the match by 36 points in what was Fos Williams's last outing as coach of Port Adelaide. Twenty-six years later

said that Ebert was the best player he had seen play for Port Adelaide and that "it was my privilege to coach him". At the conclusion of the 1973 SANFL season, Alan Schwab from

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

and Ron Joseph from North Melbourne both made approaches to Ebert offering him contracts to play for their respective clubs in the VFL. Footscray and Melbourne also made approaches regarding acquiring Ebert around this time.

Port Adelaide captain (1974–1978)

For the 1974 SANFL season John Cahill took over as Port Adelaide coach from Fos Williams, and one of his first actions was to appoint Ebert as club captain. During the 1974 pre-season Port Adelaide defeated South Melbourne on Alberton Oval by 10 points. During the season at a Port Adelaide fundraiser at Alberton Oval titled 'Build Local Players',

Australian Prime Minister The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the principl ...

Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the he ...

was present and congratulated Ebert on his season to that point. Ebert won the 1974 Magarey Medal, his second, in front of runner-up

Rick Davies Richard Davies (born 22 July 1944) is an English musician, singer and songwriter best known as founder, vocalist and keyboardist of the rock band Supertramp. Davies was its only constant member, and composed some of the band's best known songs ...

of Sturt. Port Adelaide lost the 1974 SANFL Preliminary Final to Glenelg by 49 points with Ebert's summation published in the '' Sunday Mail'' being "Disappointed...what else can I say?". In 1975 Ebert captained the South Australian state team for the first time. Port Adelaide finished the minor round of the

1975 SANFL season The 1975 South Australian National Football League season was the 96th season of the top-level Australian rules football competition in South Australia. Glenelg won the second semi-final and were premiership favourites. However Norwood won the ...

in fourth place. Ebert was best on ground in Port Adelaide's 30-point win over North Adelaide in the First Elimination Final, collecting 42 disposals and 1 goal.Wood, John (1982). ''Gentleman Jack: The Johnny Cahill Story 1958–82''. Plympton, South Australia: John and Wendy Wood. p. 74. . The following week Port Adelaide comfortably beat reigning premiers Sturt by 67 points in the First Semi Final. Port Adelaide lost the Preliminary Final to Norwood by 30 points despite leading at the end of the third quarter by 6 points.Wood, John (1982). ''Gentleman Jack: The Johnny Cahill Story 1958–82''. Plympton, South Australia: John and Wendy Wood. p. 75. . Port Adelaide finished the 1976 SANFL season as minor premiers, two and a half wins ahead of second placed Sturt.Wood, John (1982). ''Gentleman Jack: The Johnny Cahill Story 1958–82''. Plympton, South Australia: John and Wendy Wood. p. 81. . Ebert was selected as captain and centre in '' The News'' '1976 Team of the Year'. That year Ebert won his third Magarey Medal by a record margin of 17 votes over runner-up Barry Norsworthy of Central District. With 42 votes he became the sixth SANFL player to become a triple Magarey medallist. In the lead up to the 1976 Magarey Medal, Ebert noted that he would rather win the premiership than have another Magarey Medal. In an interview with

Alan Shiell Alan Shiell (born 25 April 1945) is a former Australian cricketer and newspaper reporter. He played in twenty-three first-class matches for South Australia between 1964 and 1967 but retired from an active cricket career he was twenty four. He th ...

, Ebert stated that "It's a big thrill to win the medal but its still an individual award". Port Adelaide qualified for the

1976 SANFL Grand Final The 1976 SANFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Port Adelaide Football Club and the Sturt Football Club, held at Football Park on 25 September 1976. It was the 55th annual Grand Final of the South Australian ...

after defeating Glenelg by 43 points in the Second Semi Final. That years SANFL Grand Final sold a state record 66,987 tickets. When the SANFL ran out of tickets they opened

Football Park Football Park, known commercially as AAMI Stadium, was an Australian rules football stadium located in West Lakes, South Australia, West Lakes, a western suburb of Adelaide, the state capital of South Australia, Australia. It was built in 197 ...

's gates for free and the crowd grew by an estimated 15,000. The gates were shut by police 90 minutes before the bounce as spectators were being crushed. Subsequently, the police allowed thousands of spectators onto the field to sit along the fence to prevent any further physical injuries. In Ebert's fourth attempt at winning an SANFL Grand Final, he and his club were unsuccessful, with Sturt defeating Port Adelaide by 41 points. During an interview with Mike Sheehan on ''Open Mike'' regarding the loss of the 1976 SANFL Grand Final, in the context of Port Adelaide having now lost its last four Grand Finals, Ebert noted that he started to question "whether I was to blame" for the club's failure to win a premiership. After two seasons where Port Adelaide was forced to play games away from Alberton Oval, the club returned to playing SANFL games at its traditional venue in front of record crowds, including an attendance of 22,738 against Norwood on 11 June 1977. Ebert won his first premiership as a player as Port Adelaide broke its 12-year drought, defeating Glenelg at Football Park in the

1977 SANFL Grand Final The 1977 SANFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Port Adelaide Football Club and the Glenelg Football Club, held at Football Park on Saturday 24 September 1977. It was the 79th annual Grand Final of the S ...

. Before the presentation of the Thomas Seymour Hill Trophy, thousands of spectators stormed the ground. When Ebert recalled this moment he noted that " was quite dangerous to have close to ten thousand people just stampede onto the oval into a really confined space. We just looked for our teammates and got into the huddle...Everyone just wanted to get out there and be a part of it". Ebert kept only one guernsey from his playing career, the one he wore in the 1977 premiership decider. Ebert was awarded SANFL life membership during the 1977 SANFL season. Following the success of Port Adelaide's 1977 premiership, the club, led by Ebert, finished fourth during the minor round of the

1978 SANFL season The 1978 South Australian National Football League season was the 99th season of the top-level Australian rules football competition in South Australia. Ladder Finals Series Grand Final References SANFL The South Australi ...

, qualifying for finals. Ebert finished runner up by one vote in the 1978 Magarey Medal count to

Kym Hodgeman Kym Hodgeman (born 30 July 1956) is a former Australian rules footballer best known for his playing career with Glenelg in the SANFL from 1974 - 1980 & secondly for a 5 year stint with in the Australian Football League (VFL) from 1981 - 1985 ...

of Glenelg. Port Adelaide comfortably beat West Torrens in the Elimination Final. The club then faced Glenelg, 1977 runners-up, in the First Semi Final. Glenelg were in control of the game for the first three quarters but a "gutsy" effort by Ebert in the midfield helped Port Adelaide win the match and qualify for the Preliminary Final against Norwood.

North Melbourne (1979)

On 22 January 1979 Ebert spoke to Bob McLean, Port Adelaide's general manager, informing him of his intention to play with

North Melbourne North Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. North Melbourne recorded a population of 14,953 at the ...

for the

. In response McLean tabled to Ebert the largest contract offer in the history of the Port Adelaide Football Club but Ebert declined. Many

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

clubs had chased Ebert for a decade until North Melbourne finally won his signature. Sheahan, M, "$50,000 – Roos price for Ebert", ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'', 19 February 1979, p. 18. Port Adelaide agreed to lease Ebert to North Melbourne for the 1979 season in exchange for Mark Dawson, as well as paying Ebert $35,000. In response to Ebert moving from the SANFL to the VFL, the former league's president Max Basheer lamented that " om a state and club viewpoint we cannot afford to lose players of this calibre". During 1979 Ebert continued to operate his business, a sports store, in Adelaide. Ebert would fly to Melbourne for the Tuesday training session, fly back to Adelaide, work until the middle of Thursday, fly to Melbourne again, play for North Melbourne in the VFL, and fly back Saturday night. North Melbourne agreed to cover Ebert's large travel costs. , + ! colspan="2" , 1979 Russell Ebert Travel Schedule , - , Tuesday afternoon , Flight to Melbourne , - , Tuesday night , Flight to Adelaide , - , Thursday afternoon , Flight to Melbourne , - , Saturday night , Flight to Adelaide Malcolm Blight statue Adelaide Oval

According to

, when North Melbourne suffered a series of injuries during 1979, Ron Barassi utilised Ebert in a range of different positions. Ebert's tally of twenty-five games for North Melbourne is the VFL/AFL record for the most games in a career in that league that only lasted one season. During his season with North Melbourne Ebert would play alongside

Graham Cornes Graham Studley Cornes OAM (born 31 March 1948 in Melbourne, Victoria) is a former Australian rules footballer and coach, as well as a media personality. From 1995 until early 2013, Cornes co-hosted a weekday drivetime sports program that he ...

Keith Greig Keith Southby Greig (born 23 October 1951) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the North Melbourne Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Red-haired and pale-skinned, Greig was regarded as one of the most gr ...

Ross Glendinning Ross William Glendinning (born 17 September 1956) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the East Perth Football Club in the West Australian National Football League (WANFL) and for the North Melbourne Football Club and the West ...

Wayne Schimmelbusch Wayne Schimmelbusch (born 19 January 1953) is a former Australian rules footballer in the (then) Victorian Football League (VFL). Schimmelbusch played in 306 games, including 29 finals games, for the North Melbourne Football Club, which was t ...

, Gary Dempsey and Graham Melrose. Ebert collected the most disposals of any North Melbourne player during 1979. North Melbourne finished second on the ladder and reached the Preliminary Final. After a challenging year balancing his business, family and football commitments Ebert did not consider playing another season with North Melbourne in 1980. Despite this, when Ebert was asked if he was glad he played for North Melbourne he unequivocally answered affirmatively saying "Absolutely...It was one of the most demanding, one of the most exciting and one of the most satisfying years that I can remember."

Port Adelaide return (1980–1987)

Ebert returned to Port Adelaide as a player for the 1980 SANFL season. From his experiences the previous year playing in the VFL with North Melbourne, Ebert suggested Port Adelaide increase the weight training it required of its players, noting that the Victorian players were more advanced in this facet of the game. During the season Ebert played forward alongside Tim Evans, who that year kicked 144 goals in the SANFL, a record at the time. After a dominant season finishing top of the ladder, Port Adelaide entered the 1980 SANFL Grand Final against Norwood, who finished the minor round fifth, as firm favourites. Norwood provided a strong challenge, leading the match at three quarter time, but Port Adelaide, who lost Tim Evans with an injury during the game, mounted a comeback, winning the premiership decider by 18 points. Ebert also won his record-setting fourth Magarey Medal in 1980, garnering 49 votes from the SANFL's umpires. Runner-up Michael Taylor of Norwood, who was coincidentally sitting on the table next to Ebert at the Magarey Medal gala, was first to congratulate him on winning the fourth medal. During the 1980 SANFL season Ebert broke John Cahill's games played record of 264 senior matches for Port Adelaide. Ebert retired with 392 games for Port Adelaide, a record that has never been beaten. In 2020 Ebert described Port Adelaide's 1980 side as being "as good a side here in South Australia that I had ever played with". In September 1981 during an interview Ebert, then aged 32, noted that "When you get to 30 everyone wants you to retire. But I still enjoy competing; I'm happy to compete with any age group".Wood, John (1985). ''Russell Ebert Australian Record''. South Australia: Port Adelaide Football Club. p. 11. Port Adelaide defeated Glenelg by 51 points in the 1981 SANFL Grand Final. Post match Ebert was awarded the inaugural

Jack Oatey Medal The Jack Oatey Medal is awarded to the best player during the SANFL Grand Final. It has been awarded since 1981. In 2018, Mitch Grigg of Norwood became the first player to win the Jack Oatey Medal on a losing team, after his team were defeated ...

in recognition of being the best player afield during the game. This was Port Adelaide's third consecutive SANFL premiership, although Ebert missed the 1979 SANFL Grand Final whilst he was with North Melbourne. On 12 June 1982 an interstate match was held at Football Park between

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

and a South Australian side featuring eight Port Adelaide players including Ebert.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 171. . In that match South Australia defeated Western Australia by 116 points. Port Adelaide finished the

1982 SANFL season The 1982 South Australian National Football League season was the 103rd season of the top-level Australian rules football competition in South Australia. Ladder Finals series Grand Final References SANFL The South Austra ...

as minor premiers. Port Adelaide reached the 1982 SANFL Preliminary Final but its quest for a fourth consecutive premiership was ended in a fiery match against Glenelg, who won the game by 1 point. During this match an infamous incident between David Granger and Graham Cornes occurred, with the former punching the latter. Trevor Gill, in writing his match report for The News, observed that Norwood, Glenelg's opponent in the 1982 SANFL Grand Final, would be beneficiaries of the gruelling encounter against Port Adelaide. The following week Norwood did win the Grand Final, defeating Glenelg by 62 points. On 7 October 1982, Port Adelaide coach John Cahill left the club to accepted the head coaching role at Collingwood. As a result of this Ebert was appointed captain-coach of Port Adelaide on 15 October 1982. Ebert would be one of the last playing coaches in senior Australian rules football.

Port Adelaide captain-coach (1983–1985)

In his first season as captain-coach of Port Adelaide Ebert would start the 1983 SANFL season without the club's star centre-half back

Greg Phillips Greg Phillips (born 26 March 1959) is a former Australian rules football player who played for the Port Adelaide Football Club in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) and Collingwood Football Club in the Victorian Football L ...

, who had joined John Cahill at Collingwood. On 16 May 1983 at Football Park, Ebert captained South Australia for the third time, in what was the states first win over

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

since 1965. On 23 June 1984 in a game against West Torrens at Football Park Ebert broke the SANFL record for most games played in that competition, surpassing Paul Bagshaw's tally of 360 games. In 1984 Port Adelaide reached its only Grand Final with Ebert as coach. Port Adelaide's opponent in the 1984 SANFL Grand Final was Norwood who finished the minor round in fifth position. In front of 50,271 spectators Port Adelaide relinquished a 3-point lead at the final change of the 1984 SANFL Grand Final to eventually lose to Norwood by 9 points. During 1984 Ebert was presented with the Adidas Golden Boot award by

Ted Whitten Edward James Whitten Sr. OAM (27 July 1933 – 17 August 1995) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Footscray Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Born and raised into a working-class family in Footscray, Whit ...

.Wood, John (1985). ''Russell Ebert Australian Record''. South Australia: Port Adelaide Football Club. p. 18. At the time Ebert was only the fifth Australian recipient of the award.Wood, John (1985). ''Russell Ebert Australian Record''. South Australia: Port Adelaide Football Club. p. 18. Ebert retired as a player at the end of 1985 for Port Adelaide, where his 392 games remains a club record. In 2020 Ebert joked about the longevity of his career, noting that "I guess when you are captain-coach you can pick yourself!".

Other matches

Ebert also played 29 interstate/State Of Origin matches for South Australia, and one pre-season/night series match for North Melbourne (these are considered senior by the SANFL but not the VFL/AFL). If these are included, Ebert played a total of 447 senior career games. The VFL/AFL and SANFL list Ebert's total as 446, excluding his pre-season/night series match for North Melbourne. Despite the differing viewpoints, Ebert's total was the all-time record in elite Australian rules football at the time of his retirement, and Australian Prime Minister

Bob Hawke Robert James Lee Hawke (9 December 1929 – 16 May 2019) was an Australian politician and union organiser who served as the 23rd prime minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (A ...

wrote Ebert a letter congratulating him on his acheievement. Ebert held the record until it was broken by Peter Carey in either Round 6 or Round 7 of 1988; Carey retired at the end of that season with a total of 467 senior career games.

Port Adelaide non-playing coach (1986–1987)

Ebert continued at the club as a non-playing coach for the 1986 SANFL season.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 193. . However, Ebert began his first season as a non-playing coach without his star wingman and reigning club best and fairest,

Craig Bradley Craig Edwin Bradley (born 23 October 1963) is a former Australian rules footballer and first-class cricketer. He is the games record holder at Carlton in the AFL/VFL, and in elite Australian rules football (the AFL/VFL, SANFL and WAFL). Early ...

, who had been acquired by

. Brad Gotch also returned to Victoria to play for St Kilda.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 193. . During a training session Port Adelaide's full forward Tim Evans suffered a cracked tibia after stepping on a sprinkler, leading the club's greatest goal-kicker to retire. Port Adelaide in 1986 finished the minor round in third place behind North Adelaide and Glenelg. Greg Anderson won the 1986 Magarey Medal despite being knocked unconscious the week before against Glenelg. In the 1986 SANFL First Semi-Final, Woodville defeated Port Adelaide by 7 points. The 1987 SANFL season signalled a significant list restructure for Port Adelaide. Ebert debuted eight new juniors to Port Adelaide's league side during the season.

and

Bruce Abernethy Bruce Abernethy (born 10 May 1962) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the North Melbourne Football Club Collingwood Football Club and Adelaide Football Club in the Victorian/Australian Football League (VF ...

returned from Collingwood to Port Adelaide to resume playing for the club in 1987.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 197. . Meanwhile

Dwayne Russell Shane John Russell (born 4 March 1965) known as Dwayne Russell is a former professional Australian rules footballer and currently a commentator of the sport. Born in Adelaide, Russell made his senior football debut as a sixteen-year-old in 19 ...

and Ben Harris left for VFL clubs

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...

and the

Brisbane Bears The Brisbane Football Club, nicknamed the Bears, was a professional Australian rules football club based in Queensland on the Gold Coast (relocated to Brisbane in 1993). The club participated in the Victorian/Australian Football League (VFL/A ...

. Despite overtures from Essendon, Port Adelaide and Ebert managed to hold reigning Magarey Medallist Greg Anderson to the final year of contract for the 1987 SANFL season.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 196. . Port Adelaide improved on their minor round performance the previous year under Ebert, this time finishing second on the ladder, behind North Adelaide.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 200. . The club lost both of its 1987 finals against Norwood and Glenelg by 34 points and 2 points, respectively.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 200. . After failing to win a final for three consecutive seasons after the 1984 SANFL Grand Final loss, Ebert was sacked as coach of Port Adelaide and was replaced by John Cahill for the

1988 SANFL season The 1988 South Australian National Football League season was the 109th season of the top-level Australian rules football competition in South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part ...

. Although the three seasons preceding Ebert's dismissal as coach were ultimately unsuccessful, he is credited with blooding a large number of champions that helped propel the club into the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the only fully 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 the laws of the gam ...

.Wood, John (1991). ''Bound For Glory: The Story of the Port Adelaide Football Club 1939–1990''. Largs Bay, South Australia: Largs Bay Printers. p. 195. . These players include: * 1983 –

Tim Ginever Timothy Ginever (born 13 April 1966) is a former Australian rules footballer in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL), playing for Port Adelaide. Early life Tim Ginever is the seventh of 10 children and says that Australian ...

* 1984 – Greg Anderson, Darren Smith, Wayne Mahney,

Roger Delaney Roger Delaney (born 27 February 1966) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy in the Australian Football League (AFL) in 1990. He was recruited from the Port Adelaide Football Club in the South Australian National Foo ...

* 1985 – Mark Tylor, Rohan J. Smith, David Hynes, George Fiacchi, Darryl Borlase * 1986 – Geoff Phelps * 1987 – Andrew Obst, Paul Northeast, Scott Hodges, David Brown (footballer, born 1967), David Brown

Woodville coach (1988–1990)

At the conclusion of 1977, Woodville coach Malcolm Blight accepted an offer from Geelong to move to Victoria and coach the club for the upcoming 1988 VFL season. Ebert, having recently lost his position as Port Adelaide coach to John Cahill, accepted to fill the equivalent role at Woodville. In his first season as coach of Woodville, the club won the 1988 Escort Cup Final defeating Port Adelaide by 45 points in front of 31,210 at Football Park. The 1988 Escort Cup was the only piece of silverware that the Woodville Football Club ever won. Woodville merged with West Torrens at the end of the 1990 SANFL season. Ebert was thus the last coach of Woodville as a stand-alone club.

South Australia coach (1996–1998)

Ebert coached the South Australian state team from 1996 to 1998. The side achieved memorable wins over Western Australia in 1996 and 1998.

Playing style

Ebert was a strong-bodied player whose physical build and stamina allowed him to dominate football matches. With a high skill level, errors were rare, and his ability to hit teammates with accurate, spearing passes made him very effective in attacking roles. Ebert was able to win his own ball and could quickly handball effectively under pressure. Gordon Schwartz, football journalist, described Russell Ebert as "a perfect example to the younger generation. On field he maintains expressionless concentration, never indulges in tantrums, and plays with great intensity and energy...Few players of his ability are as industrious. He doesn't believe that his talent entitles him to rest on his laurels and let other people do most of the work." John Cahill, team-mate and coach of Ebert, described the latter's playing style as being "so strong over the ball - and such power in his legs. He rarely fell over; he was perfectly balanced."

Media

In 1991, Ebert accepted a role working as a commentator at Adelaide radio station FIVEaa. At the station Ebert also worked as a sports talkback panellist. Ebert was a member of the FIVEaa commentary team, along with K. G. Cunningham, Ken Cunningham and Chris Dittmar, that called Port Adelaide's win in the 2004 AFL Grand Final.

Charity work

Ebert used his footballing fame in South Australia to benefit a large array of local charities over many decades. After his death, Warren Tredrea noted that Ebert "was the first to give back using his profile as a champion footballer to help many others through his work with the community programs at the football club and charities away from the club. His legacy goes beyond the game of football". Ebert himself noted that role models in the community are "uniquely poised to positively impact...each time you see that face, each time you hear about the Port Adelaide Football Club you will resonate with the messages that were given on that day.” In 1980, Ebert became involved with the Novita Children's Services, Crippled Children's Association (CCA) along with

and

. They worked together with the charity for 25 years. The CCA was eventually renamed as Novita Children's Services. In 2006 Ebert was a co-founder of the Mighty River Run with John Riddell and Jason Carter. The event is a convoy of boats that travels along the River Murray to raise money for Novita in order to assist people living with disability in South Australia. The 2021 Mighty River Run was conducted in Ebert's honour and raised over $700,000 for Novita. Ebert was involved with the Outback Odyssey fundraiser for almost three decades. Between 2013 and 2021 the Outback Odyssey raised over $1,000,000 for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Ebert was involved in educational programs that sought to prevent domestic violence. In 2015 Ebert welcomed Centacare and the Department for Education (South Australia), South Australian Department of Education into Alberton Oval to develop a project that sought to educate teenage boys about respectful relationships. The project became known as the 'Power to End Violence against Women' and between 2016 and 2021 over 5,000 students have been involved in the program. Ebert was quoted as saying “It’s not only domestic violence ... it is [about] respecting women.” In 1999, Ebert returned to Port Adelaide to help expand the clubs involvement in community programs. For the following 20 years, before his illness in 2021, Ebert was a key organiser for the club's array of charitable programs. Ebert was involved with the Ice Factor Program that sought to provide team sport to disengaged youth. In 2011 Ebert provided lectures for aged care provider ACH Group outlining strategies on how to stay healthy in later years.

Personal life

Ebert married Dian Lehmann. Ebert and Dian raised three children, Tammie, Ben and Brett Ebert, Brett. Ebert's brothers Jeff and Craig Ebert, Craig also played for Port Adelaide in the SANFL making their debuts in 1972 and 1981 respectively. In the 2002 AFL draft, 2002 AFL National Draft, Ebert's son Brett was selected under the league's Father–son rule, Father-son rule to play for Port Adelaide in the AFL after playing for the same club in the SANFL. Ebert's nephew Brad Ebert, Brad also both played for Port Adelaide in the SANFL and AFL. Brad Ebert's grandfather was

, and his great-grandfather was Ken Obst; both also played for Port Adelaide.

Death

In late December 2020, Ebert was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). Ebert first publicly disclosed his health issues on 26 December 2020 at a Port Adelaide past players reunion. On 5 November 2021, Ebert died at the age of 72 from AML. Later that evening, Steven Marshall, Premier of South Australia, offered his family the option of honouring Ebert with a State funeral#Australia, state funeral. On 9 November 2021, the Ebert family, along with the indented host, the Port Adelaide Football Club, accepted the offer for a state funeral to be held at

. On 16 November 2021, approximately 4,000 people attended Ebert's state funeral. Gillon McLachlan, chief executive officer of the AFL, issued a statement paying tribute to Ebert concluding that "The child in me will always admire the great footballer but the adult that I am is in awe of what Russell Ebert was as a man, and his loss after bravely confronting his illness is devastating for his family, for his club, his many fans and for the state of South Australia, where he has given so much. He was everything you would hope to be in a man, and perhaps the best of all of us." At the Glenelg Football Club Centenary Gala, held a few days after Ebert had passed away, the audience paused to celebrate his career and the band played INXS song "Never Tear Us Apart" music in his honour. Seven News, ''Seven News Adelaide'' produced a 20-minute tribute to Ebert shortly after his death titled "Remembering Russell".

Honours

In 1984, Ebert was awarded an Order of Australia, Order of Australia Medal for his service to Australian football. Ebert is widely held to be the greatest player to have played for the Port Adelaide Football Club. He was inducted into the

in 1996 and is centre for Port Adelaide Football Club#Greatest Team, Port Adelaide's greatest team. In June 2022, Ebert was posthumously elevated to Legend status in the

, making him the 32nd individual and only the second player after Haydn Bunton Sr. (who played 17 games for the club after playing the majority of his career at Fitzroy Football Club, Fitzroy and Subiaco Football Club, Subiaco) to be awarded the highest individual honour in the sport. In 2021, Ebert was recognised with 'Legend' status in the South Australian Sport Hall of Fame. In 2014, the western gate into Alberton Oval was named as the Russell Ebert Gate in honour of Ebert. In 2015, a statute of Ebert, sculpted by Tim Thompson, was unveiled on the eastern concourse of

. Ebert was the second and currently only one of four Australian rules footballers to have a statue at Adelaide Oval, with the other players being

, and

. An online poll of Port Adelaide supporters in 2015 saw Ebert, three decades after he had played his last football game, garner 60% of the vote, ahead of next best Gavin Wanganeen, who received 23%. The The Advertiser (Adelaide), ''Adelaide Advertiser'', in recognition of Port Adelaide's 150th anniversary in 2020, selected the club's all-time top 150 players, from both the AFL and SANFL, and ranked Ebert at number one. The SANFL scheduled a "Russell Ebert Tribute Match" for 22 May 2022 on Loxton Oval between Port Adelaide and West Adelaide in honour of Ebert. A curtain raiser to this match is planned to feature Loxton Football Club, Loxton and Waikerie Football Club, Waikerie, Ebert's two junior clubs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ebert, Russell 1949 births 2021 deaths Port Adelaide Football Club (SANFL) players Port Adelaide Football Club players (all competitions) Port Adelaide Football Club (SANFL) coaches Woodville Football Club coaches Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees North Melbourne Football Club players South Australian State of Origin players Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia Recipients of the Australian Sports Medal Magarey Medal winners Australian rules footballers from South Australia South Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees Deaths from acute myeloid leukemia