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Alan Didak

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Alan Didak
Didak playing for Collingwood in 2006
Personal information
Full name Alan Didak
Date of birth (1983-02-15) 15 February 1983 (age 41)
Place of birth Whyalla, South Australia
Original team(s) Port Adelaide (SANFL)
Draft No. 3, 2000 National Draft, Collingwood
Height 184 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight 85 kg (187 lb)
Position(s) Forward / Midfielder
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2001–2013 Collingwood 218 (274)
International team honours
Years Team Games (Goals)
2004 Australia 2
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2013.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Alan Didak (born 15 February 1983) is a former professional Australian rules footballer of Croatian descent[1] who played for the Collingwood Football Club in the Australian Football League. Didak was a fan favourite and legend of the club, known for his incredible foot skills, marking prowess, and ability to kick seemingly impossible goals.

Early life

Originally from Whyalla, South Australia, Didak made his South Australian National Football League (SANFL) senior debut for Port Adelaide Football Club aged 17 years. He was the captain of the Under-18 Australian International rules football team in the junior International Rules Series against Ireland.

AFL career

Didak was drafted by the Collingwood Football Club with the 3rd pick in the 2000 AFL Draft, and in 2001 he made his AFL debut against the Kangaroos at the Telstra Dome in Round 7, gathering 10 possessions. He became a member of the exclusive club of players to kick a goal with both his first kick and first disposal. He played five games in total in 2001.

In 2002, Didak earned an AFL Rising Star nomination.[2] Didak was an extremely talented small forward and was also very capable in the midfield. He was known for his accurate goal kicking and clutch ability which often saw him likened to club legend Peter Daicos.

In 2003, Didak enjoyed his best season to date. In the Qualifying Final against Premiership favourites the Brisbane Lions, Didak came on in the last quarter and kicked two legendary[peacock prose] goals to win the match which remain Collingwood folklore to this day.

In 2005, Didak's season was disrupted by injuries and problems. He had knee surgery during the pre-season, setting him up for his first game on ANZAC Day against Essendon. His injury had an effect upon his performances. Having had minor issues since the mid-year break, he was suspended in Round 14 for two matches and after returning from that, he injured an ankle. When he returned in the next week, he lasted only 20 minutes, before suddenly fainting on the ground with an irregular heart beat.[3]

In 2006 Didak was awarded the Copeland Trophy as the best and fairest Collingwood player for 2006.[4] Didak was awarded All-Australian selection for the first time in his career.

In 2010, Didak enjoyed his career best season, winning the club goalkicking with 41 goals and earning All-Australian selection. Didak placed 4th in the club's Best & Fairest, and was a hero of Collingwood's 15th premiership.

Didak started off 2011 strongly in a dominant Collingwood side; however, he began to succumb to injuries, which became a common theme until he was delisted at the end of the 2013 season after 13 seasons.[5]

Post-AFL career

Didak played one game for the Glenorchy Football Club in the TSL in 2014.[6]

Didak finished his AFL Career with 218 games and 274 goals, placing him 8th on the all-time Collingwood goalkicking list. He played in an incredible 5 grand finals

Since his retirement, Didak has been awarded life membership for the club in 2015, and was inducted into the Collingwood Hall of Fame in 2017.

He currently is a logistics consultant and owns his own wine company, INDI Wines.

Personal life

In late June 2007, it was revealed that Didak had met with Christopher Hudson, the self-confessed shooter in the 2007 Melbourne CBD shootings days before the shootings took place. According to police, Didak left the Spearmint Rhino with Hudson, where Hudson then allegedly fired random shots before travelling to the Hells Angels' East County Chapter headquarters in Campbellfield. Police believe that Didak was later dropped off near Southbank after the shooting incidents about 6.00am.[7]

On 3 August 2008, Didak was a passenger in a car being driven by intoxicated teammate Heath Shaw which collided with another parked car. Both men initially denied that Didak was in any way involved. However, witness accounts to the incident identified him and, on 4 August 2008, both men were fined and suspended for the remainder of the season over the deception.[8]

On 6 September 2012, Alan became a first time dad to daughter Indiana Willow Didak with his long-term partner Jacinta Jellett.

Statistics

[9]
Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals 
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds 
  H  
 Handballs 
  M  
 Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game) Votes
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2001 Collingwood 4 5 3 0 19 9 28 10 2 0.6 0.0 3.8 1.8 5.6 2.0 0.4 0
2002 Collingwood 4 19 24 10 147 46 193 51 24 1.3 0.5 7.7 2.4 10.2 2.7 1.3 0
2003 Collingwood 4 25 36 22 177 77 254 83 33 1.4 0.9 7.1 3.1 10.2 3.3 1.3 0
2004 Collingwood 4 18 21 26 186 42 228 76 22 1.2 1.4 10.3 2.3 12.7 4.2 1.2 2
2005 Collingwood 4 12 21 9 105 30 135 42 17 1.8 0.8 8.8 2.5 11.3 3.5 1.4 1
2006 Collingwood 4 23 41 23 280 116 396 136 46 1.8 1.0 12.2 5.0 17.2 5.9 2.0 4
2007 Collingwood 4 18 25 6 191 77 268 68 46 1.4 0.3 10.6 4.3 14.9 3.8 2.6 0
2008 Collingwood 4 18 24 15 325 77 402 102 38 1.3 0.8 18.1 4.3 22.3 5.7 2.1 3
2009 Collingwood 4 20 20 12 358 152 510 101 37 1.0 0.6 17.9 7.6 25.5 5.1 1.9 12
2010 Collingwood 4 24 41 21 350 240 590 101 65 1.7 0.9 14.6 10.0 24.6 4.2 2.7 11
2011 Collingwood 4 20 9 9 238 117 355 63 43 0.5 0.5 11.9 5.9 17.8 3.2 2.2 0
2012 Collingwood 4 11 6 7 130 51 181 39 11 0.5 0.6 11.8 4.6 16.5 3.5 1.0 0
2013 Collingwood 4 5 3 4 48 37 85 18 4 0.6 0.8 9.6 7.4 17.0 3.6 0.8 0
Career 218 274 164 2554 1071 3625 890 388 1.3 0.8 11.7 4.9 16.6 4.1 1.8 33

References

  1. ^ Saltau, Chloe (18 September 2003). "Didak gives Pie fans plenty". The Age.
  2. ^ Francis Leach, 23 July 2002. "Didak: black, white and a Rising Star" Archived 29 September 2012 at the Wayback Machine AFL.com.au, Retrieved on 2 August 2009
  3. ^ 9 August 2005. "Didak set to miss rest of AFL season"
  4. ^ Kate Uebergang, 9 November 2006. "Alan Didak charge dropped". Herald Sun, Retrieved on 2 August 2009
  5. ^ Collingwood makes six list changes
  6. ^ "Didak hoping to turn on show". The Mercury. 18 July 2014.
  7. ^ Magpie star regrets night out with accused CBD killer – National – theage.com.au
  8. ^ "Collingwood suspends trio over drink-driving lies". Kevin Taylor. 6 August 2008. Archived from the original on 17 May 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2012.
  9. ^ Alan Didak's player profile at AFL Tables
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