Ex-Demon duped by the devil he knew: How Cats runner pranked Jackson

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Sometimes it takes time for great football stories to emerge but with both participants out of the finals, we thought this tale involving a club with chance of winning this year’s flag had to be told.

Cats’ premiership player Shannon Byrnes is a popular figure at two clubs. His career at Geelong and Melbourne spanned 131 games, and he played in the Cats premiership teams of 2007 and 2009.

Playing for Melbourne in 2022, Luke Jackson was duped by Geelong runner Shannon Byrnes (inset).Credit: Getty/LinkedIn

After finishing his playing career with two years at the Demons, he remained at the club in a welfare role and as a runner during their 2021 premiership year before the Cats lured him back under a remodelled football department in 2022, and he was runner for their premiership that year.

Apart from his football knowledge and empathy, the back-to-back premiership runner also has a great sense of humour, which is an invaluable asset in the high-pressure environment of an AFL club.

So, it was no wonder Byrnes was happy to engage in some banter with Melbourne players when he ran on to Kardinia Park to deliver messages to the Cats’ players during the vital round 17 clash last season.

As he ran past Melbourne premiership ruckman Luke Jackson – who received an All-Australian nomination on Monday for his performance with Fremantle in 2023 after crossing to the Dockers in last year’s trade period – Byrnes barked an instruction at the man known as “Dogga”.

He told Jackson to “get off the ground”.

Hearing Byrnes’ familiar voice, the gentle giant immediately turned towards the bench at Kardinia Park, put his head down and galloped towards the dugout as Byrnes kept running to relay messages from the Cats’ coaches to their players.

When Jackson arrived at the Demons’ bench, the 20-year-old was a bit bemused as he tried to work out how he had received an instruction no one seemed to know anything about. It’s still unclear whether he knew exactly what happened at that moment as he was waved back.

Meanwhile, Byrnes’ returned to the Cats’ bench with a cheeky grin on his dial, uncertain as to how the Demons’ coaching staff had reacted but knowing that sometimes some players can fall for tricks that had a .000001 percent chance of success.

Jackson, of course, is no longer a Demon but remains a much-loved figure given he helped the Demons break a premiership drought in his hometown, Perth, in 2021.

Just another Dangerfield premiership

Speaking of the Cats, their captain Patrick Dangerfield might have been ruing a rare year out of September action, but he did not have much time to drag his bottom lip along the ground.

His wife Mardi was preparing to play for Geelong Amateur in AFL Barwon’s division one women’s grand final against Grovedale on Sunday as the club attempted to go back-to-back.

With the Cats’ draw keeping them away from the Sunday slots most of the year, the pair could both play footy and look after their young tribe as Mardi played 15 games for the season, just three fewer than Patrick.

The Ammos, or Wammos, as the women’s team are known, defeated Grovedale, meaning Dangerfield added a football premiership to her netball flag at the club a few years earlier. Her dad, former Geelong mayor Bruce Harwood, was also the interchange steward for the club, and according to a club source was a handy waiter during Sunday night’s premiership celebrations, which stretched into a Mad Monday.

Might be a time for an extension at Mogg’s Creek to fit the medals in the Dangerfield house.

On the coach’s whiteboard

Before you go, here are …

Five reasons why we, the Kangaroos, want to defeat Gold Coast and sacrifice our rights to the No.1 pick at the 2023 national draft:

Harley Reid (right) is considered the standout player in this year’s national draft.Credit: AFL Photos

They said

“Eighty per cent of our first premiership side is sitting in this room right now” – Damien Hardwick on accepting the Gold Coast coaching job.

But they forgot to say

“Eighty per cent of our first premiership side is sitting in this room right now. We sit on top of the VFL ladder … what, you thought I meant AFL, ha, ha, ha, sorry.”

Snap Shot is a weekly column taking a look at the lighter side of football.

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