Jack

Two of my earliest memories of me and my Dad - 1. Walking down the stairs into the Adelaide Typographers, to the clatter of Linotype machines and printing presses, and the smell of ink. 2. Running down the hill at Unley Oval, returning to stand by my Dad's legs amidst a sea of legs, feeling the energy of the crowd as a tangible thing, periodically erupting in a synchronised cheer or groan. So what has this to do with Jack Oatey? You may have picked the Unley connection. He was the coach of Dad's (and thus my) team Sturt, but he was also Dad's boss, Dad being his second-in-command. Jack was a Linotype operator, my Dad a compositor. According to an ex-colleague, Jack, Dad and their team were the best people he'd worked with in a 52-year career. As a coach, Jack excelled. He holds the record for coaching more elite level victories than any other, a total of 521, and the most Premierships as coach 10 (equal top) including five in a row. He is also credited with revolutionising the game by instigating the greater use of handball as an attacking option and popularising the check side punt, which has itself been listed as a South Australian icon. He was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996 and was elevated to legend status in 2021, only the second Legend to have played and coached his entire career in South Australia. Part of an ongoing series of South Australian Icons.