Garry Lyon
Lyon in 2008
Personal information
Full name Garry Peter Lyon
Date of birth (1967-09-13) 13 September 1967
Place of birth Devonport, Tasmania
Original team(s) Kyabram
Height 193 cm (6 ft 4 in)
Weight 96 kg (212 lb)
Position(s) Centre half-forward
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1986–1999 Melbourne 226 (426)
Representative team honours
Years Team Games (Goals)
1988–1995 Victoria 10 00(9)
Coaching career
Years Club Games (W–L–D)
2001–2004 Australia 8 (2–5–1)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1999.
Career highlights

Club

Representative

  • Victoria captain: 1994
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Garry Peter Lyon (born 13 September 1967) is a former professional Australian rules football player and was captain of the Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Since his retirement from football, he has been mainly an Australian rules football media personality, featuring on television, radio and in newspapers. He has also coached during the International Rules Series. He is the most recent VFL/AFL player to kick ten goals in a finals match, having done so in the 1994 Second Semi-Final against Footscray, and the first since Geelong's George Goninon in 1951, 43 years prior.

Early life

Lyon, the son of former Hawthorn player Peter Lyon, was born in Devonport, Tasmania. In his youth he moved to Victoria.

Career

VFL/AFL

Lyon was recruited from the Kyabram Football Club and debuted in 1986 with the Melbourne Football Club, playing in the 1988 VFL Grand Final. He quickly became a dominant player in the Victorian Football League (VFL), later renamed the Australian Football League (AFL), winning his first Melbourne best and fairest award in 1990. He became Melbourne's captain in 1991 and eventually became the longest-serving Melbourne captain in club history until he was released from the role after the 1997 season due to the club's belief that he would suffer from too many injuries. Lyon was known for playing with many back injuries, and his presence on the field despite such adversity saw him as an inspiration to teammates.[1]

Lyon finished his career having won two Melbourne best and fairest awards and being named in three All-Australian teams. His career ended as a result of increasing back problems. A broken leg, footage of which was often played on The AFL Footy Show, ended his 1987 season. In the end, he finished with 226 VFL/AFL games and 426 goals in 1999, giving him the fourth-best all-time goal tally for a Melbourne player.[2]

State of Origin

Lyon had a successful State of Origin career for Victoria, first being selected in 1988 against Western Australia. In 1989 he played in a famous game against South Australia, where Tony Lockett, Jason Dunstall and Dermott Brereton all played in the same forward line, performing well being named in the best players.[3] In 1991, Lyon scored one goal against South Australia. He was selected again in 1992 against the same opposition. In 1993, he performed on the big stage in the State of Origin Carnival grand final against South Australia, kicking three goals and being named in the best players.[4] In 1994, he was named Captain of Victoria, in what he has described as "a great honour".[5] In 1995, he was named vice-captain against South Australia, scoring one goal.[6] Lyon is a big supporter of Victoria and State of Origin and has said in reference to playing State of Origin that he "loved it".[7] He is also a big supporter of State of Origin being reintroduced,[8] and he has described training and playing with the best players in the game as a "dream come true" and "it took the experience of playing football to another level".[9] He has said that the great players of today should be afforded the same honour.[10]

Media career

Lyon's radio career began in the late 1990s on 3AW, and in 2004 he hosted Morning Glory on SEN 1116. In 2005, he returned to 3AW, and he appeared on Sports Today as well as providing special comments for the station's AFL coverage. In 2007, Lyon moved to Triple M where he provided special comments on Friday Night and Saturday afternoon matches until the end of 2015.

Lyon became a regular panelist on The AFL Footy Show late in his playing career. In 2006, alongside James Brayshaw, he took the hosting reins of the program after Eddie McGuire became CEO of the Nine Network. Previously he had worked alongside Brayshaw on The Sunday Footy Show and in 2005 on Any Given Sunday, as well as being a presenter of the Melbourne Commonwealth Games 2006 coverage on Nine. In 2007 he became a panelist on the program Footy Classified.

Lyon is a columnist for The Age newspaper and has co-authored children's books, including those in the Specky Magee series with Felice Arena.

Lyon during Melbourne premiership celebration ceremony in Perth in 2021.

In 2017, Lyon returned to SEN to co-host its breakfast program with Tim Watson. Later that year, Lyon ended his long association with the Nine Network to join Fox Footy as a commentator and panelist on On The Couch. In 2022, Lyon commenced hosting On The Couch in addition to Friday Night Football for the station.

Following the Melbourne premiership win, Lyon had the honour of presenting the 2021 AFL premiership cup to captain Max Gawn and coach Simon Goodwin in Perth following the Demons winning their first flag in 57 years.

Coaching

Since his retirement, Lyon has dabbled in coaching. He has coached the Australian international rules football team, debuting in 2001, and he remained coach for four successive seasons before being replaced by Kevin Sheedy. His International rules record is two wins from four series.

While many thought he might be a future coach of the Melbourne Football Club, Lyon chose not to pursue this path. In 2009, he coached the Victorian under-16 representative side at the AFL championships.[11]

Playing statistics

Brownlow Medal votes
Season Votes
1986 3
1987 1
1988 —
1989 3
1990 9
1991 —
1992 —
1993 5
1994 10
1995 9
1996 —
1997 —
1998 —
1999 —
Total 40
Key:
Green / Bold = Won
[12]
Legend
  G  
 Goals
  K  
 Kicks
  D  
 Disposals 
  T  
 Tackles
  B  
 Behinds 
  H  
 Handballs 
  M  
 Marks
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
1986 Melbourne 32026182156528070—1.30.910.83.314.03.5—
1987 Melbourne 31828201897626569211.61.110.54.214.73.81.2
1988 Melbourne 322413027882360110431.91.412.63.716.45.02.0
1989 Melbourne 31520122305728789181.30.815.33.819.15.91.2
1990 Melbourne 32113928489373104470.60.413.54.217.85.02.2
1991 Melbourne 318111123512536079390.60.613.16.920.04.42.2
1992 Melbourne 316301421110131284341.90.913.26.319.55.32.1
1993 Melbourne 3183637242100342120172.02.113.45.619.06.70.9
1994 Melbourne 324794729580375151363.32.012.33.315.66.31.5
1995 Melbourne 320774623344277109253.92.311.72.213.95.51.3
1996 Melbourne 361585011612552.51.38.31.810.24.20.8
1997 Melbourne 3578276331331.41.65.41.26.62.60.6
1998 Melbourne 32140171545621071261.90.87.32.710.03.41.2
1999 Melbourne 323013619911.50.06.53.09.54.50.5
Career 226 426 277 2656 898 3554 1103 315 1.9 1.2 11.8 4.0 15.7 4.9 1.5

Australian cricketer Nathan Lyon is nicknamed "Garry", after Garry Lyon.

References

  1. ↑ Holmesby, R. and Main, J. (2005). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. ISBN 1-86350-243-2
  2. ↑ "AFL Tables - All Time Player List - Melbourne". afltables.com. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  3. ↑ "Digitised Resource Viewer". cedric.slv.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  4. ↑ "Digitised Resource Viewer". cedric.slv.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  5. ↑ The YouTube Rub (31 May 2014), 31/05/2014 The Origin of the Fraudulent Chief, archived from the original on 21 December 2021, retrieved 5 March 2016
  6. ↑ SAfootballarchive (6 March 2012), 1995 State of Origin Victoria 18.12.120 d South Australia 8.9.57 (Ted Whitten Farewell game), retrieved 5 March 2016
  7. ↑ The YouTube Rub (11 May 2012), 11/05/2012 State of Origin: Yes or No?, archived from the original on 21 December 2021, retrieved 5 March 2016
  8. ↑ Lyon, Garry (18 June 2011). "No stopping the pick of the Vics". The Age. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  9. ↑ Lyon, Garry (18 June 2011). "No stopping the pick of the Vics". The Age. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  10. ↑ Lyon, Garry (18 June 2011). "No stopping the pick of the Vics". The Age. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  11. ↑ Wilson, Caroline (4 March 2010). "Lyon tells: Why I'll never coach". TheAge.com.au. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 23 May 2013.
  12. ↑ Garry Lyon's player profile at AFL Tables
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