Top pick to tin rattler: Banik’s rocky Tigers startBen Higgins,
Herald Sun
23 Nov 2018Richmond has come along way since the dark days of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The AFL Draft process has come an equally long way while media attention around the event has quadrupled.
Anthony Banik was the No.1 draft pick in 1989, selected by the Tigers out of country Victoria and arriving in Melbourne without the same preparation of today’s draftees.
After arriving at Punt Road, Banik tells of a stark introduction to life as an AFL footballer at a struggling club.
“Almost from day one I was on the corner of Bridge Road and Punt Road shaking a can as part of the “Save Our Skins” campaign,” he said.
“That was my welcome to League football. Here I was, next to the window washers, holding a can saying ‘Save our footy club’, and I was supposed to be this highly-publicised number one draft pick.
“I learnt very quickly that it was not the razzle dazzle that we all expected it would be. It was real eye-opening, ground-level stuff.”
While Richmond was in financial dire straights, the life of a No.1 draft pick was very different to what the likes of Sam Walsh, Jack Lukosius or Izak Rankine can expect.
“You weren’t scrutinised like they are now - there seems to be a reporter for every player these days - but there wasn’t back then, thankfully. The Footy Show hadn’t even started then, that’s how long ago it was,” he told Sportshounds before last year’s draft.
“I didn’t know until draft day that I was to be the No.1 pick.
“I was in a biology class at high school and got told that I had a phone call. There were no mobile phones or email then, it was sent by fax or telegram, then a call was placed.
“I can remember being in one of the newspapers the next day but there was no over-the-top celebration at home or anything.”
Anthony Banik in action for Richmond.
After playing 38 games in his first two seasons, Banik’s career took a turn after contracting chronic fatigue.
The tough midfielder-defender barely played in 1992 under new coach Allan Jeans but returned for the final four games of the season.
However, 1994 was to be Banik’s last season as the Tigers’ coaching merry-go-round after brought John Northey to the club.
Despite winning the Richmond reserves best-and-fairest, Banik was delisted but reveals he wasn’t even told by the club he’d been cut.
“Allan was only there the one season and then along came John Northey, who had a different philosophy again,” he said.
“It was very frustrating because I was still only 21, and suddenly I was at the crossroads.
“Under John I won the best-and-fairest in the reserves in 1994, but I wasn’t in the picture for senior selection.
“I was delisted on a footy trip at the end of 1994. We played Carlton at The Oval in London in an exhibition game and afterwards Northey took everyone into the rooms and said who was going to be on the list next year and who wasn’t.
“I wasn’t told anything, so I thought I was safe. Then I went away to Ireland ... and I made a phone call home to my family while I was there and it was then that I was told that I had been let go.
“The club didn’t even have the courtesy to tell me themselves. I had to find out through family, which I thought was pretty ordinary.”
https://www.heraldsun.com.au/sport/afl/teams/richmond/anthony-baniks-terrible-first-impression-at-richmond-after-arriving-as-no1-draft-pick-in-1989/news-story/93933af11e90d14bce750fc0010651c5
