The Heart of it: A distinctly Tasmanian conversation

In this heartfelt conversation, Pippa and Chris reflect on the remarkable football career of John Leedham — one of Tasmania’s greatest ever players. From his early days dominating local leagues to becoming the first Tasmanian selected in the the All-Australian team in 1953, and ultimately his recent induction into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, hear the personal stories, triumphs and memori...

A late comer to the game, Tunisha Kikoak first picked up a sherrin at just 12 years of age and hasn’t looked back since. Progressing through the Tasmanian talent pathways, Tunisha earned her opportunity at the elite level, joining the Fremantle Dockers AFLW program as a forward and occasional ruck. Her journey hasn’t been without heartbreak, experiencing the disappointment of being overlooked in t...

In this episode, Al Nicholson sits down with Nick Foot of Glenorchy, one of Tasmania’s most respected and highly decorated football umpires. Nick reflects on his journey from officiating local grassroots matches to taking charge in front of massive crowds on the game’s biggest stages. He shares the challenges, lessons, and defining moments along the way — including the career highlight of umpiring...

One of football’s great characters, James Manson was fiercely competitive, unapologetically intense, and impossible to ignore. A premiership player with Collingwood and a key member of the Tasmanian team that famously defeated Victoria in the 1990 clash, he truly was the ultimate football rockstar. In this episode, he opens up about his move from North Hobart to Collingwood, the culture shock of A...

In this episode of Heart of It, Alistair is joined by Dana Howes, a highly respected sports and major events professional whose career spans more than 30 years. Dana shares her journey through some of the biggest stages in sport, including working on the Super Bowl, while also speaking to her deep and enduring passion for Tasmanian football. She reflects on her early career experiences, the lesson...

In this episode of The Heart of It, we sit down with Brodie Mihocek to explore a football journey defined by hard work, determination, and a never-say-die mindset. An Underage All Australian who didn’t break into the AFL system until the age of 25, Brodie’s rise is anything but conventional. From kicking four goals on debut to playing in an AFL Grand Final in his first season, his impact was immed...

We’re back with a big one. This week, Richmond captain and three-time premiership ruckman Toby Nankervis joins us on The Heart of It. From the North-West farming communities of Tasmania, Nankervis rose through the state’s cricketing ranks as a promising fast bowler before eventually making the switch to football — and the rest, as they say, is history. He may prefer to stay out of the spotlight, b...

Welcome back to Season 2 of The Heart of It. We’re kicking things off with a very special guest — Geelong premiership player Jake Kolodjashnij. Jake Kolodjashnij (or referred to as 'Dutchy' in the episode) is a premiership-winning Australian rules footballer celebrated for his calm composure, defensive reliability, and steady development into one of Geelong’s most trusted backline players. Born in...

Long locks, long limbs, long run ups.. Ben Brown was one of the most recognisable figures in AFL football during a 175-game, 360-goal career that culminated in a premiership with Melbourne in 2021. His rise to the AFL as a ‘mature-ager' saw him follow in the footsteps of his uncle, Collingwood premiership player James Manson, but it was his late grandfather, Gentleman Jim Manson, he thought of mos...

If you peruse the honour boards of Ulverstone sporting clubs, there’s every chance you’ll find the surname Pearce – more than once. And if you look at the honour roll of the Fremantle Football Club, you’ll find the name there too, under the title of captain. Alex Pearce was somewhat of a late bloomer when it came to football but despite an inordinate number of serious injuries, Pearce has emerged...

The only Tasmanian to win the coveted Norm Smith Medal, Colin Robertson, grew up on a dairy and potato farm in the small north west town of Yolla. The paddocks, with tree limbs for goals posts, were Robertson’s equivalent of the MCG and where he honed his skills before starring with Wynard in two premierships. Multiple VFL clubs came calling, but the dashing wingman opted for emerging Hawthorn and...

A member of the Tasmanian Team of the Century, Paul Williams was drafted to Collingwood as a schoolboy and after a controversial move to the Sydney Swans in 2001, played in an AFL premiership in his 294th game. The Williams story has many fascinating chapters. From family run pubs, fish and chip shops and Tasmanian state league football, to the tragedy of losing the man he refers to as his on-fiel...

A key pillar in Essendon’s quest for an AFLW premiership, Wynyard’s Ellyse Gamble has enjoyed the highs and lows of football and of life since being drafted while on an east coast bushwalk in 2017. Gamble ran out for the Western Bulldogs in their first ever AFLW game, but injury robbed her of the chance to play in a premiership the following year. Last season, she played in round one just days aft...

Laura McBain was a young mother when she packed up her belongings and moved from Sydney to the northern Tasmanian town of Exeter. After a challenging start to her new life in Australia's smallest state, McBain would rise from humble beginnings to become one of the country's most successful businesswomen. Now, a rusted-on Tasmanian, McBain is a key member of the Tasmania Football Club’s inaugural b...

The Launceston suburb of Waverley might be best known for its woolen mill, but it can also lay claim to a Collingwood premiership star. Doug Barwick was recruited to Fitzroy after winning a best and fairest with East Launceston in 1983. A powerfully built player with a prodigious kick, Barwick's switch to Collingwood in 1988 proved life changing. He kicked the match-sealing goal in Collingwood's d...

There have been few more brilliant or flamboyant footballers than Campbell Town’s Brent Crosswell, who won four VFL premierships with Carlton and North Melbourne.  An extreme talent possessing skill, speed and power, Crosswell was a schoolboy prodigy, whose feats in big games were legendary.  But he was also highly temperamental and, by his own admission, indifferent to the game. This was a consta...

A former Tasmanian player who became a state league senior coach at the age of 24, Zane Littlejohn quickly established his credentials winning back-to-back premierships with North Launceston.  After being lured to the Brisbane Lions, where he worked under fellow Tasmanian Chris Fagan, Littlejohn is now the senior coach of VFL club Box Hill and working as a development coach at highflying Hawthorn....

A champion swimmer, who once shared the pool with Olympic golden girl Ariarne Titmus, Nicole Bresnahan only started playing football as a 19-year old. Just a couple of years later she was drafted by North Melbourne and selected to play in the Kangaroos’ first ever AFLW match. As she readies for her 50th game with the club, Bresnehan is also working full time for AFL Tasmania, helping to develop th...

With more than 18-thousand first-class runs, former Tasmanian captain Jamie Cox is a revered figure in cricket and widely considered as desperately unlucky to have never played in Tests for Australia. What is less known about the Wynyard product, is that he was once an Essendon footballer – despite being completely oblivious to the fact. In 1987, a young Cox was drafted by the Bombers, initially w...

Andy Bennett is proof you don’t need to be born in Tasmania to become a Tasmanian – a very passionate Tasmanian.  Originally from Broken Hill, Bennett was very late to football but quickly rose to prominence representing the revered South Australian state team in the late 1970’s. After stints with Hawthorn and St. Kilda in the VFL, which included a near-death encounter with the fearsome Tony Locke...

One of only four players in the history of the game to win three Brownlow Medals, Ian Stewart describes the harsh environment that gave rise to his immense football talents. Stewart spent his early years on Tasmania’s rugged west coast, but his childhood was most shaped by his experiences living alongside orphaned migrant children at the Hobart welfare institution, Boys’ Town. Football was to beco...

There is no better example of the importance of the state’s AFL license to young Tasmanians than the story of Ian Callinan. A star junior, the Rokeby product was the epitome of the natural footballer – highly skilled on both left and right foot and with an uncanny sense of where the goals were. But despite a glittering football resume, Callinan’s dream of being drafted to the AFL was a cruel tale...

One of the AFL’s finest wingmen during the 80’s and 90’s Darrin Pritchard played in three premierships with Hawthorn, the club he barracked for as a child. In this episode, Pritchard details how he had initially hoped to play for Fitzroy. He also reflects on his childhood growing up at Mount Nelson, the guidance of Chris Fagan and Andy Bennett at the Sandy Bay Football Club and captaining Tasmania...