Tuggeranong Hawks’ Club legend Gerrit “Chief” Wanganeen will play his 350th game for the club this Sunday.
If you add a further 149 games of junior footy with the Tuggeranong Lions, “Chief” is one of the very few footballers to reach the 500 game mark of footy in Canberra. It is a remarkable story of not only longevity but of considerable talent, passion and commitment to the Football Club.
“Chief” started playing senior footy with Tuggeranong as a 16 year old in 1992. An ACT Representative throughout his junior football career, he has since dedicated a major part of his life to the Tuggeranong Football Club.
He is a club legend and stalwart; a quality person; an excellent footballer; a strong role model and mentor to the numerous young players coming through the ranks in the Tuggeranong Valley, and overall a totally committed and dedicated administrator; and to top it all off, he is a genuinely great bloke.
Throughout his career (so far) with the Hawks, Chief has won numerous individual and team awards for his football ability and has also been regularly acknowledged for his dedication and work as an administrator.
Chief is currently a Board Member and Head of Football at the Hawks and over the years he has consistently served on the Board, on Committees, coached, captained and played the game he loves. There would literally be hundreds of players who have played with and against Chief over the past 22 years.
Over recent seasons, Gerrit has also been heavily involved in the Kickstart Championships. The Championships showcase the best young indigenous talent in Australia and in April 2014, over 300 players attended the Championships in Coffs Harbour. Chief was an assistant coach (and mentor) with the NSW/ACT Under 15 side that performed very well throughout the Championships.
Chief holds the record for the most senior games at Tuggeranong (a record that continues to grow) and he continues to play his footy at a very high standard. His strong presence on the footy field is a major confidence boost for the young players in the early years of senior footy at Tuggeranong and his ability to win the footy, take a big mark, snap a goal from the impossible, kick accurately, play ruck, play forward, and play back should see him in Hawks colours for a few more years yet. The 400 game milestone is within his reach and capability.
To all Tuggeranong (and AFL Canberra) supporters - get along to Greenway on Sunday 10 August (2:15pm start) to congratulate, acknowledge and pay tribute to a fantastic achievement from a Tuggeranong Football Club (and AFL Canberra) legend.
Last Modified on 08/08/2014 14:53