Port Adelaide legend Russell Ebert dies aged 72
Australian Football Hall of Fame member and legend of South Australian football Russell Ebert has died at the age of 72 after being diagnosed with leukaemia last December.
Ebert played a club-record 392 games for Port Adelaide between 1968 and 1985, spending 1979 with North Melbourne, where he played 25 games and polled nine Brownlow votes as a 30-year-old.
He won four Magarey Medals as the South Australian competition’s fairest-and-best player and six best and fairests with Port Adelaide.
Russell Ebert with Peter Knights (behind the camera).Credit:Archives
He also played in three premierships for the famous club, being best on ground in the 1981 grand final.
Superbly skilled, he was revered for his team-first attitude and humble nature.
Russell Ebert at North Melbourne in 1979.Credit:Archives
AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan remembered Ebert’s impact on the game, especially in SA.
“Russell Ebert was an extraordinary footballer and his record attests to that as the only person in SANFL history with four Magarey Medals, coupled with multiple premierships and nearly 400 senior games just for his beloved Magpies, alongside his brilliant state career and a season with North Melbourne in the VFL,†McLachlan said.
“As a young fan of the game in Adelaide, even when watching him as an opposition player, you couldn’t help but admire his high marking, his one-touch ball-gathering, his brilliant attacking handball and his exceptional kicking skills on both sides of his body, as he was taking your side apart. All while being an incredibly fair player who relied on his skills while being strong and brave.â€
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