Alan Didak (born 15 February 1983) is a former professional

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an Australian rules football playing field, oval field, often a modified ...

er of Croatian descent who played for the

Collingwood Football Club The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed the Magpies or colloquially the Pies, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's elite competition. ...

in the

Australian Football League The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional sports, professional competition of Australian rules football. It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition ...

Early life

Originally from

Whyalla, South Australia Whyalla is a city in South Australia. It was founded as Hummock's Hill, and was known by that name until 1916. It is the fourth most populous city in the Australian state of South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier, and Gawler, and along ...

, Didak played his junior football at Pooraka Football Club (Home of the mighty Bulls). Didak made his

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's sports governing body, governing body for the sport. ...

(SANFL) senior debut for

Port Adelaide Football Club Port Adelaide Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Alberton, South Australia, Alberton, South Australia. The club's senior men's team plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), where it is nicknamed the ...

aged 17 years. He was the captain of the Under-18 Australian

International rules football International rules football (; also known as international rules in Australia and compromise rules or Aussie rules in Ireland) is a team sport consisting of a hybrid of football codes, which was developed to facilitate international represe ...

team in the junior

International Rules Series The International Rules Series is a senior men's international rules football competition between the Australia international rules football team (selected by the Australian Football League) and the Ireland international rules football team ...

against

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

AFL career

Didak was drafted by the

with the 3rd pick in the

2000 AFL Draft The 2000 AFL draft was the annual draft of talented Australian rules football players by teams that participate in the Australian Football League. It consisted of a pre-season draft, a national draft, a trade period and a rookie elevation. In ...

, and in

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

he made his AFL debut against the

Kangaroos Kangaroos are marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use, the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern grey ...

at the

Telstra Dome Docklands Stadium, known by naming rights sponsorship as Marvel Stadium, is a multi-purpose sports and entertainment stadium in the suburb of Docklands in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Construction started in October 1997 and was completed ...

in Round 7, gathering 10 possessions. He became a member of the exclusive club of players to kick a goal with both his first kick and first disposal. He played five games in total in 2001. In 2002, Didak earned an

AFL Rising Star The AFL Rising Star is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player adjudged the best young player in the Australian Football League (AFL) for the year. It was first presented in the 1993 season, and was won by Nathan Bu ...

nomination. Didak was an extremely talented small forward and was also very capable in the midfield. He was known for his accurate goal kicking and clutch ability which often saw him likened to club legend

Peter Daicos Peter Daicos (born 20 September 1961) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played his entire 250-game career with the Collingwood Football Club in the VFL/AFL. Daicos is considered one of Collingwood's greatest ever players ...

. In 2003, Didak enjoyed his best season to date. In the Qualifying Final against Premiership favourites the Brisbane Lions, Didak came on in the last quarter and kicked two legendary goals to win the match which remain Collingwood folklore to this day. In 2005, Didak's season was disrupted by injuries and problems. He had knee surgery during the pre-season, setting him up for his first game on

ANZAC Day Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia, New Zealand and Tonga that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and ...

against

Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport *Essendon Football Club, in the Australian Football League *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington United Kin ...

. His injury had an effect upon his performances. Having had minor issues since the mid-year break, he was suspended in Round 14 for two matches and after returning from that, he injured an ankle. When he returned in the next week, he lasted only 20 minutes, before suddenly fainting on the ground with an irregular heart beat. In 2006 Didak was awarded the

Copeland Trophy The E.W. Copeland Trophy is an Australian rules football award given by the Collingwood Football Club to the player adjudged best and fairest for Collingwood during the year. The Copeland Shield, as it was formerly known, was donated by Ern Cop ...

as the best and fairest Collingwood player for 2006. Didak was awarded All-Australian selection for the first time in his career. In 2010, Didak enjoyed his career best season, winning the club goalkicking with 41 goals and earning All-Australian selection. Didak placed 4th in the club's Best & Fairest, and was a hero of Collingwood's 15th premiership. Didak started off 2011 strongly in a dominant Collingwood side; however, he began to succumb to injuries, which became a common theme until he was delisted at the end of the 2013 season after 13 seasons.

Post-AFL career

Didak played one game for the

Glenorchy Football Club The Glenorchy District Football Club is an Australian rules football club currently playing in the Tasmanian State League and the Southern Football League in Tasmania, Australia. History The club is nicknamed the Magpies after its black and wh ...

in the TSL in 2014. Didak finished his AFL Career with 218 games and 274 goals, placing him 8th on the all-time Collingwood goalkicking list. He played in an incredible 5 grand finals Since his retirement, Didak has been awarded life membership for the club in 2015, and was inducted into the Collingwood Hall of Fame in 2017. He currently is a logistics consultant and owns his own wine company, INDI Wines.

Personal life

In late June 2007, it was revealed that Didak had met with Christopher Hudson, the self-confessed shooter in the 2007 Melbourne CBD shootings days before the shootings took place. According to police, Didak left the

Spearmint Rhino Spearmint Rhino is a chain of strip clubs that operates venues throughout the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia. The first Spearmint Rhino was located in Upland, California. Operations John Gray is the founder & CEO of Spearmint Rh ...

with Hudson, where Hudson then allegedly fired random shots before travelling to the Hells Angels' East County Chapter headquarters in Campbellfield. Police believe that Didak was later dropped off near Southbank after the shooting incidents about 6.00am. On 3 August 2008, Didak was a passenger in a car being driven by intoxicated teammate

Heath Shaw Heath Shaw (born 27 November 1985) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Collingwood Football Club and the Greater Western Sydney Giants in the Australian Football League (AFL). Heath grew up in Diamond Creek and played ju ...

which collided with another parked car. Both men initially denied that Didak was in any way involved. However,

witness In law, a witness is someone who, either voluntarily or under compulsion, provides testimonial evidence, either oral or written, of what they know or claim to know. A witness might be compelled to provide testimony in court, before a grand jur ...

accounts to the incident identified him and, on 4 August 2008, both men were fined and suspended for the remainder of the season over the deception. On 6 September 2012, Alan became a first time dad to daughter Indiana Willow Didak with his long-term partner Jacinta Jellett.

Statistics

:Alan Didak's player profile at AFL Tables
/ref> , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 5 , , 3 , , 0 , , 19 , , 9 , , 28 , , 10 , , 2 , , 0.6 , , 0.0 , , 3.8 , , 1.8 , , 5.6 , , 2.0 , , 0.4 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 19 , , 24 , , 10 , , 147 , , 46 , , 193 , , 51 , , 24 , , 1.3 , , 0.5 , , 7.7 , , 2.4 , , 10.2 , , 2.7 , , 1.3 , , 0 , - style="background:#eaeaea;" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 25 , , 36 , , 22 , , 177 , , 77 , , 254 , , 83 , , 33 , , 1.4 , , 0.9 , , 7.1 , , 3.1 , , 10.2 , , 3.3 , , 1.3 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 18 , , 21 , , 26 , , 186 , , 42 , , 228 , , 76 , , 22 , , 1.2 , , 1.4 , , 10.3 , , 2.3 , , 12.7 , , 4.2 , , 1.2 , , 2 , - style="background:#eaeaea;" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 12 , , 21 , , 9 , , 105 , , 30 , , 135 , , 42 , , 17 , , 1.8 , , 0.8 , , 8.8 , , 2.5 , , 11.3 , , 3.5 , , 1.4 , , 1 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 23 , , 41 , , 23 , , 280 , , 116 , , 396 , , 136 , , 46 , , 1.8 , , 1.0 , , 12.2 , , 5.0 , , 17.2 , , 5.9 , , 2.0 , , 4 , - style="background:#eaeaea;" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 18 , , 25 , , 6 , , 191 , , 77 , , 268 , , 68 , , 46 , , 1.4 , , 0.3 , , 10.6 , , 4.3 , , 14.9 , , 3.8 , , 2.6 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 18 , , 24 , , 15 , , 325 , , 77 , , 402 , , 102 , , 38 , , 1.3 , , 0.8 , , 18.1 , , 4.3 , , 22.3 , , 5.7 , , 2.1 , , 3 , - style="background:#eaeaea;" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 20 , , 20 , , 12 , , 358 , , 152 , , 510 , , 101 , , 37 , , 1.0 , , 0.6 , , 17.9 , , 7.6 , , 25.5 , , 5.1 , , 1.9 , , 12 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 24 , , 41 , , 21 , , 350 , , 240 , , 590 , , 101 , , 65 , , 1.7 , , 0.9 , , 14.6 , , 10.0 , , 24.6 , , 4.2 , , 2.7 , , 11 , - style="background:#eaeaea;" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 20 , , 9 , , 9 , , 238 , , 117 , , 355 , , 63 , , 43 , , 0.5 , , 0.5 , , 11.9 , , 5.9 , , 17.8 , , 3.2 , , 2.2 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 11 , , 6 , , 7 , , 130 , , 51 , , 181 , , 39 , , 11 , , 0.5 , , 0.6 , , 11.8 , , 4.6 , , 16.5 , , 3.5 , , 1.0 , , 0 , - style="background:#eaeaea;" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 4 , , 5 , , 3 , , 4 , , 48 , , 37 , , 85 , , 18 , , 4 , , 0.6 , , 0.8 , , 9.6 , , 7.4 , , 17.0 , , 3.6 , , 0.8 , , 0 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 218 ! 274 ! 164 ! 2554 ! 1071 ! 3625 ! 890 ! 388 ! 1.3 ! 0.8 ! 11.7 ! 4.9 ! 16.6 ! 4.1 ! 1.8 ! 33

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Didak, Alan 1983 births Living people Collingwood Football Club players Collingwood Football Club premiership players Copeland Trophy winners All-Australians (AFL) Australian people of Croatian descent Australian rules footballers from South Australia Port Adelaide Magpies players Glenorchy Football Club players Australia international rules football team players VFL/AFL premiership players People from Whyalla 21st-century Australian sportsmen