Peter Matera (born 3 April 1969) is a former

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 who played for the

West Coast Eagles The West Coast Eagles are a professional Australian rules football club based in Perth, Western Australia. The club was founded in 1986 and first competed in 1987 as one of two expansion teams in the Australian Football League (AFL), then known ...

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 ...

(AFL). He is regarded as one of the greatest West Australians and indigenous players being a member of the

Australian Football Hall of Fame The Australian Football Hall of Fame was established in 1996, the 1996 AFL season, centenary year of the Australian Football League, to help recognise the contributions made to the sport of Australian rules football by players, umpires, media pe ...

and

Indigenous Team of the Century The Indigenous Team of the Century was selected in 2005 to recognise the role of Indigenous Australians in Australian rules football. Graham Farmer was named as the team's captain, while Barry Cable was selected as the team's coach. Eight of t ...

as well as being 5 time

All-Australian The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules football in Australia, Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-perfo ...

and 2 time premiership player. Best known for his run and carry playing style he is best remembered for his best on ground performance in the 1992 Grand Final which won him the

Norm Smith Medal The Norm Smith Medal is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player adjudged the best on ground in the grand final of the Australian Football League (AFL). Prior to 1990, the competition was known as the Victorian Footbal ...

Early life

Matera was born in

Wagin, Western Australia Wagin is a town and Shire of Wagin, shire in the Wheatbelt (Western Australia), Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, approximately south-east of Perth on the Great Southern Highway between Narrogin, Western Australia, Narrogin and Katann ...

to an indigenous (

Noongar The Noongar (, also spelt Noongah, Nyungar , Nyoongar, Nyoongah, Nyungah, Nyugah, and Yunga ) are Aboriginal Australian people who live in the South West, Western Australia, south-west corner of Western Australia, from Geraldton, Western Aus ...

) mother and an Italian father. He has seven siblings (Walter, Frank, Michael, Gino, Phillip, Gerard and Carmel), two of which were his older brother Wally Matera, and younger brother

Phillip Matera Phillip Matera (born 27 November 1975) is a former Australian rules footballer. Career Beginning his career in 1996, the 171 cm forward pocket was one of the Australian Football League's best small forwards. Matera is the brother of form ...

, who both played football at the elite level. Matera played soccer as a youngster and was influenced by the success of Wally in playing Australian rules football. Matera was recruited from South Fremantle in the

West Australian Football League The West Australian Football League (WAFL "waffle" or "W-A-F-L") is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting f ...

(WAFL) with the 4th selection in the 1989 National Draft.

AFL career

He made his debut in 1990 for West Coast. Playing just five games in his debut season for the Eagles, Matera broke through as a star youngster in 1991, finishing fourth in the

Brownlow Medal The Charles Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal (and informally as Charlie), is awarded to the best and fairest player in the Australian Football League (AFL) during the home-and-away season, as determined by votes cast by the f ...

and earning

honors. Matera followed up with an excellent 1992, unlucky to miss AA honours once more but capped off the season with an outstanding finals series.

Finest hour

Peter Matera permanently etched his name into football folklore with his outstanding performance in the 1992 Grand Final. The West Coast Eagles captured their first premiership on the back of Matera's excellent five goal effort from the wing. The image of Matera "setting sail for home" is considered by many to be the definitive moment in West Coast history. Matera collected the

for his best on ground performance.

Prime of career

Matera continued to establish himself as one of the games legitimate stars and most dangerous players throughout the mid-1990s. His outstanding goal sense and reading of the play made Matera a true game breaker. Selected as an All-Australian again in 1993 and 94, Matera also was something of a surprise runner up in the 1994

count, polling 28 votes, including four straight best of ground performances. Matera was also a key member of West Coast's second premiership team in 1994 – while he did not repeat his 1992 heroics, it was later revealed he played the Grand Final under much duress due to a stress fracture in his leg.

Moving back

With his trademark speed on the decline, 1996 saw Peter Matera reinvent himself as a half back flank with great success. This part of his career is often overshadowed by his outstanding years as a wingman but Matera made a fine defender and once again enjoyed All-Australian status in 1996 and 1997. Matera was named on a wing in West Coast's team of the decade in 1996.

Brother Phil

1996 also saw Matera joined at West Coast by his younger brother Phillip. A fine player in his own right, Phillip was a speedy

forward pocket In the sport of Australian rules football, each of the eighteen players in a team is assigned to a particular named position on the field of play. These positions describe both the player's main role and by implication their location on the gro ...

who emerged from his brother's shadow later in his career to be regarded as one of the better goal sneaks of his time. Affectionately known as "Fido", Phil Matera retired after the 2005 season playing 179 games and kicking 389 goals for West Coast.

Club Champion at last

After four top five finishes in the strong West Coast team of the 1990s, Matera won his first Club Champion Award in

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

. Finishing two votes clear of fellow Eagles' champion Dean Kemp. Despite only winning the award once, Matera's consistency throughout the 1990s elevates his status amongst West Coast greats.

The Demon decision

The most controversial moment of Peter Matera's career came in late 1997 when he shocked the football world by declaring his intentions to leave the West Coast Eagles and join the

Melbourne Football Club The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed the Demons or colloquially the Dees, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier comp ...

via the pre-season draft for the 1998 season. Citing a desire to play more at the

MCG The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as the 'G, is a sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadium in the Southern Hemisphere, the el ...

, Matera's announcement triggered major public outcry in

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

and saw many of his longtime Eagles teammates, including captain

John Worsfold John Richard Worsfold (born 25 September 1968) is a former Australian rules football coach and player. He had a long association with the West Coast Eagles as player (1987–1998) and coach (2002–2013), captaining the club to premierships in ...

visit Matera's home (which was staked out by the media). Days after news of Matera's defection broke, he did a back flip, agreeing to stay on at the West Coast Eagles.

Winding down

Matera's form declined once he reached his 30s. Most of his premiership teammates retired around him leaving Matera one of only a handful of experienced Eagles left by the turn of the century – Matera was named a vice captain of the club in 1999, holding this position for three seasons. The team's fortunes took a turn for the worse in 2000 and 2001, missing the finals for the first time since 1989. Matera, while still finishing top 10 in the Club Champion award was not the outstanding performer he was in his prime. 2002 saw the return to the club of legendary Eagles captain

, this time in the role of senior coach. Worsfold's return saw the side return to the finals and saw Matera, aged 33, regain some fine form and it appeared he may play on in 2003. To some surprise and disappointment, late in the preseason of 2003 Peter Matera drew the curtain on his illustrious career, succumbing to a persistent thigh injury which had rendered him unable to reach peak fitness. Peter Matera played 253 games for the West Coast Eagles and kicked 218 goals over 13 seasons. He also played 60 games for South Fremantle and represented Western Australia in state football on 5 occasions.

Statistics

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1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 37 , , 5 , , 3 , , 3 , , 45 , , 16 , , 61 , , 16 , , 3 , , 0.6 , , 0.6 , , 9.0 , , 3.2 , , 12.2 , , 3.2 , , 0.6 , , 0 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 26 , , 32 , , 25 , , 401 , , 134 , , 535 , , 87 , , 56 , , 1.2 , , 1.0 , , 15.4 , , 5.2 , , 20.6 , , 3.3 , , 2.2 , , 18 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" , scope=row bgcolor=F0E68C ,

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

^# , , , 30 , , 23 , , 31 , , 22 , , 349 , , 110 , , 459 , , 63 , , 65 , , 1.3 , , 1.0 , , 15.2 , , 4.8 , , 20.0 , , 2.7 , , 2.8 , , 9 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 20 , , 23 , , 24 , , 317 , , 124 , , 441 , , 74 , , 43 , , 1.2 , , 1.2 , , 15.9 , , 6.2 , , 22.1 , , 3.7 , , 2.2 , , 10 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" , scope=row bgcolor=F0E68C ,

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

^# , , , 30 , , 24 , , 21 , , 20 , , 305 , , 108 , , 413 , , 77 , , 68 , , 0.9 , , 0.8 , , 12.7 , , 4.5 , , 17.2 , , 3.2 , , 2.8 , , 28 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 20 , , 31 , , 15 , , 284 , , 82 , , 366 , , 74 , , 40 , , 1.6 , , 0.8 , , 14.2 , , 4.1 , , 18.3 , , 3.7 , , 2.0 , , 13 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 24 , , 9 , , 10 , , 339 , , 119 , , 458 , , 98 , , 71 , , 0.4 , , 0.4 , , 14.1 , , 5.0 , , 19.1 , , 4.1 , , 3.0 , , 9 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 21 , , 7 , , 8 , , 336 , , 132 , , 468 , , 93 , , 39 , , 0.3 , , 0.4 , , 16.0 , , 6.3 , , 22.3 , , 4.4 , , 1.9 , , 21 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 21 , , 17 , , 13 , , 294 , , 81 , , 375 , , 76 , , 55 , , 0.8 , , 0.6 , , 14.0 , , 3.9 , , 17.9 , , 3.6 , , 2.6 , , 6 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 16 , , 8 , , 6 , , 196 , , 92 , , 288 , , 71 , , 37 , , 0.5 , , 0.4 , , 12.3 , , 5.8 , , 18.0 , , 4.4 , , 2.3 , , 8 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 17 , , 22 , , 12 , , 216 , , 88 , , 304 , , 63 , , 39 , , 1.3 , , 0.7 , , 12.7 , , 5.2 , , 17.9 , , 3.7 , , 2.3 , , 1 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

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 ...

, style="text-align:center;", , 30 , , 19 , , 2 , , 4 , , 245 , , 67 , , 312 , , 69 , , 42 , , 0.1 , , 0.2 , , 12.9 , , 3.5 , , 16.4 , , 3.6 , , 2.2 , , 3 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! 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;", , 30 , , 17 , , 11 , , 4 , , 212 , , 76 , , 288 , , 44 , , 57 , , 0.6 , , 0.2 , , 12.5 , , 4.5 , , 16.9 , , 2.6 , , 3.4 , , 0 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 253 ! 217 ! 166 ! 3539 ! 1229 ! 4768 ! 905 ! 615 ! 0.9 ! 0.7 ! 14.0 ! 4.9 ! 18.9 ! 3.6 ! 2.4 ! 126

Honours and achievements

Team * 2× AFL premiership player ():

* 2×

McClelland Trophy The McClelland Trophy is an Australian rules football club championship trophy, awarded each year to the club with the best aggregate performance across the Australian Football League (AFL) and AFL Women's (AFLW) seasons. The trophy was inaugur ...

():

Individual *

John Worsfold Medal The John Worsfold Medal is an Australian rules football award presented annually to the player(s) adjudged the best and fairest at the West Coast Eagles throughout the Victorian Football League/Australian Football League (VFL/AFL) season. Sixt ...

* 5×

All-Australian team The All-Australian team is an all-star team of Australian rules football in Australia, Australian rules footballers, selected by a panel at the end of each season. It represents a complete team, including an interchange bench, of the best-perfo ...

* 4× State of Origin (

): 1991, 1992, 1993, 1997 *

Indigenous Team of the Century 1904-2003 – Wing * Italian Team of the Century - Wing

Life after football

In August 2005, Matera was named on the wing of the

. Matera said of the honour:

Stephen Michael Stephen Albert Michael (born 15 March 1956) is a former Australian rules footballer. More recently, Stephen is the patron of the Stephen Michael Foundation, supporting disengaged, at-risk and disadvantaged youth across Western Australia. Playi ...
was my idol as a kid, and we used to hear all about how good
Polly Farmer Graham Vivian "Polly" Farmer (10 March 1935 14 August 2019) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and the East Perth Football Club and West Perth Football Club in th ...
was so to be recognised with them is an honor.

After leaving the football world following his retirement, Matera dabbled in coaching in South Western WA before signalling his intentions to return to the game in a larger capacity. Despite being linked by some to the vacant assistant coaching position at West Coast, Matera took on an assistant coaching and mentoring role at the

East Perth Football Club The East Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Royals, is an Australian rules football club based in Leederville, Western Australia, current playing in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW). Formed in 1902 as the Unio ...

in the WAFL for the 2006 season. On 10 March 2006, Matera was inducted into the Western Australian Football Hall of Fame. On 22 June 2006, Matera became the first ever career West Coast Eagle to be inducted into the

. Considered one of the highest honours in Australian Football, Matera was pleased to receive the recognition

To be inducted in the highest level of football and accolades as in the Hall of Fame is one of those things that just caps off my career. This more or less finishes my career on a high.

In early 2015, th
Matera Foundation
was formed to assist Aboriginal Australians in finding employment. In 2019, it was announced that Matera would join the AFL Tribunal in 2020. In May 2022, Matera was rushed to hospital after suffering a heart attack.

References

External links

* * *
Matera Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matera, Peter 1969 births Living people Australian people of Italian descent Sportspeople of Italian descent Indigenous Australians from Western Australia Norm Smith Medal winners South Fremantle Football Club players West Coast Eagles players West Coast Eagles premiership players Western Australian Sports Star of the Year winners All-Australians (AFL) Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees Western Australian State of Origin players Indigenous Australian players of Australian rules football John Worsfold Medal winners Australian rules footballers from Western Australia West Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees People from Wagin, Western Australia VFL/AFL premiership players