Simon Madden (born 30 December 1957) 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 his entire 19-season career with the

Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed the Bombers or colloquially the Dons, is a professional Australian rules football club that plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the game's premier competition. The club was formed by the McCrac ...

from 1974 until 1992. Madden is one of the most decorated players in the club's history and widely regarded as one of the finest ruckmen to ever play the game.

Early life

Madden was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

; he attended primary school at St Christopher's in Airport West and had his secondary schooling at St. Bernard's College in

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 ...

, a school renowned for its sporting prowess. He then studied teaching at the Institute of Catholic Education (now the

Australian Catholic University Australian Catholic University (ACU) is a public university in Australia. It has seven Australian campuses and also maintains a campus in Rome. History Australian Catholic University was opened on 1 January 1991 following the amalgamation ...

). His younger brother

Justin Justin may refer to: People and fictional characters * Justin (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Justin (historian), Latin historian who lived under the Roman Empire * Justin I (c. 450–527) ...

played football for Carlton and later became a Victorian state politician.

AFL career

In all, he played 378 senior matches, the second-most by any Essendon player (behind

Dustin Fletcher Dustin Andrew Fletcher (born 7 May 1975) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who played his entire 23-season career for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is widely acknowledged as one of th ...

), and eighth-most in league history (behind

Brent Harvey Brent Harvey (born 14 May 1978), often known by his nickname "Boomer", is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the North Melbourne Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He holds the record for most matches played ...

, Michael Tuck,

Shaun Burgoyne Shaun Playford Burgoyne (born 21 October 1982) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Port Adelaide Football Club and Hawthorn Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). Burgoyne was the first Indigenous Austral ...

, Kevin Bartlett, Dustin Fletcher, Scott Pendlebury and Robert Harvey). In addition to playing in the ruck, Madden was a handy part-time forward, kicking 575 goals in his career, a club record that stood until it was broken in 2003 by full-forward

Matthew Lloyd Matthew James Lloyd (born 16 April 1978) is a former professional Australian rules footballer, who played for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). A highly decorated full-forward, Lloyd's AFL's honours include ...

. Madden won four Essendon best and fairest awards (1977, 1979, 1983 and 1984) and captained the side in the

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

and

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...

seasons. He played in the back-to-back premiership sides in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

and

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...

, winning 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 ...

for best on ground in the 1985 Grand Final. In 1986, Madden rejected an unheard-of offer for a 3-year contract totalling $550,000 (~$1.73 million in 2023 terms) by the eccentric Geoffrey Edelsten on behalf of the

Sydney Swans The Sydney Swans are a professional Australian rules football club based in Sydney, New South Wales. The men's team competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), and the women's team in the AFL Women's (AFLW). The Swans also field a Austral ...

, instead choosing to remain with Essendon for his entire career. Regarding the offer, Madden replied, "You can take the boy out of Essendon, but you can't take Essendon out of the boy." However, Madden estimated that, in 2009 dollars (when he was interviewed) and taking into account the cost of buying a house, etc., it was actually the equivalent of $4.4 million over three years. However, Madden claimed that he never regretted the decision. He was named in the

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 ...

on three occasions (1983, 1987 and 1988). Madden captained the Victorian interstate team in 1989–91, and in 1990 received the Simpson Medal for best on ground in the Victoria vs.

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 ...

match played in Perth. He was named in the ruck in Essendon's Team of the Century and named as the fifth-best player ever to play for the club in the " Champions of Essendon" list. After his playing days were over, Madden had a brief stint as ruck coach for Carlton. He was with the Blues for the

1993 season The 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 calendar advanced 24 hours to th ...

, in which they made the grand final but lost to Madden's former club, Essendon. He was president of the AFL Players' Association from 1985 until 1989.

Statistics

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1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; ...

, , 27 , , 6 , , 18 , , 8 , , 52 , , 8 , , 60 , , 28 , , , , 0 , , 3.0 , , 1.3 , , 8.7 , , 1.3 , , 10.0 , , 4.7 , , , , 0.0 , , 2 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

, , 27 , , 19 , , 37 , , 29 , , 138 , , 19 , , 157 , , 59 , , , , 29 , , 1.9 , , 1.6 , , 7.7 , , 1.1 , , 8.7 , , 3.3 , , , , 4.8 , , 0 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...

, , 27 , , 20 , , 28 , , 18 , , 123 , , 43 , , 166 , , 78 , , , , 86 , , 1.4 , , 0.9 , , 6.2 , , 2.2 , , 8.3 , , 3.9 , , , , 4.5 , , 3 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...

, , 27 , , 20 , , 33 , , 11 , , 234 , , 81 , , 315 , , 126 , , , , 378 , , 1.7 , , 0.6 , , 11.7 , , 4.1 , , 15.8 , , 6.3 , , , , 19.9 , , 25 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...

, , 27 , , 22 , , 40 , , 25 , , 199 , , 72 , , 271 , , 138 , , , , 301 , , 1.8 , , 1.1 , , 9.0 , , 3.3 , , 12.3 , , 6.3 , , , , 14.3 , , 7 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

, , 27 , , 23 , , 39 , , 31 , , 220 , , 106 , , 326 , , 158 , , , , 263 , , 1.7 , , 1.3 , , 9.6 , , 4.6 , , 14.2 , , 6.9 , , , , 11.4 , , 3 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, , 27 , , 21 , , 45 , , 27 , , 176 , , 95 , , 271 , , 111 , , , , 211 , , 2.1 , , 1.3 , , 8.4 , , 4.5 , , 12.9 , , 5.3 , , , , 10.0 , , 5 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

, , 27 , , 19 , , 36 , , 34 , , 135 , , 69 , , 204 , , 89 , , , , 236 , , 1.9 , , 1.8 , , 7.1 , , 3.6 , , 10.7 , , 4.7 , , , , 12.4 , , 7 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...

, , 27 , , 21 , , 49 , , 25 , , 142 , , 74 , , 216 , , 92 , , , , 230 , , 2.3 , , 1.2 , , 6.8 , , 3.5 , , 10.3 , , 4.4 , , , , 11.0 , , 7 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

, , 27 , , 26 , , 26 , , 16 , , 235 , , 156 , , 391 , , 179 , , , , bgcolor="b7e718", 812 , , 1.0 , , 0.6 , , 9.0 , , 6.0 , , 15.0 , , 6.9 , , , , 31.2 , , 22 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" , scope=row bgcolor=F0E68C ,

^# , , , , 27 , 24 , , 27 , , 17 , , 177 , , 137 , , 314 , , 151 , , , , 699 , , 1.1 , , 0.7 , , 7.4 , , 5.7 , , 13.1 , , 6.3 , , , , 29.1 , , 14 , - , scope=row bgcolor=F0E68C ,

^# , , , , 27 , 20 , , 19 , , 21 , , 163 , , 123 , , 286 , , 136 , , , , 322 , , 1.0 , , 1.1 , , 8.2 , , 6.2 , , 14.3 , , 6.8 , , , , 16.1 , , 11 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

, , 27 , , 23 , , 25 , , 11 , , 182 , , 112 , , 294 , , 114 , , , , 338 , , 1.1 , , 0.5 , , 7.9 , , 4.9 , , 12.8 , , 5.0 , , , , 14.7 , , 4 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

, , 27 , , 14 , , 9 , , 4 , , 85 , , 65 , , 150 , , 69 , , 12 , , 252 , , 0.6 , , 0.3 , , 6.1 , , 4.6 , , 10.7 , , 4.9 , , 0.9 , , 18.0 , , 1 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1988 1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the Internet—it was the year of the first well-known computer virus, the Morris worm, 1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United State ...

, , 27 , , 22 , , 31 , , 8 , , 183 , , 95 , , 278 , , 138 , , 27 , , 257 , , 1.4 , , 0.4 , , 8.3 , , 4.3 , , 12.6 , , 6.3 , , 1.2 , , 11.7 , , 16 , - ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

1989 1989 was a turning point in political history with the "Revolutions of 1989" which ended communism in Eastern Bloc of Europe, starting in Poland and Hungary, with experiments in power-sharing coming to a head with the opening of the Berlin W ...

, , 27 , , 25 , , 33 , , 16 , , 239 , , 81 , , 320 , , 138 , , 28 , , 350 , , 1.3 , , 0.6 , , 9.6 , , 3.2 , , 12.8 , , 5.5 , , 1.1 , , 14.0 , , 3 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

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 ...

, , 27 , , 23 , , 30 , , 16 , , 195 , , 6 , , 2616 , , 116 , , 22 , , 225 , , 1.3 , , 0.7 , , 8.5 , , 2.9 , , 11.3 , , 5.0 , , 1.0 , , 9.8 , , 4 , - ! 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 ...

, , 27 , , 23 , , 42 , , 15 , , 203 , , 71 , , 274 , , 122 , , 14 , , 209 , , 1.8 , , 0.7 , , 8.8 , , 3.1 , , 11.9 , , 5.3 , , 0.6 , , 9.1 , , 5 , - style="background-color: #EAEAEA" ! scope="row" style="text-align:center" ,

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 ...

, , 27 , , 7 , , 8 , , 2 , , 39 , , 18 , , 57 , , 21 , , 3 , , 28 , , 1.1 , , 0.3 , , 5.6 , , 2.6 , , 8.1 , , 3.0 , , 0.4 , , 4.0 , , 0 , - class="sortbottom" ! colspan=3, Career ! 378 ! 575 ! 334 ! 3120 ! 1491 ! 4611 ! 2063 ! 106 ! 5226 ! 1.5 ! 0.9 ! 8.3 ! 3.9 ! 12.2 ! 5.5 ! 0.9 ! 14.7 ! 139

Honours and achievements

Team * 2× VFL premiership player ():

* 4×

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 *

* 3×

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 ...

* 6× VFL Team of the Year:

* 4×

Crichton Medal The Crichton Medal is the name given to the best and fairest award for the Australian rules football team the Essendon Football Club. Since 1959 or 1960, it has been known officially as the W. S. Crichton Medal. The naming of the award is in hon ...

* 3×

Essendon leading goalkicker 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 ...

* Essendon captain: 1980–1981 * Essendon Team of the Century 1897-1996 *

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 ...

: 1996 Inductee * Simpson Medal: 1990 * E. J. Whitten Medal: 1990 * 5× State of Origin ( Victoria): 1983, 1984, 1989 (c), 1990 (c), 1991 (c)

Life After AFL

Madden has an extended background in education and worked as a teacher for 15 years, attaining the position of Vice Principal. Madden was President of the AFL Players' Association from 1985 to 1989. Madden became head coach of St. Bernards Old Collegians Football Club in 2005. He now spends a considerable amount of time in the classic rock band Better Late Than Never playing at local pubs and clubs with a group of long-term friends.

References

External links

* *
Profile on essendonfc.com.au
{{DEFAULTSORT:Madden, Simon Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees All-Australians (1953–1988) Essendon Football Club players Essendon Football Club premiership players Champions of Essendon Victorian State of Origin players 1957 births Living people Norm Smith Medal winners Crichton Medal winners Australian rules footballers from Melbourne People educated at St. Bernard's College, Melbourne E. J. Whitten Medal winners Australia international rules football team players VFL/AFL premiership players Australian Catholic University alumni