AS THE 2024 ‘Dads Day’ was winding down at IKON Park, Sam Walsh made a quip after seeing a photo of his dad Wayne trying to take a hanger on Brad Cripps.
“They’re just a bunch of big kids.”
Thoughts on that one, Wayne?
“Yeah, look, I’ll probably have to confirm.”
The double Sunday game for both AFL and VFL sides allowed this year’s Dads Day to take place on a Saturday, giving dads of players from all over the chance to head down and enjoy the festivities.
From line meetings to a combined lunch, the highlight was clearly the chance to get out and strut their stuff on IKON Park. It’s usually a time of day which is reserved for Jason Boyd to take things way too seriously (he didn’t disappoint), while Walsh couldn’t help himself at the prospect of attempting to sit on the shoulders of the skipper’s dad.
“I was just letting him know the Vic Country boys are tougher than the WA country boys!
“It’s good fun, always. I’ll pull up pretty sore tomorrow I reckon. It’s great to see the different fathers come through the Club, and away from the heat of battle on game day.
“I love how Carlton do it. They try and engage all of us in the footy club, which is pretty important: we spent a lot of time investing in it.”
In what is now the Walsh family’s sixth season as Blues, Wayne has lived and breathed this all before. At the other end of the spectrum was Braeden Lord, whose son Cooper has been a Carlton player for only six weeks.
Braeden was out of the state when Cooper was drafted, meaning he missed the tour of IKON Park the following day. His first taste of it left him overjoyed.
“They certainly rolled out the red carpet, which it feels like the Club has done for Coop ever since he got drafted. It brought to life everything that Cooper has been talking about with not only how incredibly deep and rich the resources are, but also how grateful and friendly everyone is to be involved with the Club.
“It was really nice that Patrick Cripps was the first to come across and chat with me. He’s a busy guy with a lot on, but that in itself was a really nice, genuine gesture to welcome a new parent to the Club. We’re really happy to be amongst some great people.
“To not only see the facilities, but also it was really beautiful to see the AFLW mixing in. You get to understand all the different layers within the Club: it’s not just about the physical facilities, but also the coaching, the management of players, and how they engage and interact with the AFLW side inside the Club.
“It’s a really cool and mature approach for developing great young men. It’s a really well-organised club, providing a lot of opportunity for grey-haired guys like myself to see their son have a lot of fun playing footy.”
