With the sport becoming more professional and media management crucial to a club’s branding, players are increasingly conscious of presenting a serious image.
But St Kilda court jester Stephen Milne says a few jokes are always necessary in what can be a stern environment.
“It’s crucial. Every club’s got their jokers and their fines. This year we’ve got a Barbie doll backpack and a doll for the fine of the week. You’ve got to carry them around. It’s pretty fun and every footy club is the same. It is always good to be around and have a few jokes,” Milne said.
Milne might proudly wear the tag of St Kilda’s clown, but don’t let that fool you in to thinking he is not taking his football seriously.
He has booted 12 goals, to sit just outside the top ten on the AFL’s goal kicking list but more importantly he improved his defensive pressure, which he says has been a priority for him in recent seasons.
“In the past, I haven’t been getting so many (tackles) but this year there has been a focus on it. So far it is going really well and I’m pretty fit at the moment. If I keep that going and keep getting my three or four a week and we keep getting our target hopefully we are going to win more games than we lose,” he said.
Milne is one of the common links between the 2004 and 2009 sides that enjoyed undefeated starts to the season but he says this year’s group is the more impressive of the two campaigns.
“I think we’re a lot stronger this year. I think we’ve got about 14 players who have played 100 games. We’re a lot more mature and there’s just a different feel about us,” he said.
While he may have matured, he still has a taste for the odd lairy bit of play, such as the freak goal he dribbled from the pocket just on half-time in last week’s win over Port Adelaide.
As has often been the case throughout his career, Milne’s flashy bit of play enthralled his own fans but infuriated those wearing the opposition colours.
“I practice those kicks a bit. I was lucky to get a bit of grip off the grass and it didn’t miss the post by much. I was lucky it went in. I got a bit of beer chucked at me by one of the Port supporters but it’s all in good fun,” he said.
“I love that about all the opposition fans. You get what you give and it’s all fun. It’s always better when you’re up by about 10 goals and beating Port over there because it is a very hard task to do.”
Another thing that hasn’t changed with Milne over the course of his AFL career is him leading the St Kilda song after a win. Watch the team link arms after a win and you are guaranteed to observe two things – Steven Baker pulling a strange face and Milne screaming at the top of his lungs.
He says celebrating the triumphs makes the hard work worthwhile.
“All week long you prepare and have all the meetings and opposition reports. You’ve got two hours on the weekend to try and beat the opposition. It’s a long week and after you have a win you want to sing the song,” he said.
“It only goes for about 30 seconds so you’ve got to make the most of it. I always try and start it off when we have a win and get the boys to sing as loud as they can.”
