St Kilda’s latest Hall of Fame inductee Glenn Elliott believes he is a better person for the formative years he spent at the Saints; a period in his life the former star centreman says defined him as a person.
In nine seasons at Moorabbin, the 1974 best and fairest winner played 138 games with the Saints before becoming immersed in the administration side of sport, which has taken him to prominent CEO roles in the SANFL at North Adelaide and Glenelg, as well as with Adelaide United in the A-League.
But it is his time playing in the red, white and black at Linton Street that Elliott reflects most fondly on, a time in his life that helped mould him into the man he is today, and one of just 50 people in St Kilda’s history to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
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“You can’t spend as much time at a club and with a specific group of people and in my case probably nine years of it and not have it define you in some way as a person,” Elliott told saints.com.au on Saturday night.
“I think everybody that’s here tonight, whether they be the heroes from ’66 or all the players that have played over the years, the club certainly defines you in some way.
“I’m a better person for being at St Kilda footy club and I can’t give any higher compliment than that.
“I think it’s the ultimate association with the club. I enjoyed every facet and every minute I spent at Moorabbin.”
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A Simpson medal, for the best player on the ground when Victoria travelled to face Western Australia in 1976, sits alongside his best and fairest, and it could also be nestled in next to a premiership medallion had the Saints not narrowly fallen short in 1971.
“You don’t have regrets, but maybe if we kicked eight more points in 1971 I might have had a fonder memory (of my time at the club),” Elliott said.
“But there is a bit of a catch to that of course, if we won in ’71, Barry Breen would have still been part of the last premiership.”
One thing that has survived the test of time and something Elliott declares is proof football marriages can last, is the relationship with his wife which arose after their paths intertwined when he was leaving a reserves game in 1970.
“I was a disgruntled seconds player in ’70 and not happy with the coach for not picking me,” Elliott said.
“I’d played a reserves game and was on my way out and my wife to be at the time was coming in the turnstiles to watch the main game and I was a reserves playing sulking on the way out.
“So 46 years on, she’s testimony to the fact that football marriages can last.”
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