For over three decades, John Elliott has loomed large in Australian public life. Of his varied roles including President of the Federal Liberal Party and Chairman and CEO of Elders IXL, he rates the twenty-year presidency of his beloved Carlton Football Club as the most important. John Elliott is renowned for telling it like it is. In ‘Big Jack’ he is in fine form as he tells the story of his playing days, his appointment to the presidency of the Carlton Football Club, his successful reign at the club and the dramatic events that saw him deposed at the end of the 2002 season.

CONTENTS:
Acknowledgements ix. Prologue xi. Part 1: The Game. Chapter 1: Early days p3. Chapter 2: The Presidency p17. Chapter 3: Flying start – my first two years p24. Chapter 4: From VFL to AFL p42. Chapter 5: The corporate dollar p59. Chapter 6: The tail that wags the dog p82. Chapter 7: Successes and failures p99. Chapter 8: The best years p110. Chapter 9: 2002: how the wheels fell off p129. Chapter 10: The salary cap p145. Chapter 11: Mergers p154. Chapter 12: For the good of the game p164. Part 2: True tales. Chapter 13: Sporting life p185. Fosterising the Melbourne Cup p186. Racing with the Wales p188. Buckley’s chance p191. How Melbourne lost the Olympics p194. Moulamein on the map p195. Narizy p198. The anatomy of pigs p199. The battle of Britain p200. Tyson to Elliott at the Romsey end p204. Smoking p207. 250th game a knockout p209. Chapter 14: President’s lunches p211. Flying by the seat of her pants p212. The world’s greatest treasurer p214. Gilchrist in a spin p215. Octa has a go p217. A fine day for an archbishop p218. Perc sees red p220. A moonlight swim p222. Part 3: The greatest. Chapter 15: Characters of the game p227. Chapter 16: Greatest players of the VFL / AFL p246. Carlton’s coaches p249. Carlton’s greatest players p271. Index p287.

ILLUSTRATIONS (selected):
Between pages 174 and 175: With Stephen Kernahan, the captain of my Presidential Team and no.1 player, in the Carlton rooms at Optus Oval after another great win. The future president [as a baby]. In Chicago in 1970 with my daughter Caroline after the famous premiership comeback. The Old Carey ruck-rover and captain coming off the ground at half-time with his brother Richard. Graduating B.Com (Hons) from Melbourne University with Lorraine, bride-to-be. The victor of the Henry Jones IXL takeover and the Carlton premiership win of 1972. The Elliott men at a family barbecue … father Frank at right, with brothers, sons and nephews. Married to Amanda, 3 October 1987, a week after Carlton’s premiership win. Another rousing speech after Kernahan’s winning goal against North Melbourne secured Carlton the top spot on the ladder at the end of the 1987 home and away season. Amanda unfurling the 1987 premiership flag at Optus Oval before the opening game against Hawthorn, 1988. Savouring a finals win against Collingwood with Wayne Johnston, Best on Ground, on the front page of ‘The Sun’, 5/9/1988. In full song after beating Hawthorn in 1990 at Optus Oval. Sharing a joke with the Princess of Wales [Diana] at the first Foster’s Melbourne Cup, 1985. Captaining the 500 Club cricket team on the day Frank Tyson and Alan Connolly opened the bowling for the Lord’s Taverners against myself and Ron Evans; Other notables include Alan Stockdale, Alan Brown, John Lill, Dave Cowper, Jim Higgs, Paul Sheahan, John Bertrand and Gareth Andrews. Serving Lou Richards at a Carlton president’s lunch to settle a bet – Collingwood beat Carlton a fortnight before. The best Carlton team ever, players and committee [1995 Premiers]. Holding the 1987 premiership cup on Grand Final night with Carlton champion and great character Bruce ‘Bugsy’ Comben. With Wes Lofts and Richard Pratt singing the Carlton song at a VIP function. With Ron Casey at the Carbine Club Lunch in the week before the 1999 Grand Final. With former Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett. Affairs of state with John Howard in 1986. Honouring another bet, this time with Melbourne president Joseph Gutnick … $1000 to the Royal Children’s Hospital and the donning of a Melbourne FC jumper. Auctioning the Matildas Australian Women’s Soccer Team calendar with compere Eddie McGuire at the 500 Club pre-season football lunch. Kouta [Koutoufides] with ‘Pres’ at sponsor’s function. 250 games for Old Carey, 28 July 2001. On the MCG with the greatest team after the 1995 premiership win … coach David Parkin and committeeman Kevin Hall at left. Welcoming Denis Pagan as coach of Carlton Football Club. Daughter Alexandra’s drawing of Dad’s winning spirit. ‘Rubbery figure’ depiction of John Elliott.

NAME INDEX:
Gary Ablett. John Adams. Ian Aitken. Matthew Allan. Tom Alvin. Tony Anderson. Bob Ansett. Mark Arceri. Peter Armitage. Barry Armstrong. George Armstrong. Rod Ashman. Gary Ayres. Allen Aylett. Mark Bairstow. Darrel Baldock. Neil Balme. Ron Barassi. John Barnes. Peter Bartels. Kevin Bartlett. Ian Bayles. Peter Bell. Percy Bentley. Mark Bickley. John Birt. Simon Black. Wayne Blackwell. Malcolm Blight. Sir Henry Bolte. Peter Bosustow. Francis Bourke. Ken Boyd. Craig Bradley. Dermott Brereton. Wayne Brittain. Fraser Brown. Jimmy Buckley. Nathan Buckley. Rod Butterss. Barry Cable. John Cain junior. John Cain senior. Scott Camporeale. George Carey. Wayne Carey. Colin Carter. Clinton Casey. Ron Casey. Charles, Prince of Wales. Ang Christou. Matthew Clappe. Alister Clarkson. Dick Clay. John Coleman. Ian Collins. Bruce Comben. Alan Connolly. Ron Cook. Frank Costa. Russell Costello. Paul Couch. Colin Cowdrey. Bob Cowper. David Crawford. Peter Daicos. Neale Daniher. Terry Daniher. Bob Davis. Fred Davis. Peter Dean. Andrew Demetriou. Diana, Princess of Wales. Ian Dicker. Robert DiPierdomenico. Ross Ditchburn. Carl Ditterich. Brian Dixon. John Dorotich. Bruce Doull. Amanda Drummond Moray, see: Amanda Elliott. Ron D’Ullio. Jason Dunstall. Jack Dyer. Geoffrey Edelsten. Leanne Edelsten. Tony Eggleton. Alexandra Elliott. Amanda Elliott. Caroline Elliott. Frank Elliott. John Elliott. Lorraine Elliott. Matthew Elliott. Ross Elliott. Tom Elliott. Emulous (racehorse). Ron Evans. Graham ‘Polly’ Farmer. Brendan Fevola. Alan Fitcher. Mike Fitzpatrick. Debbie Flintoff-King. Robert Flower. Laurie Fowler. Lindsay Fox. Malcolm Fraser. Gus Froelich [Frohlich]. Ray Garby. Mike Gatacre. Adam Gilchrist. Sir James Gobbo. Peter Gordon. Kevan Gosper. Stephen Gough. Chris Grant. Keith Greig. John Gurrieri. Joseph Gutnick. Greg Hall. Kevin Hall. Aaron Hamill. Jack Hamilton. Bob Hammond. Ken Hands. Don Hanly. Mil Hanna. Brad Hardie. Wayne Harmes. George Harris. Royce Hart. Robert Harvey. Doug Hawkins. Gerard Healy. Adrian Hickmott. Jim Higgs. James Hird. Historic (racehorse). Garry Hocking. Athol Hodgetts. Arthur Hodgson. Matthew Hogg. Ted Hopkins. Ryan Houlihan. Howard Houston. Chooka Howell. Verdun Howell. Peter Hudson. Darren Hulme. Rex Hunt. Ken Hunter. Errol Hutchesson. Bill Hutchinson. Glen Jackovich. Liz Jackson. Wayne Jackson. Darren Jarman. Alex Jesaulenko. Ann Jesaulenko. Ian Johnson. Wayne Johnston. Dean Jones. Percy Jones. Ron Joseph. Paul Keating. Sam Kekovich. Paul Kelly. Bill Kelty. Dean Kemp. John Kennedy. Jeff Kennett. Neil Kerley. Stephen Kernahan. Laurie Kerr. Peter Kerr. Alan Killigrew. Joan Kirner. Peter Knights. Anthony Koutoufides. Tim Lane. Matthew Lappin. Ian Law. Justin Leppitsch. John Lill. Tony Lockett. Ian Loft. Wes Lofts. Colin Lovitt. Sir Kenneth Luke. Alastair Lynch. Garry Lyon. Allan McAlister. Eric McCutchan. Chris McDermott. Ranald MacDonald. Kevin McEnroe. Ian McEwen. Mick McGuane. Tony McGuinnes. Eddie McGuire. John McIntosh. Andrew McKay. David McKay. Guy McKenna. Peter McKenna. Corey McKernan. Andrew Mcleod. Mark Maclure. Graeme McMahon. Justin Madden. Simon Madden. Michael Malouf. Mick Malthouse. Hassa Mann. Glen Manton. Mick Martyn. Peter Matera. Bruce Mathieson. Leigh Matthews. Eric Mayer. Sir Robert Menzies. Roger Merrett. Bill Milroy. Albert Milsom. Chris Mitchell. Laurie Mithen. Tony Modra. Peter Motley. Muttiah Muralitharan. Fraser Murphy. Justin Murphy. Kevin Murray. Allan Myers. Narizy (racehorse). Sir Maurice Nathan. Sam Newman. Gordon Newton. John Nicholls. Peter Nixon. Ricky Nixon. Gordon Norris. Ross Oakley. Paddy O’Brien. Terry O’Connor. Stephen O’Reilly. Denis Pagan. Peter Pannam. David Parkin. Jenny Paul. Brad Pearce. John Platten. Andrew Plympton. Mark Porter. Jean Pratt. Richard Pratt. Matthew Primus. Bernie Quinlan. Warren Ralph. Brett Ratten. Peter Reith. David Rhys-Jones. Mark Ricciuto. Dean Rice. Ian Rice. Lou Richards. Barry Richardson. Graeme Richmond. Ian Robinson. Mark Robinson. Barry Robran. Paul Roos. Bob Rose. Marcus Rose. Graeme Samuel. Rowan Sawers. Peter Scanlon. Wayne Schimmelbusch. Brett Scholl. Alan Schwab. Don Scott. Dick Seddon. Bill Serong. Greg Sewell. Michael Sexton. David Shaw. Mike Sheahan. Paul Sheahan. Kevin Sheedy. Sergio Silvagni. Stephen Silvagni. Peter Sinn. Bobby Skilton. Patrick Smith. David Smorgon. Graham Smorgon. Sam Smorgon. Billy Snedden. Geoff Southby. Earl Spalding. Stewart Spencer. Tony Staley. Michael Standish. Trevor Steer. Bill Stephen. Sir Ninian Stephen. Ian Stewart. Alan Stockdale. Kerry Stokes. Barry Stones. Raman Subba Row. Charlie Sutton. Kevin Templeton. Len Thompson. Peter Thomson. Warren Tredrea. Kevin Trelfoil. Neil Tresize. Michael Tuck. Frank Tyson. John Valmorbida. George Varlamos. Jack Vipond. Steve Vizard. Noel Voigt. Michael Voss. Doug Wade. Terry Wallace. Dean Wallis. Robert Walls. Gavin Wanganeen. Keith Warburton. Peter Weinert. Richard Weisener. Rohan Welsh. Max Wenn. Lance Whitnall. Ted Whitten. Simon Wiggins. Mike Willesee. Greg Williams. Lloyd Williams. Caroline Wilson. Gary Wilson. Ian Wilson. Simon Wilson. John Winneke. Jerry Woinarski. John Worsfold. Roy Wright. Jack Wrout.

GENERAL INDEX:
Adelaide Football Club: general; v Carlton (1992) (1994 semi-final); v Essendon (1994 preliminary final). AFL: general; commission, appointments; competing with clubs; formation; game development; members; ‘Record’ see ‘Football Record’; salary cap; sale of merchandise; wage negotiations. AFL Park, Waverley see: VFL Park, Waverley. AFL Publishing Pty Ltd. Allied Lyons. Australia-USSR Business Cooperation Committee. Australian Formula One Grand Prix. Bellfield Football Club versus Old Carey. Bert Numa Room. Brisbane Football Club: general; Fitzroy merged with; v Carlton (1989), (1995 qualifying final), (1999 qualifying final), (2000), (2000 semi-final), (2001), (2003). Burnie Football Club. Carey Baptist Grammar School. Carlton and United Breweries. Carlton Cricket and Football Social Club. Carlton Cricket Club.

Carlton Football Club: general; best team; bid for Olympic Games (1956), committee personal changes; committee structure; games at Docklands Stadium (2002), Optus Oval: development, Elliott Stand, guaranteed number of games, Legends Stand, naming, no smoking policy, security of tenure, see also Princes Park; president’s lunches; President’s Men; proposal to play away games in Sydney; proposed mergers with: North Melbourne, St Kilda; supports retention of Grand Final at MCG; v Adelaide (1992), (1994 semi-final); v Brisbane (1989), (1995 qualifying final), (1999 qualifying final), (2000), (2000 semi-final), (2001), (2003); v Collingwood (1970 Grand Final), (1979 Grand Final), (1984 semi-final), (1988 qualifying final), (1988 semi-final), (1989), (1992), (1994), (1995), (1999), (1999, millennium), (2000), (2002); v Essendon (1989), (1993), (1993 Grand Final), (1994 qualifying final), (1995), (1999 home and away), (1999 preliminary final), (2000 home and away), (2000 preliminary final), (2001); v Fitzroy (1989), (1992), (1993); v Footscray (1989), (1991); v Fremantle (1999); v Geelong (1989), (1994 semi-final), (1995 home and away), (1995 Grand Final); v Hawthorn (1984 qualifying final), (1986 semi-final), (1986 Grand Final), (1987 Grand Final), (1988 semi-final), (1989), (1993), (1995), (2000); v Melbourne (1987 preliminary final), (1988 preliminary final), (1989), (1994 qualifying final), (1995), (2000 qualifying final); v North Melbourne (1985), (1987), (1987, London), (1989), (1995 preliminary final), (1999 Grand Final), (2002); v Port Adelaide (2002); v Richmond (1949), (1972 Grand Final), (1973 Grand Final), (1989), (1992), (1995), (2001 semi-final); v St Kilda (195-), (1989), (1995); v Sydney (1986 qualifying final), (1989), (1990), (1995); v West Coast (1980), (1993), (1995), (1999 elimination final), (2001); v Western Bulldogs (1999), (2002).

Carlton One. Caulfield Cup. Centralised wage bargaining. Channel Seven. Club finances. Club presidents: general; meetings. Colonial Stadium see: Docklands Stadium. Commerce Society: Melbourne University; Inter-faculty football match. Committee for Melbourne. Corporate Affairs Commission. Courage Brewery. Cox Plate. Docklands Stadium: general; finance; option for Carlton to move; St Kilda at; seating. Draft system. Elders IXL: general; formation. Elliott Stand. ES&A Bank. Essendon Football Club: general; v Adelaide (1994, preliminary final); v Carlton (1989), (1993 Grand Final), (1993 home and away), (1994 qualifying final), (1995), (1999), (1999 preliminary final), (2000 home and away), (2000 preliminary final), (2001), v Western Bulldogs (2000). Final eight system. Fitzroy Football Club: merged with Brisbane; proposed merger with North Melbourne; v Carlton (1989), (1992), (1993). ‘Football Record’. Footscray Football Club: v Carlton (1989), (1991), see also: Western Bulldogs. Fosters Lager: general; sponsorship of Melbourne Cup. Fremantle Football Club: v Carlton (1999). Game development. Geelong Football Club: v Carlton (1989), (1994 semi-final), (1995 home and away), (1995 Grand Final); v Richmond (1995 preliminary final). Golden Slipper. Grand Prix. Gridiron football. Hawthorn Football Club: and formation of AFL; move to MCG; move to Waverley; proposed merger with Melbourne; v Carlton (1984 qualifying final), (1986 semi-final), (1986 Grand Final), (1987, Grand Final, Carlton), (1988 semi-final), (1989), (1993), (1995), (2000). Henry Jones IXL: taken over; takeovers. John Nicholls Room. Kangaroos, see: North Melbourne. Kardinia Park. Legends Stand. Lords Taverners. Lou Richards medal. McKinsey and Co. Melbourne Cricket Club. Melbourne Cricket Ground: AFL legal requirements; Hawthorn moves to; no smoking policy. Melbourne Cup, sponsorship. Melbourne Football Club: proposed merger with Hawthorn; v Carlton ((1987 preliminary final), (1988 preliminary final), (1989), (1994 qualifying final), (1995), (2000 qualifying final). Melbourne University. Merchandising. Mergers, possibilities canvassed. Moulamein Race Club. North Melbourne Football Club: finances; and formation of AFL; proposed merger with Carlton; proposed merger with Fitzroy; v Carlton (1985), (1987), (1987 London), (1990), (1995 preliminary final), (1999 Grand Final), (2002). Old Carey Football Club: general; v Bellfield; v Old Geelong Grammarians. Old Geelong Grammarians FC v Old Carey. Olympic Games: CFC bid for; Melbourne’s bid for 1996 games. One-percenters. Optus Oval: development; Elliott Stand; Legends Stand; guaranteed number of games; naming; no smoking policy; security of tenure, see also: Princes Park. Osteomyelitis. Oval (cricket ground, London). Pig’s anatomy (‘pig’s arse’ expression). Players’ Association: general; funding. Port Adelaide Football Club: admission to AFL; v Carlton (2002). Pre-season competition. Presidents, see: Club presidents. President’s lunches, see: Carlton Football Club, president’s lunches. President’s men. Princes Park, see also: Optus Oval. Punt Road Oval. Regimental March (racehorse). Richmond Football Club: and formation of AFL; move to MCG; v Carlton (1949), (1972 Grand Final), (1989), (1992), (1995), (2001 semi-final); v Geelong (1995 preliminary final). St Kilda Football Club: at Docklands Stadium; move to Waverley; proposed merger with Carlton; v Carlton (195-), (1989), (1995). Salary cap: general; and Trade Practices Act 1974. Sale of AFL merchandise. Sefton (conference centre), meeting of club presidents. Smoking. Sports writers. Success factors, for a football club. Sydney Swans Football Club: general; v Carlton (1986 qualifying final), (1989), (1990), (1995). Television coverage. Telstra Dome, see: Docklands Stadium. Trade Practices Act 1974, and salary caps. Unofficial selection committee. VFL Park, Waverley: general; closure; home ground for Hawthorn and St Kilda; proposed as venue for Grand Final. Victoria Park. Victorian Football League: general; professionalisation; tribal appeal. Wage bargaining. West Coast Eagles Football Club: v Carlton (1989), (1993), (1995), (1999 elimination final), (2001). Western Bulldogs Football Club: finances; tenants at Optus Oval; v Carlton (1999), (2002); v Essendon (2000), see also: Footscray. Western Oval, see: Whitten Oval. Western Ring Road. Whiten Oval. Wizard Cup pre-season competition. Women, invited to president’s lunches. Woorooma. Woorooma Sports and Recreation Club. Zoning.