Tony Modra

Tony Modra
Personal information
Full name	Anthony Dale Modra
Date of birth	(1969-03-01) 1 March 1969
Original team	West Adelaide (SANFL)
Height/Weight	188 cm / 95 kg
Playing career1
Years	Club	Games (Goals)
1992-1998 1999-2001 Total -	Adelaide Fremantle	118 (440) 47 (148) 165 (588)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of 2001 season.
Career highlights
All Australian selection 1993, 1997 AFL Mark of the Year 1993, 1997, 2000 AFL Goal of the Year 1995 Adelaide Leading Goalkicker 1993-97 Fremantle Leading Goalkicker 1999 AFL Coleman Medallist 1997 (84) Adelaide All-time Leading Goalkicker (440)

Anthony 'Tony' Dale Modra (born 1 March 1969) is a former Australian rules footballer who represented Adelaide and Fremantle in the Australian Football League. Known for his spectacular marking ability in the full forward position, Modra had the physical strength and size to match the best opposition full backs in the competition.

AFL career

Adelaide career (1992–1998)

After being recruited from West Adelaide in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL), Modra began his AFL career later than most players at 23 years of age. At first, his potential at full forward was overshadowed by senior player Scott Hodges who had a reputation as a prolific goal kicker in the SANFL with Port Adelaide Football Club, having broken the record for most goals in a season in 1990 when he kicked 153. Modra played a handful of games in his debut season of 1992, without making a great impact.

At the start of 1993, an injury to Hodges led to Modra's inclusion at full forward with Adelaide. Modra was an instant success, kicking 10 goals in the opening round against Richmond at Football Park and finishing the year as runner up to Geelong's Gary Ablett Sr. in the Coleman Medal with 119 goals in the Home and Away season, kicking an additional 10 in 3 finals.

Both the Crows and Modra had less successful seasons in 1994 through to 1996, although Modra topped the club goalkicking each year.

In 1997, Modra won the Coleman Medal for the most goals in the season, and was also selected in the AFL All-Australian team. However a torn Anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained during a marking contest in the preliminary final caused Modra to miss the Crows' first premiership win when they defeated St Kilda in the Grand Final.

After returning from the knee injury 10 months later in 1998 he failed to regain form and was not considered for the 1998 AFL Grand Final. He was thus one of the few leading Crows players who did not receive a premiership medallion in either of the Crows premiership years of 1997 and 1998.

Modra's aerial ability was unsurpassed in his prime, and he was nominated for Mark of the Year on numerous occasions, winning the award in 1993, 1997 and 2000.

Fremantle career (1999–2001)

Adelaide traded Modra to Fremantle for the 1999 AFL season. By the middle of the 2001 AFL season sore knees forced him to retire from the AFL at 32 years of age. His career games tally finished at 165 games for 588 goals.

Post AFL career

Since 2003, Modra has worked as a cattle farmer on his property at Waitpinga, near Victor Harbor.^[1][2] He resumed playing local football for Encounter Bay in the Great Southern Football League. Currently Modra is playing for the Prince Alfred Old Collegians Football Club, alongside old team mate Mark Ricciuto in division 4 of the South Australian Amateur Football League. He also plays in charity games such as the West End Slowdown and can still take huge marks. He also plays cricket for the Encounter Bay Cricket Club.

Modra kicked 10 goals against Lucindale on 30 June 2006. Keith won by 119 points.^{[citation needed]}

In his first senior Premiership since he was 21, Modra kicked 8 goals in Keith's win over Penola in the KNTFL Grand Final played at Naracoorte on 15 September 2007. Final scores Keith 19.8 (122) defeated Penola 10.10 (70)^{[citation needed]}

Tony Modra being interviewed after the State of Origin Slowdown charity match between SA and Vic at the Adelaide Oval on 3 October 2011

In May 2011, it was reported that Modra was considering a return to the AFL as a coach with Adelaide.^[1]

On 3 October 2011 Modra, along with other former AFL and SANFL stars such as Andrew and Darren Jarman, Gavin Wanganeen, Mark Ricciuto, Ben Hart, Mick Martyn, Brendan Fevola, Matthew Lloyd and Dermott Brereton played in the State of Origin Slowdown match at the Adelaide Oval between South Australia and Victoria. The match was played for charity for the Little Heroes Foundation and saw SA run out winners 17.10 (112) to Victoria's 17.9 (111) on a goal 20 seconds from the final siren by Darren Jarman. Despite being 42 years old and what many consider past their prime for a footballer, Modra showed he had lost none of the high flying ability that wowed Crows and Dockers fans for a decade.

References

External links

• Tony Modra's statistics from AFL Tables