Not underrated, but overlooked. Who and why?

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Attempted Moustache said:
Similar to Bernie Quinlan mentioned in the OP, you don’t hear Garry Wilson’s name mentioned much these days. It’s possibly an old Fitzroy thing unfortunately.

The bloke was an absolute jet from go to woe during the 1970’s-80’s.

If a player was regularly putting up numbers like he did for a decade and a half today the media and fans would be genuflecting at his feet endlessly. Garry rarely rates a mention nowadays unfortunately.

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Good call what a gun he was. People forget how competitive Fitzroy were in the early 80's. Probably stiff not to play in the 83 Grand Final
 
Fitzroy and Footscray were pariahs in the 80s, the call on Quinlan and Wilson spot on. People talk about Matthews, I was a kid in the late 70s/early 80s and it was a toss up between Quinlan and Blight.

I'd add Doug Hawkins as a victim of his media career, 9 made him a clown.

As a player he was the best wingman of the 1980s, when GOAT contenders like Flower, Dipper etc bestrode the league.

Dougie used to destroy them all, incredible 1 on 1, superb skills, ran all day. Dipper tried to bash him, Flower couldn't keep up, our champs Millane and Barham weren't in the hunt. Better than Pritchard or Merv Neagle (another completely forgotten star), arguably the best wing ever.
 
Jack Titus was my first thought too. I doubt casual non-Tiger followers of the sport would even be aware of him.

Maybe Bill Hutchison. A HoF legend, but seldom the first mentioned in terms of club icons.

and imagine if Greg Williams wasn’t a three club player with a fairly common name
 

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ArdentEagle said:
Ashely McIntosh for mine.
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Him and Kemp all but forgotten these days but i feel posts get more recognition if you nominate players from other clubs, and i understand why. Who's going to listen to a Pue raving about Dick Condon?

The backline with McKena McIntosh and Jacovich was a nightmare.
 
Kelvin Templeton, Gary Dempsey maybe Scott Burns
 
Brad Sewell.

Always Hodge Mitchell and Lewis - Sewell was just as important in the midfield. Never liked the attention and criminally under-rated for mine.
 
Cyclops said:
Him and Kemp all but forgotten these days but i feel posts get more recognition if you nominate players from other clubs, and i understand why. Who's going to listen to a Pue raving about Dick Condon?

The backline with McKena McIntosh and Jacovich was a nightmare.
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Kemp is one who I had thought of. Super reliable player and I agree not given his due credit by the wider footy community.
 
I think everyone sorta recognises and agrees that Nathan Brown was a helluva player, and he rightfully gets accolades for how insanely dominant he was the year he broke his leg, but I think he gets forgotten about when talking about the best players of his era. He most definitely is one.

Edit: I'll also throw in Nick Dal Santo. An exceptional player that any team would want to have at his best, yet seems to always get overlooked in that Saints team. Had the same amount of All Australians as Lenny Hayes.
 

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Noah Anderson at Gold Coast. Gun player, but when people talk about Gold Coast mids it's always about Miller and Rowell, never see Anderson get much of a mention anywhere.

For us, Nick Smith. Was the best lockdown small defender in the AFL for a number of years. The likes of Milne and Betts would've found it tough against him
 
KGBeast said:
Kelvin Templeton, Gary Dempsey maybe Scott Burns
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KT was my first thought too.

In purely playing terms, John Longmire is thought of as 'the Swans coach' but people forget just how incredible a player he was too, especially pre-injury.
 
Shaun Rehn.

Arguably Adelaide’s most important player of all time. Easily its best ruckman. In the era of a ruckman play a kick behind the play, he’d judge and mark everything.

Played 6 games as a 19 year old towards the end of the Crows first season in 1991. All-Australian in 1994. ACL in 1995. ACL again in 1996. 1997 he famously ripped the giant knee brace off at half time of that prelim against the Bulldogs, premiership. 1998 premiership and All-Australian again. 1999 another ACL. Then a couple of seasons at the Hawks after three knee recons at the end.

A brilliant player and all-time great ruckman. Even after two knee reconstructions.
 
glengowan said:
Shaun Rehn.

Arguably Adelaide’s most important player of all time. Easily its best ruckman. In the era of a ruckman play a kick behind the play, he’d judge and mark everything.

Played 6 games as a 19 year old towards the end of the Crows first season in 1991. All-Australian in 1994. ACL in 1995. ACL again in 1996. 1997 he famously ripped the giant knee brace off at half time of that prelim against the Bulldogs, premiership. 1998 premiership and All-Australian again. 1999 another ACL. Then a couple of seasons at the Hawks after three knee recons at the end.

A brilliant player and all-time great ruckman. Even after two knee reconstructions.
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Yep, spot on.

And I'll throw Ben Hart into that category as well. Magnificent footballer, and often not mentioned when we reflect on the best defenders of the 1990's, but in my decade back 6 (probably with McKenna/Blakey, Jakovich, Wanganeen, SoS/Fletcher, Macleod)
 
Maybe more underrated than overlooked. I'm having trouble with the distinction. Earl Spalding. Over 200 games for Melbourne and Carlton, including 3 Grand Finals (could have been 4 if Stynes didn't run over the mark) and a pivotal part as CHF in the 95 Carlton flag team but most young people would probably never have heard of him in comparison to a lot of his teammates like Diesel and Kernahan.
 
Peter Foster, Brian Royal and Steve Wallis at Footscray in the 80’s-90’s. All top line players who probably aren’t remembered by non Bulldogs fans these days.
 
Touk Miller. Not really in the same echelon as a lot of the names mentioned here, but has been consistently excellent, propping up that midfield pretty much since his arrival up there.

Tom Rockliff at Brisbane.

Shane Edwards. For a bloke that was every bit as important as Cotchin, he's very rarely mentioned outside of Richmond supporters as central to their flags.
 
Attempted Moustache said:
Similar to Bernie Quinlan mentioned in the OP, you don’t hear Garry Wilson’s name mentioned much these days. It’s possibly an old Fitzroy thing unfortunately.

The bloke was an absolute jet from go to woe during the 1970’s-80’s.

If a player was regularly putting up numbers like he did for a decade and a half today the media and fans would be genuflecting at his feet endlessly. Garry rarely rates a mention nowadays unfortunately.

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Bingo!
 

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Not underrated, but overlooked. Who and why?

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