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Sam Newman

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Not to be confused withSam Newman (footballer, born 1901).

Sam Newman
Personal information
Full name John Noel William Newman
Nickname(s) Sam, Fossil, Foss, Sammy
Date of birth (1945-12-22)22 December 1945(age 78)
Place of birth Geelong,Victoria
Original team(s) Geelong Grammar School
Height 189 cm (6 ft 2 in)[1][2][3]
Weight 94 kg (207 lb)[1]
Position(s) Ruck, forward
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1964–1980 Geelong 300 (110)
Representative team honours
Years Team Games (Goals)
Victoria 8 (?)
1Playing statistics correct to the end of 1980.
Career highlights
Sources:AFL Tables,AustralianFootball.com

John Noel William"Sam"Newman(born 22 December 1945) is a formerAustralian rules footballerwho played for theGeelong Football Clubin theVictorian Football League(VFL).

A talented and athletic player who served his apprenticeship underGraham "Polly" Farmer,Newman became Geelong's mainruckmanafter Farmer departed at the end of 1967. He overcame a number of serious injuries during his career to become the first Geelong player to reach 300 senior VFL games.

After retiring in 1980, Newman served as a specialist ruck coach at various AFL clubs and had a notable media career, particularly with Melbourne-based radio station3AWand theNine Networkas a panel member ofThe Footy Show,one of the network's most popular and often controversial programs.

Early life

[edit]

Newman attendedGeelong Grammar School,where his father was a teacher.[4][5]

He made his debut for Geelong in 1964 when he was 18 years old.[6]Early in his time at Geelong he acquired the nickname "Sam", by which he is now usually known.[7]

Football career

[edit]

After playing five reserves games forGeelongat the end of1963,Newman was selected for his senior debut in Round 3 of the1964 VFL seasonagainstFitzroyatBrunswick Street Oval.During the first semi-final againstCollingwoodin 1967, Newman suffered a serious injury which forced surgeons to remove part of his kidney. He was also selected as anAll-Australianplayer in 1969. He played for the Victorian state team eight times.

1980was Newman's last season as a VFL footballer. In Round 4 againstNorth MelbourneatArden Street Oval,he kicked five goals playing as centre half-forward, four of those in the last quarter, in a 37-point win. Geelong coachBill Gogginpraised his former teammate after the match: "He is such an inspiration to the players. They have told me that just having him out there with them gives everyone a lift".[8]Newman reached his 300th senior VFL game in Round 20 against Collingwood atKardinia Park.[9]Although he had a quiet game, the Cats achieved an 18-point win. NOTE: Some time after the end of Newman's playing career, certain games were not recognised as official VFL/AFL matches and hence were removed from players' game tallies.

In 2002, he was inducted into theAustralian Football Hall of Fame.[10]

In December 2005, Newman was appointed asruckcoach for theMelbourne Football Clubto mentor players such asJeff White,Mark JamarandPaul Johnson.

On 6 July 2010, Newman played in a charity match playing for Victoria in the annualE. J. Whitten Legends Game.He kicked four goals from four kicks and threemarksto be namedbest on ground,despite his team losing to the All Stars by seven points.

Media career

[edit]

Newman joined radio station3AWas a football commentator in 1981 and continued with the station until the end of the 1999 season. He also appeared onWorld of SportonChannel 7for seven years from 1981 to 1987 and had a column inThe Sun News-Pictorialnewspaper during the late 1980s.

Newman joined theNine Networkin 1989, appearing on a sports segment onIn Melbourne TodaywithErnie SigleyandDenise Drysdale.In 1992 he was a reporter onMelbourne Extra,a short-lived local current affairs show.[11]He was a panel member ofThe Sunday Footy Showfrom 1993 to 1998.

Newman was onThe Footy Show(AFL) from when it first aired in 1994 until 2018 on the Nine Network.[12]He also appeared on the Sunday sports showAny Given Sundayin 2005, and co-hosted the short livedSam and The FatmanwithPaul Vautin.On the radio stationTriple M,Newman previewed Friday night and Saturday afternoon matches. He formerly provided special comments during AFL games on Triple M, as well as 3AW. From April 2010, he was part of theMelbourne Talk Radiolineup, providing opinion and participating in talkback between 9.00 am and 9.30 am, during the Steve Price breakfast program. Newman quit the station in January 2012, after the breakfast producer censored Newman's profanity.[13]

In February 2018, he joined apodcastwith formerHerald Sunchief football writerMike Sheahanand former St Kilda coachGrant Thomas,entitledSam, Mike and Thomo.The podcast aired once weekly and covered all trending topics, with some AFL commentary. In March 2019 it was announced by Newman on social media that the podcast would be discontinued as he was perceived to make fun of transgender people on a prior episode of the podcast. However, in August he revived the podcast, starring Sheahan and former VFL footballerDon Scott,entitledSam, Mike & Don, You Cannot Be Serious.[14]It aired with this name until June 2020, when Sheahan quit for a second time due to the fallout of comments made by Scott about former AFL footballerNicky Winmar.It was then renamed toYou Cannot Be Serious.[15]

In December 2018,Eddie McGuireannounced that Newman had signed a new multi-year deal with Nine; however,The Footy Show,of which Newman had been a part of with McGuire since the show started in March 1994, was replaced by a football show in a new format in 2019. Newman and McGuire were meant to host fourFooty Show"specials" in 2019, but upon it being announced in May 2019 thatThe Footy Showwould no longer be aired, this was cancelled.

In June 2020, Newman announced that he would no longer appear on the Nine Network.

In March 2023, Sam Newman announced on theYou Cannot Be Seriouspodcast with Don Scott that their podcast had reached 10 million downloads on Podbean.[16]

Controversies

[edit]

Newman has regularly been a controversial figure during his media career, with some of his most controversial incidents onThe Footy Showincluding:

  • Wearingblackfaceto impersonate legendary Indigenous AFL footballerNicky Winmarin 1999, after Winmar did not attend a scheduled appearance on the program[17]
  • Having his trousers pulled down byShane Crawfordlive on-air in 2001[18]
  • Hitting an unsuspectingDavid Schwarzwith a pie in the face during an appearance onThe Footy Show,with Schwarz responding by shoving Newman to the ground
  • Manhandling and groping a lingerie-clad mannequin with journalistCaroline Wilson's face attached to it in 2008, in response to the way Wilson was dressed onFooty Classified.Newman was suspended by the Nine Network after the incident
  • Describing five female directors of AFL clubs as "liars and hypocrites" after they complained about Newman's mannequin skit, leading one of those directors,Susan Alberti,to sue the Nine Network for $220,000
  • Smoking abongon-air in 2012 after the AFL banned marijuana as a game-day substance; the substance in the bong was later revealed to be tea leaves
  • In 2013, following theAdam Goodesbooing sagainvolving him asking for a girl to be ejected for racial abuse for calling him anapeand his traditional spear-throwing celebration later on in response to crowd hostility, Newman defended the rights of fans to continue booing as a show of disapproval for Goodes' actions, including a perception that his approach in dealing with the Collingwood fan who called him an ape was heavy-handed.[19][20]Newman, after the subsequent spear-throwing celebration, said onThe Footy Show:

    From one Australian to another Australian – I’m an Australian so is Adam Goodes – Adam you’re not important as you think you are and you take yourself far too seriously.

    If you’re going to provoke people by the gesture of spear-throwing at a crowd, you better not be surprised if you get what you wish for and that’s a reaction.

    Unfortunately you’re not well-enough equipped to deal with fracas and the saga that you’ve caused. You’re just not capable of dealing with it, hence the fact you’ve gone into hiding, you’re not playing anymore.

    It is on you as anAustralian of the Yearto unite and placate people, not to divide and be a provocateur.

    How about the condescending nature of people who say if you’re an AFL fan and you go to the football and you boo Adam Goodes you’re a racist. How gratuitously stupid is that? I would suggest that the people boo Adam Goodes because he has turned their game into a political forum and people go to the football to get away from everything as a release, as an outlet and they don’t want to have to put up with a political statement.[21]

In 2019, Newman tweeted, "Criticizing someone from another race - doesn’t make you a racist. The groveling doco by Sharkshit [sic] Productions ‘The Final Quarter’, should be ‘The Last Straw’. Adam Goodes initially was booed for taunting Carlton fans. Racist? So be it. #racism #fakenews "[22][23]In 2023, Newman also commented regarding the historical booing ofAdam Goodesfrom a decade prior, saying: "Adam Goodes was booed because he pretended to throw a spear at the Carlton cheer squad after the Swans were beating them by 10 goals at half-time and wondered why people, people get booed on the football field, not because of their skin colour, but because of things they do."[24]

  • DescribingNFLdrafteeMichael Samas "annoyingly gratuitous" in 2014 after the openly homosexual player kissed his boyfriend on live television on being drafted to the NFL[25]
  • Making remarks aboutMitch Clark's depression issues in 2015
  • Referring to transgender celebrityCaitlyn Jenneras "he" and "it" in 2017[26]
  • Staging a silent protest and refusing to speak throughout an episode in 2017 after producers refused to allow him to dress up as a woman in response to two senior AFL executives being exposed as having had affairs with junior staffers; the Nine Network responded by takingThe Footy Showoff air for four weeks, sackingCraig Hutchisonas host, and replacing him withEddie McGuire[27]
  • Ranting about theAFL Commission's decision to publicly support the "yes vote" in theAustralian Marriage Law Postal Survey,which would pave the way for legalising same-sex marriage[26]

In June 2020, Newman arrived at a mutual agreement with the Nine Network to resign from the network after he stated in a podcast that whileGeorge Floyddied as a consequence of police brutality, Floyd's extensive criminal record meant he was a "piece of shit".[28]

The following week, Newman engaged in a conversation withDon ScottandMike Sheahanon the podcast in which they cast doubt that Nicky Winmar's famous jumper raise in 1993 was about Winmar responding to racism, with Scott and Sheahan instead suggesting that they believed it was to signify a "gutsy" effort. Winmar and photographer Wayne Ludbey took legal action against Newman, Scott and Sheahan, alleging defamation, with the parties reaching an agreement during mediation involving a formal apology and an undisclosed donation to an Indigenous charity.[29]Newman later said in an interview with sports journalistTony Jonesthat the fine/donation amounted to $100,000, which had previously been reported byThe Guardian.[30][31]

Newman's controversies continued even after being sacked from the Nine Network.

  • In November 2020, Newman described the newly electedU.S. PresidentJoe Bidenas "mentally retarded and has special needs" onTwitter.[32]
  • On a podcast episode from 27 July 2023, Newman stated that anyone voting for the "Yes" vote regardingThe Indigenous Voice to Parliamentshould be embarrassed. He commented, "I don't think there's a hell of a lot of Indigenous history to learn... They don't have a history."[33]
  • In September 2023, in the weeks leading up to the2023 AFL Grand Final,Newman encouraged his podcast listeners tobooor sarcastically slow-clap in response to the "Welcome to Country",a ceremony usually undertaken by Indigenous representatives during significant public occasions, calling it" irrelevant "and" unnecessary ". Newman's comments were widely condemned by the broader community, including AFL CEOGillon McLachlanand Victorian PremierDan Andrews,[34][35][36]and the preliminary finals matches held in the immediate wake of Newman's comments saw the Welcome to Country ceremonies enthusiastically embraced by stadium audiences in a rebuke to Newman's plea.[37][38]Newman would later claim in an interview that this call was "provocative" and "tongue-in-cheek" and, when pressed, implied that he himself would not boo the Welcome to Country.[39]
  • Newman's calls to action (such as calls to boo Welcome to Country and his fallacious comments on Winmar) have been considered as racist and a form ofdog-whistling.On the other hand, Newman has consistently talked of deep respect and appreciation for his main mentor and personal hero, Aboriginal playerPolly Farmer.[40][41][42]

Motorsport

[edit]

Newman had a brief career in motor racing. He began racing in1998in Class C of theAustralian GT Production Car Championship,where he finished in 10th place in aFord EL Falcon XR8.In the1999 Australian GT Production Car Championshiphe raced aHolden Vectra GLto third place in Class D driving forGibson Motorsport.He then went on to finish in fourth place in Class D at the1999 Poolrite GTP Bathurst Showroom Showdowndriving with Melinda Price. He drove the Vectra to fifth place in Class E in the2000 Australian GT Production Car Championship.He also raced aV8 Supercarat thesupport racesat theAustralian Grand Prixin the same year. Running aGibson MotorsportpreparedVS Commodore,he finished 25th, 24th and 23rd in the three races across the weekend.

In 2001, Newman raced aFerrari 360 Challengefor Prancing Horse Racing as a teammate to multiple Australian champions (in various categories) andBathurst 1000winnerJohn Bowein the2001 Australian Nations Cup Championship,finishing in 14th place. In the2002 Championship,Newman acquitted himself well and improved to finish 10th in the series

Newman's brightest moment in motor racing was when he put his Ferrari on pole position for the2002 Sandown 500.[43]Newman benefited in the Top 10 shootout for pole as he was the first driver on the track. Before the next driver went out, the rain came down and Newman ended up over 6 seconds faster than the 2nd placedPorsche 996 GT3of racing legendJim Richards.Newman and co-driver Scott Shearman went on to finish the race 6th outright.[44]

With PHR Scuderia selling the 360 Challenge toMark Coffey Racingat the end of 2002, Newman defected to Team Lamborghini for the2003 Australian Nations Cup Championshipand, driving theV12Lamborghini Diablo SVRandGTRmodels. He started the season in the later model GTR in Nations Cup Group 1 as team mate to another multiple Australian racing championPaul Stokell(who would win the 2002 NC title), but was bumped to the older Group 2 Diablo SVR whenV8 SupercarsdriverAnthony Trattre-joined the team from Round 3 atWakefield Parkand as a pro-driver was given the newer, faster car. Despite troubles, mostly in the SVR, Newman improved to finish 7th outright in the championship. He finished the series in 9th place in Group 1 and 3rd place in Group 2.[45]Although he drove a full season for Team Lamborghini in 2003 and that Tratt had left the team to concentrate on his other racing, Newman wasn't given a drive in the2003 Bathurst 24 Houras the team only entered one car and signed race driversLuke Youlden,Peter Hackettand highly ratedDanishdriverAllan Simonsento join Stokell for the race.

After leaving motor racing at the end of 2003, Newman would again race in the 2009 and 2010 Mini Challenge Australia championships, both times at the Albert Park round in the Uber Star Celebrity Car.

Career results

[edit]

Results sources from:[46]

Season Series Position Car Team
1998 Australian GT Production Car ChampionshipClass C 10th Ford EL Falcon XR8 Ross Palmer Motorsport
1999 Australian GT Production Car ChampionshipClass D 3rd Holden Vectra GL Gibson Motorsport
2000 Australian GT Production Car ChampionshipClass E 4th Holden Vectra GL Gibson Motorsport
2001 Australian Nations Cup Championship 14th Ferrari 360 Challenge Prancing Horse Scuderia
2002 Australian Nations Cup Championship 10th Ferrari 360 Challenge Prancing Horse Scuderia
2002 Australian Nations Cup ChampionshipGroup 2 2nd Ferrari 360 Challenge Prancing Horse Scuderia
2003 Australian Nations Cup Championship 7th Lamborghini Diablo SVR
Lamborghini Diablo GTR 		Team Lamborghini Australia
2003 Australian Nations Cup ChampionshipGroup 1 9th Lamborghini Diablo GTR Team Lamborghini Australia
2003 Australian Nations Cup ChampionshipGroup 2 3rd Lamborghini Diablo SVR Team Lamborghini Australia
2010 Mini Challenge Australia 31st Mini Cooper S BMW Australia

Personal life

[edit]

Newman lives inDocklands,Melbourne.[10]In 2002, he released a compilation album entitledI Do My Best Work After Midnight,consisting of 13 selections from other artists, as well as two songs sung by himself: "Witchcraft"and"I've Got You Under My Skin".[47]In 2008 he was treated forprostate cancer,[48][49]and he allowed Channel Nine's program60 Minutesto film the operation.[50]Following the operation, he was cleared of the cancer.[51]

He has been married four times. His last wife, Amanda Brown, died aged 50 in May 2021 despite Newman trying to revive her usingCPRfor 20–30 minutes.[52][53]The two had been together for 20 years, only getting married in late 2020, about six months before her death.[54][55]Newman recorded an emotional tribute to his late wife on his podcastYou Cannot Be Serious.[53]

References

[edit]
  1. ^abAustralian Football – Sam Newman
  2. ^AFL Tables – Sam Newman – Stats – Statistics
  3. ^Herald Sun – The modern ruckman must be over 200cm tall to compete in Land of the Giants
  4. ^Geelong Grammar teacher reflects on career | ABC 7:30 Report Transcript
  5. ^"The Newman Club".Geelong Grammar School.Retrieved26 September2014.
  6. ^AFL – It's 50 years of footy with Geelong great and TV personality John 'Sam' Newman
  7. ^"The Trouble With Sam".Australian Story.Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 19 November 2018.Retrieved16 January2019.
  8. ^"Newman boots five for Geelong over North".The Canberra Times.Vol. 54, no. 16, 278. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 20 April 1980. p. 26.Retrieved29 July2021– via National Library of Australia.
  9. ^"MILESTONES: ONE GOAL LEFT FOR CATS' 'SAM'".The Football Record.16 August 1980. p. 7.
  10. ^abWham, bam, thank you Sam!, The Advertiser, 20 March 2009
  11. ^Perkin, Corrie (7 June 1999)."Melbourne would be boring without him".The Age.Retrieved7 December2020.
  12. ^Moran, A; Keating, C.The A to Z of Australian Radio and Television.Scarecrow Press. p. 168.
  13. ^Drill, Stephen (25 January 2012)."Sam Newman quits troubled station MTR overuse of F-word on air".Herald Sun.Retrieved25 January2012.
  14. ^"Heraldsun.com.au | Subscribe to the Herald Sun for exclusive stories".Archived fromthe originalon 11 June 2020.
  15. ^"Mike Sheahan quits his podcast with Sam Newman and apologises after Nicky Winmar racism furore".30 June 2020.
  16. ^"Sam Newman and Channel 9 part ways following recent backlash".News.com.au. 19 June 2020.Retrieved19 June2020.
  17. ^"Australian-dream".21 September 2018.Retrieved4 July2020.
  18. ^"Shane Crawford feared losing captaincy after infamous Sam Newman dacking incident".Wide World of Sports. 29 April 2020.Retrieved4 July2020.
  19. ^Sheehan, Paul (30 July 2015)."The Adam Goodes fire was lit by his conduct, not his race".The Sydney Morning Herald.Sydney, NSW.Retrieved1 August2015.
  20. ^"Adam Goodes booing: Gillon McLachlan calls for footy to get its respect back as captains of all 18 AFL clubs make plea to fans".Herald Sun.Melbourne, VIC. 31 July 2015.Retrieved1 August2015.
  21. ^"Sam Newman goes whack on 'groveling' Adam Goodes documentary | Sporting News Australia".www.sportingnews.com.10 June 2019.Retrieved6 May2024.
  22. ^https://twitter.com/Origsmartassam/status/1137851988194910208.{{cite web}}:Missing or empty|title=(help)
  23. ^"Sam Newman's furious phone call to filmmakers over Adam Goodes documentary | Sporting News Australia".www.sportingnews.com.17 June 2019.Retrieved6 May2024.
  24. ^readSeptember 21, Jack MahonySports Reporter3 min; 2023 - 2:55pm (21 September 2023)."Newman claims booing of Goodes was 'not because of skin colour'".skynews.Retrieved6 May2024.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  25. ^"NFL draftee Michael Sam's kiss 'annoyingly gratuitous': Sam Newman".The Age. 15 May 2014.Retrieved4 July2020.
  26. ^abBlair, Alex (21 September 2018)."Sam's most 'disgusting' moment".News.com.au.Retrieved27 September2021.
  27. ^"Eddie McGuire opens upon his return to The Footy Show; Sam Newman addresses bizarre performance".News.com.au. 23 July 2017.Retrieved4 July2020.
  28. ^"Sam Newman leaves Channel Nine after George Floyd comments".ABC. 20 June 2020.Retrieved4 July2020.
  29. ^"Apologetic Newman, co-hosts made to pay a six-figure settlement ends Winmar fight".Fox Sports.3 July 2020.Retrieved4 July2020.
  30. ^Wahlquist, Calla (4 July 2020)."Nicky Winmar accepts apology and $100,000 settlement over racist comments in podcast".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved6 May2024.
  31. ^Tony Jones And Sam Newman Get Heated On Radio Welcome To Country.Retrieved6 May2024– via www.youtube.com.
  32. ^"Sam Newman slammed over 'vile' tweet about Joe Biden".Fox Sports.8 November 2020.Retrieved27 September2021.
  33. ^https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/backlash-against-sam-newmans-disgusting-rant-about-indigenous-people/news-story/0620dffe03578e6ab2bf5629ffad99c4[bare URL]
  34. ^Sam Newman Faces Backlash For Telling Fans To Boo Welcome To Country,21 September 2023,retrieved22 September2023
  35. ^"'Not going to dignify it': AFL boss condemns Sam Newman's Welcome to Country call ".Fox Sports.21 September 2023.Retrieved22 September2023.
  36. ^"Daniel Andrews fires back at Sam Newman's call for Aussies to boo Welcome to Country".
  37. ^"Sam Newman's plea to boo Welcome to Country rejected by heaving MCG crowd".23 September 2023.
  38. ^"Brisbane crowd's epic response during Welcome to Country".
  39. ^"Tony Jones questions Sam Newman over call to boo Welcome to Country".3AW.20 September 2023.Retrieved6 May2024.
  40. ^"AFL 2019: Sam Newman pays tribute to Graham 'Polly' Farmer".Fox Sports.15 August 2019.Retrieved6 May2024.
  41. ^""He Was My Hero": Sam Newman Pays Tribute To Geelong Teammate Graham 'Polly' Farmer ".Triple M.7 April 2024.Retrieved6 May2024.
  42. ^Sam Newman's beautiful tribute to Polly Farmer | AFL 360.Retrieved6 May2024– via www.youtube.com.
  43. ^"Sandown 500 Sandown International Motor Raceway Sandown 500 Top Gun Challenge".National Software. 7 September 2002. Archived fromthe originalon 4 September 2004.Retrieved2 August2008.
  44. ^"Sandown 500 Sandown International Motor Raceway 2002 Sandown 500".National Software. 8 September 2002. Archived fromthe originalon 4 September 2007.Retrieved2 August2008.
  45. ^2003 Australian Nations Cup Championship – Outright Points, www.procar.com.au via web.archive.orgRetrieved on 19 September 2010
  46. ^https://www.driverdb.com/drivers/sam-newman/Sam Newman Career Motor Racing Highlights
  47. ^"Sam Newman – I do My Best Work After Midnight (2002, CD)".Discogs.22 September 2023.
  48. ^Collier, Karen (5 March 2008)."Sam Newman has prostate cancer".Herald Sun.
  49. ^Sam Newman diagnosed with cancerArchived7 March 2008 at theWayback Machine
  50. ^"Two of us".The Sydney Morning Herald.19 April 2014.
  51. ^Evans, Chris (10 March 2008)."Newman clear but urges cancer tests".The Age.p. 6.
  52. ^"Sam Newman performed CPR on his beloved wife Amanda Brown for 20 minutes | | Express Digest".5 May 2021.Retrieved5 June2021.
  53. ^abDevelopment, PodBean."Episode 94 – Part 1 – Amanda".smartassam.podbean.com.Retrieved5 June2021.
  54. ^Estcourt, David (5 May 2021)."'Completely helpless': Sam Newman reveals trauma over wife Amanda Brown's death ".The Age.Retrieved5 June2021.
  55. ^"'I knew she was dead': Star's desperate bid to save his wife ".Sunshine Coast Daily.Retrieved5 June2021.
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