Mark Ricciuto on his football career and being a ‘loyal South Australian’
Premiership player, Brownlow medalist and Adelaide Crows legend, Mark Ricciuto, is one of the latest inductees to The South Australian Sport Hall of Fame.
When former Australian rules footballer and 2003 Brownlow medalist Mark Ricciuto found out he had been inducted into The South Australian Sport Hall of Fame this year, he said he doubted his capabilities.
“Look, whenever you get a phone call about being inducted into anything of significance like this, you always doubt whether you’re worthy and you never quite feel right about it,” Ricciuto told InDaily.
“But obviously it’s a great feeling and very honoured to be selected by the group… I’m really flattered that they thought I’m worthy of being in it.”
Established in 2010, the South Australian Sports Hall of Fame pays tribute to the exceptional individuals who have left an indelible mark in their fields and have inspired generations to come. Currently, there are eight Legends and 96 Inductees.
Ricciuto is a “loyal South Australian” and played for the Adelaide Crows for his entire football career from 1993 until 2007.
“I was super lucky to be picked up by the Crows – which was awesome for me because I could stay and play for the team in the state that I love,” he said.
“Then to be able to play with them my whole career, you couldn’t ask for anything better than that.”
Ricciuto said the only time he slightly considered a move to a different team was during “a couple of patches in the mid-90s [when the Crows] weren’t really going in the right direction”.
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“But it was only extremely short-lived and I don’t think I would have ever had the courage to move anyway – I wouldn’t have wanted to. I loved Adelaide and loved our state too much,” he told InDaily.
Mark Ricciuto won the 2003 Brownlow Medal alongside players Nathan Buckley (middle) and Adam Goodes (right). Photo: AAP.
Ricciuto played in the 1998 35-point premiership win against minor premiers North Melbourne, after missing out on the Crows’ first premiership in 1997 due to a groin injury that interfered with his season.
“It was a horrible, horrible feeling,” he said. “I’d never had a significant injury before then and I was a very competitive person and then to miss out – I thought I was just going to miss out on ever playing in a grand final – so I shed a few tears,” he said.
“And there’s a few others… that missed out as well so I wasn’t on my own, but it was a horrible feeling.
“Just like most things in life, it creates an opportunity, and I had to have an operation, get my injury correct, get back out and train and try and get back next year and win it again.”
Looking back on this career, he told InDaily that winning the premiership with the Crows was the “best feeling [he’s] ever had” and he couldn’t “get a better moment than that”.
“We got badly beaten in the first week of the finals, but we had a double chance, which we needed and we used, and then [coach] Malcolm Blight just absolutely flogged us on the training track,” Ricciuto said.
“Then we got into the grand final, but we trained so hard the whole way through the finals, because of how we played in that first week.
“I thought we were going to be stuffed for the grand final. I thought ‘God, we can’t train like this and travel for five weeks in a row and do it’ but we just ran straight over the top of North Melbourne in the second half of the final.
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“When you know you’re about to win a premiership, and you still can run around on the MCG for about five minutes… it’s an unbelievable feeling to be able to just experience that joy.”
Mark Ricciuto captained the Adelaide Crows from 2001 to 2007. Photo: AAP.
Ricciuto said “bringing [fitness specialist coach] Neil Craig and [head coach] Malcolm Blight to the football club in 1996 was a pivotal move for the Crows”.
“[Malcolm Blight] was my best coach ever – there’s no doubt about it,” Ricciuto said.
“In terms of teaching you how to play the game, he had a very clear game plan. You knew what you had to do as a player. You knew the ramifications if you didn’t follow his rules, but he had a really good balance between training hard, playing hard, and enjoying your successes.
“And coupled up with Neil Craig… his attention to detail and discipline in preparation and recovery.
“After I retired, I looked back and said ‘well, that’s why we won premierships in those years’.
“I never had a better combination of coaches and fitness coaches than those two.”
Ricciuto was appointed captain of the Crows in 2001 – he had never been a captain in his junior football years – and said it was a “great opportunity”.
“I loved being the captain. I like being in that position, I’m comfortable with it,” he said.
“My friends agree I can be a bit bossy, and I definitely like to be in charge – there’s no doubt about that, and my kids would definitely say the same thing.
“I just absolutely love the opportunity to do it. I felt honoured to be the captain, and it’s a privileged position to be in. I treated it like that.
The latest inductees to the South Australian Sport Hall of Fame will be announced at a gala night at the Adelaide Oval on February 21. Tickets are on sale now.
Read InDaily throughout February as we reveal this year’s inductees.
