Where Are They Now, with Jesper Fjeldstad. This week: Grenville Dietrich

JESPER Fjeldstad catches up with colourful SANFL full forward Grenville Dietrich.

Grenville Dietrich with Paul Weston in 1987.

GRENVILLE Dietrich was one of the most impressive goal kickers of the SANFL in the modern era.

He bagged 445 goals from 103 games when playing with North Adelaide in the early 1980s and continued to kick goals after transferring to West Torrens.

Post-league, he returned to his childhood town of Mildura and continued to kick hauls of more than 100 a season.

He now follows the sporting careers of his sons Sam and Lachlan but still remains close to the game.

Grenville Dietrich in action for SA against Victoria in 1986.

JF: We haven’t spoken for a while, Grenville. What are you up to these days?

GD: Not much at the moment. I’m not working at the moment because I’ve got diabetes and my feet have gone numb so I’m off work on a doctor’s certificate. Footy-wise, I’m just watching the boys when they play, Saturdays and Sundays. Sam’s the oldest and he’s at West Croydon and Lachy’s the youngest and he’s at Fitzroy in the under-15s.

JF: Since you’ve finished playing, you have kept involved, haven’t you?

GD: I’ve coached the Fitzroy reserves, Kilburn juniors, under-15s, went down to the Western Border League after I finished and Mildura. Nothing serious and nothing for big money but something to do, I guess.

JF: I take it, because you’ve done those things, that you still love the game?

GD: Oh yeah. I’ll always love the game. Don’t miss the training much but I’ll always love the game.

Grenville Dietrich flies high for North Adelaide against South Adelaide in the 1983 elimination final.

JF: You didn’t miss the training much when you played, either, did you?

GD: I didn’t like it. In Mildura all you did was run a few laps, do a bit of kick-to-kick and some circle work and that was it. It was a bit different over here and at Richmond (Dietrich played a trial game with Richmond during a brief tenure with the club).

JF: Any other sports in your life.

GD: Basketball. I was a better basketballer than footballer when I was younger but basketball wasn’t that big back then. But basketball, football, golf cricket ... whatever was going, mate. I used to play it all in Mildura because there wasn’t much else to do.

JF: Do you still keep in touch with other sports?

GD: Lachy’s a pretty handy cricketer. He’s out at Grange and they won their grand final. Sam’s football mainly or lawn bowls. He’s been in the state side in bowls. They’ve both had a go at basketball. They’re trying everything as well but I think they’ll end up staying with footy and cricket and bowls.

Grenville Dietrich in 1983.

JF: Looking back, did you find it hard to retire from the game?

GD: Not really. After I finished playing league I travelled back to Mildura for four years. The first year I kicked 140 (goals), then it was about 120, then it was about 110 and the last year it was about 101 or 102. I thought I might as well give it up now. The travelling was enough, driving up every week and it was just getting a bit too much. So I thought I’ll finish kicking 100 goals and that was it. I’ve only played a few super rules games or filled in for Fitzroy or somebody else when they were short. But it wasn’t that hard. Sometimes you wish you were still out there but you also think you were younger, too.

JF: The football landscape has been turbulent lately. What do you think are the most pressing issues as a new chief executive takes over the AFL?

GD: Obviously the rules. I don’t think too many fans know what the rules are. Watching it this year, you’d swear that the rule about prior opportunity is no longer there. You watch four blokes diving on the footy and as soon as bloke doesn’t look like he’s trying to get rid of it — his arms are pinned and he can’t do anything — he gets pinged for it. It’s completely different.

But the one that really gets me are the rushed behinds. I haven’t seen a free kick for that for two years now. They brought it in after Hawthorn won the grand final but now they’re not doing anything about it.

Grenville Dietrich and Michael Aish in 1986.

JF: Is the game better now, or when you played?

GD: I think it’s a lot quicker now and they’re a lot fitter now, but I don’t think the skills are any better; kicking for goals and stuff like that. I saw a good pack mark the other night but I haven’t seen many of those in the last few years. I used to love watching Peter Knights against Paul van der Haar, just those contests and the impacts. If you’re an athlete, you can run even time and how many basketballers have crossed over to footy? I’m just not sure their skills are as good as they were yesteryear. But they’re a lot fitter and a lot quicker.

JF: Do you keep close to the clubs you played for.

GD: I try to go to the past players’ functions and Lachy goes to most North games when he can. He ran water for them last year. I try to go to most past players’ functions.

JF: Who do you still keep in touch with from your playing days?

GD: Tony Antrobus I still see every now and then. Darryl Harper I see all the time because his boys are playing at Fitzroy. Brenton Phillips, his lads are at Fitzroy so I see “Sticko’’.

Grenville Dietrich marks strongly in 1982.

JF: Of the current day players, who do you like.

GD: Gary Ablett Jr. Love watching (Scott) Pendlebury, he’s that well balanced. Richmond’s Trent Cotchin when he’s on. There’s not many talls these days but I like watching Jarryd Roughead. And Luke Hodge, love the way he plays — just straight through it. I like the blokes who are hard at it.

JF: Who wins the flag this year?

GD: Hawthorn. If they’re at full strength, I can't see anyone getting near them. That’s if Clarkson’s back. Port beat them by 14 points here but they virtually played the Box Hill (VFL) team. You think that if they’re at full strength at the MCG they would handle anyone pretty easily. They’ve got a midfield to match Sydney. They keep winning with half a team and if they get to full strength I reckon they’re certainties.