Eric Bana reveals intimate details of friendship with Danny Frawley

A famous Saints fan has revealed one thing he used to wonder whenever Danny Frawley sent him a bantering text message.

Acting legend Eric Bana has shared details of his friendship with late Saints great Danny Frawley as he paid tribute to his legacy in destigmatising mental health.

Bana, an avid Saints supporter, said he and Frawley used to go cycling together and formed a close bond.

Bana is throwing his support behind the second annual Spud’s Game between St Kilda and Essendon on Friday night.

Movember has teamed up with the Saints to promote why it’s Time 2 Talk about mental health and suicide prevention.

“Danny had such a physical presence on the ground as a defender and he always came across as this super hard nut with the ability to spoil,’’ Bana said.

Actor Eric Bana promoting Spud’s Game with St Kilda captain Jack Steele.

“He was clearly one of the toughest full backs to play the game. Because there was so much less media back then, you didn’t get to know the players as well as you do now.

“So you weren’t quite sure exactly what they were like, so there was no way of knowing as a supporter just how funny Danny was and how warm he was, and all that sort of stuff.

“So I think getting to know him and becoming a mate — as everyone says, he had just the greatest sense of humour.

“That text banter was always hilarious, whether it was during a game or before a game or after a game.

“Sometimes I’d wonder how we’d send a text while he was in the commentator’s booth.

“I think it was his sense of humour and just just how gregarious and warm and friendly he was to everyone who was in his presence, for someone who had such a fearsome reputation on the field.

Danny Frawley will be remembered at a match named in his honour. Picture: Mark Stewart

“We both enjoyed cycling and so we would go out and ride occasionally and just chew the fat and luckily for me, he never stopped talking. So I’d be able to recover pretty well and put in a fair effort while he was just riding next to me talking the whole time.

“And he always made me laugh, was always telling a funny story, and we had some really, really great chats on those rides. We loved the cycling. And that was a really, really special time. Obviously, some of the games here back in back in the heyday, with Plugger and Winmar and Burkey and stuff were pretty special. But yeah, getting to know Danny as as an adult, as I did later on was a massive, massive highlight.”

Bana sat down at Moorabbin to chat with Saints captain Jack Steele.

Eric Bana with Nick Riewoldt at Danny Frawley’s memorial service in September 2019.

Eric Bana with another famous Saints supporter, Shane Warne, who died suddenly in March. Picture: Michael Klein

He has bought a seat at the ground in honour of Spud.

“I think it’s a great cause,’’ Bana said.

“I think one of the amazing legacies Danny’s left, it was the the stigmatization of mental illness and depression and just the way that he helped make it just part of normal discussion, especially in the sporting arena where there’s a lot of traditional kind of hard men that wouldn’t show their emotions in the past,’’ Bana said.

“It’s a great legacy to contribute to and I think this stand is such an amazing legacy.

”For mental health awareness, but for his contribution to the cause, and to the game, during his playing years and after.”