The AFL players whose names you’re probably pronouncing wrong

If AFL commentators aren’t sure how to pronounce a player’s name, what hope have the rest of us got? Here is the definitive guide to Jaeger, Coniglio, Riewoldt, Doedee and the latest addition, Fantasia. 

If AFL commentators aren’t sure how to pronounce a player’s name, what hope have the rest of us got?

Depending on which station you listen to, or broadcast you watch, you might get up to three or four different varieties of one name each round.

The pronunciation of Essendon forward Orazio Fantasia's surname is the latest to cause issues after Bombers captain Dyson Heppell confirmed on Friday night it had been wrong for much of his 66-game career. 

Asked by Channel 7 commentator Hamish McLachlan whether his surname was pronounced Fantasia or Fanta-sia, Heppell said it was the latter. 

CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE SUPERFOOTY PODCAST

"Everyone has been running Fantasia but it is Fanta-sia," Heppell said.  

But Brian Taylor, who has adopted the Bomber as one of his favourite players to call, said he was sticking with his preferred pronunciation. 

"In Italy it's Fanta-sia. Guess where we live, Australia. We call it Fantasia," Taylor said on Triple M. 

 "We don't pronounce Italian names in Australia the full Italian way. We pronounce it with the Australianism in it and that's how we'll continue to do it."

FREE-KICK COUNT: WERE THE BLUES HARD DONE BY? 

DEVON SMITH COLUMN: HEPPELL CRITICISM 'RIDICULOUS'

We don’t expect everyone to already know how to pronounce young Dockers duo Mitch Crowden (think of the bird) or Taylin Duman (see tweet below), but we thought it was time to update the AFL pronunciation guide we published a few years ago. Commentators, feel free to bookmark this page.

How do you pronounce Duman? 🤔
Hear from Taylin himself #foreverfreo pic.twitter.com/59A4G1gD6M

— Fremantle Dockers (@freodockers) April 19, 2018

ORAZIO FANTASIA

The confusion: Fantay-she-a or Fanta-see-a?

The pronunciation of the speedy Bomber's surname was a topic of discussion with Brian Taylor absent from the Channel 7 commentary box in Round 8. Taylor prefers Fantay-she-a, but it's been confirmed the Italian pronunciation is correct. 

The verdict: Fanta-see-a

TOM DOEDEE

The confusion: Doo-dee or Doo-day or Do-dee or Do-day?

The SuperCoach favourite and former Geelong Falcon has been in the system for more than two years but still has callers guessing. The double ‘e’ on the end seems to throw everyone. Tip: Say it fast.

The verdict: Doo-day

JAEGER O’MEARA

The confusion: Jaeger or Yaeger?

Hawks communication manager Chelsea Collins stepped in to clear this one up after Fox Footy’s Neroli Meadows raised the pronunciation issue during the week, sparking a Twitter frenzy.

The verdict: Jaeger

Jaeger O’Meara charges towards goal. Picture: Michael Klein

JASON JOHANNISEN

The confusion: Johannisen or Yohannisen?

Another one that has people second-guessing over whether the ‘J’ is pronounced with a ‘Y’ sound. If you go back in time both letters are variations on the letter ‘i’ so they are all in the same ballpark, but in the Bulldog’s case, as with O’Meara, it’s a hard “J”. (if you need help check out this slightly creepy YouTube video)

The verdict: Johannisen

STEPHEN CONIGLIO

The confusion: Coniglio or Con-eelio?

The Giants midfielders’s dad Sandro moved to Western Australia from Calabria in the 1960s and he is proud of his Italian heritage (including hosting a giant family feast whenever he plays in Perth). In Italy they don’t pronounce the hard ‘G’.

The verdict: Con-eelio

JASON CASTAGNA

The confusion: Cast-agna or Cast-anya?

See above — it’s a silent ‘G’. And it’s not Costanza.

The verdict: Cast-anya

GWS gun Stephen Coniglio celebrates a goal.

JACK RIEWOLDT

The confusion: Ree-wolt or Ree-volt?

Former Saints skipper Nick says Riewoldt with a very soft ‘V’, and his dad Joe agrees. So we’re going with it for the whole family.

The verdict: Ree-volt

And the W that should be pronounced has a V. https://t.co/wM5hH8Wngp

— Joe Riewoldtt (@jriewolod) April 15, 2018

NICK VLASTUIN

The confusion: Vlass-too-in or Floss-tone?

Nick’s father Chris was born in Dutch New Guinea and his grandparents are from Holland. The Dutch surname is pronounced with an ‘F’ sound. If in doubt, go with ‘Tigger’, his nickname since he was a kid.

The verdict: Floss-tone. As in dental.

NAT FYFE

The confusion: Nat or Nate?

Some Melbourne commentators like to use the American abbreviation of Nathan, but the Dockers say his name rhymes with ‘cat’. While we’re at Fremantle, Michael Apeness pronounces his name ‘Appness’.

The verdict: Nat

Chris Masten in action for the Eagles. Picture: Michael Klein

Nat Fyfe has cat-like reflexes.

CHRIS MASTEN

The confusion: Mass-ten or Marst-en?

Last, past, cast, mast. Right? Right. The Eagle finally settled things in 2013, but his nickname muddies the waters. “Everyone thought it was Mass-ten so started calling me Masto, but it’s actually Marst-en,” he told Nova.

The verdict: Marst-en

DAVID MACKAY

The confusion: Mack-ay or Mack-eye

After a decade at the top level it’s still common to hear both. It should rhyme with hay, not sky.

The verdict: Ma-ckay

MICHAEL RISCHITELLI

The confusion: Rish-itelli or Risk-itelli?

The Suns veteran has an Italian background and while both variations above are common, he prefers the hard ‘k’.

The verdict: Risk-itelli