Herald Sun footy podcast: Mark Robinson on the present he received from Mason Cox

Chief football writer Mark Robinson has revealed the moment he found out a mystery gift during his recovery from heart surgery came from Magpie Mason Cox.

The picture with Elvis and Tiger which Mason Cox sent to Mark Robinson. Picture: Michael Klein.

Herald Sun chief football writer Mark Robinson has revealed Collingwood’s Mason Cox sent him a heartwarming gift as he recovered from his health scare.

Robinson had six-bypass surgery after suffering two heart attacks last July and spoke this week on the Herald Sun Footy Podcast about the huge amount of support he received from the football community.

The AFL 360 co-host recalled how he had photos taken for News Corp with his two dogs, Elvis and Tiger, in November, then a mystery package turned up to his house about a month later.

“It was a framed computer-generated picture of Elvis and Tiger, my two dogs, but there was no note, nothing,” Robinson said.

“So I thought ‘oh well, I’ll put it up somewhere and someone will come in I know and say yeah, that was me’.

“It hadn’t happened.

“Then one of the first times I ventured out into the public post-Covid was (this month) when we launched SuperCoach at the MCG.

READ MORE: ROBBO’S SECRET HEALTH BATTLE AND HEART SURGERY

Robbo takes Elvis and Tiger for a walk. Picture: Michael Klein

“I was standing there talking to Campbell Brown about his great mate Warney (Shane Warne) and Mason Cox walked up to me and said ‘did you like my present?’

“I said ‘what present?’ And he goes ‘your two boys, your two dogs’.”

Robinson described the gesture as “a glorious thing to do”.

“It was big,” he said.

“It was 9.30am at the MCG and I nearly burst into tears.

“I shook his hand.

“When you have difficulty in life, it’s amazing how many people seek you out and support you.

“A lot of them are people you know but there’s been a few people I don’t know who have done things.”

Mason Cox’s gesture made Mark Robinson emotional.

Robinson said in his media roles he had sometimes questioned if Cox’s career was over.

“Yet here he was in a time of concern, Mason Cox goes out of his way to organise this,” he said.

“It was really, really nice.”

He’s a good man that @masonsixtencox 🤝 pic.twitter.com/Dgu6rgcjj5

— Collingwood FC (@CollingwoodFC) March 8, 2022

Robinson said during his health battle he also heard from “a lot of people I’ve had a lot of fights with”, including former Collingwood president Eddie McGuire and ex-AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou.

Some modern-day players also reached out to Robinson, including Sydney superstar Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin, Geelong duo Patrick Dangerfield and Joel Selwood, Richmond veteran Jack Riewoldt and Melbourne Norm Smith medallist Christian Petracca.