Gather Round: Top hairdresser Sam James rates players hairdos and don’ts
We showed Australia’s top hairdresser photos of some of your favourite Gather Round stars and their hairstyles. Here’s what she thought of their looks.
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Not since Warwick Capper and Wayne Weidemann has there been so many mullets sported by AFL players.
But here’s the long and short of it: Carlton young ruck Tom De Koning has been crowned the Gather Round footballer with the best hair.
When The Advertiser showed 2024 Australian Hairdresser of the Year, SJ Establishment’s Sam James, a selection of images of players and their hairstyles, De Koning was her outright favourite.
“He gets top marks for creating a Beckham-feel in the AFL,” she said, referring to soccer star David Beckham’s lob (long bob) back in the day.
“Do Konig has a thick head of hair. It has texture and it’s a good length, mid length, plus the cut is square … It’s masculine.”
Ms James named Fremantle’s ruckman Luke Jackson as the runner-up, saying he had a “cool mullet”.
“It is on point and I love the curl,” she said, adding: “I think it’s a perm.”
Another player with a curly mullet, North Melbourne’s star forward Nick Larkey, finished a close third.
While some of the Gather Round player’s mullets weren’t hitting the mark, Larkey obviously has a barber who knows their way around the “business at front, party at the back” hairstyle.
“His mullet has balance and shape,” Ms James noted.
While Western Bulldogs star Rory Lobb has parted ways with his out-there pink and red Lobster stencilled hairstyle in time for Gather Round, Ms James gave it a highly commended.
“It is a piece of art,” she said.
West Coast defender Reuben Ginbey also got a special mention for his “cool blond mullet”.
This was despite it needing some toner to make it less brassy, she said.
Swans rookie Riley Bice’s choppy mullet also scored points.
That said, Ms James recommended he shave off his “porn star moustache” featured in the photo The Advertiser showed her.
However, the mo got the tick of approval from a 20-something in her salon.
As for the rest …
Ms James said Crow Riley Thilthorpe’s mullet, which could use a trim to give it more shape, made him look like a lion.
Port Adelaide’s Lachie Jones also had an unbalanced mullet.
“It’s too cap-like, it needs more texture and length in the front and on top,” Ms James said.
While sweat and the breeze could be a factor, Demons star Clayton Oliver was another player whose mullet needs a makeover.
“His forehead goes too far back, he needs more hair at the front,” Ms James said.
St Kilda defender Jack Sinclair also has a “cap”, she said.
Ms James was impressed with the way Gold Coast midfielder Sam Flanders’ platinum hair had been treated to a good toner, despite the cut needing to be softer.
The fade on Greater Western Sydney defender Lachie Ash’s cut also needed to be softer she said, adding: “I love the beard and texture (of his hairstyle)”.
Ms James said Richmond wingman Hugo Ralphsmith’s long wavy mullet needed “more height” and that the fade on Hawthorn star Josh Weddle’s mullet was kicking goals. ‘There’s no line, it’s a good blend,” she said.
She said Essendon ruckman Sam Draper’s mullet was “confused” because it needed more definition.
BETTS IS BACK! AFL ICON MAKES SURPRISE GATHER ROUND CAMEO
Six years after last lighting up Adelaide Oval as a Crow, Eddie Betts is back kicking goals … as a guest editor of The Advertiser’s sports pages.
The former Carlton and Adelaide star teamed with Western Bulldogs champion and fellow Fox Footy expert Brad Johnson to oversee the back of the newspaper as South Australia prepared for a massive Gather Round weekend.
Betts, who was born in Port Lincoln and kicked 640 goals across 350 AFL games, was thrilled for the AFL spotlight to be on his home state.
“The excitement from the first Gather Round to the second to year three has grown,” Betts, a four-time all-Australian, told the newsroom.
“Living here for seven years, people talk about Adelaide in a negative way but experiencing it in Gather Round, going to the beaches and wineries, it’s a beautiful city and we urge people to come.”
Betts and Johnson were buoyant about the Crows’ prospects this year despite Adelaide’s 19-point loss to Geelong to kick off the football festival on Thursday night.
“The way they started and the way they’re playing, it’s like the 2017 Crows (that made the grand final), where it’s over 100 points a game, it’s free flowing, they’re jelling,” Betts said.
“They’ve just got to do it for long enough.”
Johnson, a six-time all-Australian and the Bulldogs’ games record holder, was looking forward to watching the first AFL match for premiership points at Barossa Park in Lyndoch on Saturday.
And he urged Port Adelaide to keep its focus on the contest, not Hawthorn players, in Sunday night’s spicy semi-final rematch to close Gather Round.
“It’s a final in some ways for Port,” Johnson said of the Power, which was 1-3 to start the season.
Betts had his own forward pocket at Adelaide Oval and won AFL goal of the year four times with his brilliant skill.
After their guest editing stints, he and Johnson turned a pocket of The Advertiser newsroom into a trick-shot playground.
Betts also grabbed a toy crown, wrapped himself in a red blanket and playfully declared of his homecoming: “the king has returned”.
South Australians can keep up with Betts and Johnon this weekend with a special $1 deal for new Kayo Sport subscribers. Go to kayosports.com.au for more details
– Matt Turner
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