Hawthorn great Robert DiPierdomenico recalls the match where his ear fell off

Everyone knows the story of Hawthorn legend Robert ‘Dipper’ DiPierdomenico’s herculean 1989 Grand Final, when he played most of the match with broken ribs and a punctured lung, but what about the time his ear fell off?!

To say Hawthorn great Robert DiPierdomenico was tough would be the understatement of the century.

Through 240 games with the Hawks, Dipper combined a brutal attack on the man and the ball with rare courage and the talent to claim five premierships and a Brownlow Medal.

The story of the 185cm, 93kg wrecking ball’s 1989 Grand Final — where he was ironed out by Geelong legend Gary Ablett and played out the match with several broken ribs and a punctured lung — is legendary.

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It wouldn’t be a game of footy for Dipper without a bit of claret — for him or his opponent. Picture: Clive Mackinnon

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But, maybe even more crazy, was the time his ear fell off.

The story, as told by teammate Dermott Brereton on Fox Footy Live, goes the Hawks were playing a game out at Waverley against St Kilda in the mid-80s.

Dipper had typically gone in hard and copped one for his troubles.

“You’ve jumped up after being on the ground, you’ve got your hand over your ear, you’ve dropped your hand and said ‘how’s my ear’ and it fell off,” Brereton recalled of the grisly injury while speaking to DiPierdomenico.

“It held on by the earlobe and started hanging down — your ear fell off.”

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Poor Dipper got annihilated by Gary Ablett in the 1989 Grand Final.

He ended up in St Vincent’s Hospital after the match.

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Of course, the tough as nails wingman was as nonchalant about it as if it was a scratch.

“You know when the trainers come up and say ‘oh, you’ll be right’, bit of a squirt, give you some water?” DiPierdomenico said.

“I said, ‘well, how’s my ear?’ and they said ‘Oh, I think you better come off’.

Always the opportunist, Dipper turned the injury into a money-spinner.

“The next day, I had my ear sewn back on and they did a really good job, and then I made money out of it — I went to Puma and I said ‘can I wear your headbands?’.”

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Originally published as Hawthorn great Robert DiPierdomenico recalls the match where his ear fell off