Mark Robinson: How bullying victim Brayden Maynard taught himself to protect his mates

Brayden Maynard was a self confessed ‘frother’ when it came to watching old-school footy hits and tackles on Youtube and it shows in the way he goes about his business.

Jordan De Goey’s future remains uncertain.

Brayden Maynard was bullied as a lad.

Overweight and hampered by a lisp, Maynard was easy pickings for the bully boys at school in Adelaide.

He wasn’t a fighter then, that would come later in life, but if he was, the bullies might’ve copped a punch to the mouth.

Instead, what Maynard did was harness his fury and release it on the sporting field.

He’d bottle that hurt and anger felt in the schoolyard and punish whoever came his way in sport, and thus was born a combative figure who, when he grew up, would become the spirit animal of the Collingwood football team.

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Brayden Maynard during his days as a junior footballer.

Maynard was named as an All-Australian in defence.

Maynard wasn’t quite sure about the spirit animal illustration — which, in certain spiritual traditions or cultures, spirit animal refers to a spirit which helps guide or protect a person on a journey — yet it describes him perfectly.

“Since I was a young, fat little kid playing sport, I was the most competitive ever. I never wanted to lose and I literally did anything I could to win,’’ Maynard said.

“I was a bigger body when I was younger. I got bullied a bit at school for my shape and size and the way I played footy … I was an angry, competitive bloke and it’s still embedded in me now. Yeah, at school, I wasn’t really treated well.’’

However, sport, particularly footy, welcomed him.

“I played with anger. I loved playing footy, loved playing basketball, played tennis, played cricket, and even though tennis and cricket are non-contact sports, I somehow would find a way to compete and bring my anger out in other ways,” he said.

Brayden Maynard checks on the health of Patrick Cripps after a heavy hit. Picture: Michael Klein

Right until he was drafted out of Sandringham Dragons — his family moved to Melbourne — Maynard was a hothead.

“In my TAC Cup years, I was suspended a couple of times for being angry and doing stupid shit,’’ he said.

In one game, playing at Trevor Barker Oval, Maynard was chasing an opponent when another opponent ran in to block. Instead of meeting the player shoulder to shoulder, at the last second Maynard lifted his elbow and flushed the player in the head.

“I got suspended for a week and I was shattered. I missed the following week, and from then I started to learn about my anger towards the game. I’ve learnt, as I’ve been in the elite system, to become more controlled but still be able to compete and be that fierce competitor,” he said.

“Yeah, I hurt him that day. And as soon as I did it, I went straight to him and picked him up and checked if he was all right. I knew what I did was bad, yeah, it wasn’t great.’’

It’s a paradox in behaviour. He belted his opponent and then helped him.

Fast forward eight years and in round 23 this season, in the heat of combat, Maynard gave Carlton captain Patrick Cripps a reassuring pat to make sure he was OK.

“I’m big on sportsmanship and respect,’’ Maynard said. “I go by the mantra, ‘Respect All and Fear None’. If I see someone on the deck, be it the opposition or my teammate, I like to pick them up. Sometimes over the years I’ve been told to let the opposition get themselves up, but that’s not what I’m about.’’

That unusual behaviour stemmed from when he played for Our Lady of Grace in Adelaide in years 4 and 5. He was coached then by his uncle, Rod Campbell.

“Fun fact, I played with John Noble in that team and now I’m playing with him at Collingwood,’’ Maynard said.

“But what my uncle drilled into us from a young age was sportsmanship, respect and trying your hardest, respecting umpires obviously, respecting the opposition and I feel to this day I’m still living up to those words. And I feel that’s shaped me into the footballer I am today on and off the field.’’

Brayden Maynard collects Ed Langdon in one of the most memorable tackles this season. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

BUCKS TAUGHT ME TO BE YOUR BEST VERSION

Maynard wasn’t always so balanced or mature.

He was a hothead on the field when he was drafted and draft notes, he said, described him as a bit of a “rat bag’’ off it. “That was all true,’’ he said.

“I played footy but mates were everything to me, and going out and having fun was more important. And I put most things on social media and everyone could see it.’’

Consequently, in his first season, 2015, he was summoned to a leaders’ meeting.

“They laid down the law,’’ he said. “They said your mates are going down one path, and I could either go with them or choose my own path and become a professional footballer.’’

He chose the latter, but didn’t abandon his mates, either. While once they might have led him astray, they now keep him planted.

“I still hang with my friends,’’ he said. “I feel like my friends and mates keep me in line, and I love my social side, but I’ve definitely reigned it in over the years.’’

Asked what he hopes his teammates say of him, Maynard said: “I love competing. I love being the best version of myself. That’s something Bucks (Nathan Buckley) used to always say, just be the best version of yourself. I’m a loveable, caring teammate. I want team success. I love to protect my teammates in any situation that comes about. I just hope that’s what they see in me, just an animal on field, someone who never gives up and who never wants to lose and someone who protects their teammates.’’

There’s a constant thread there: protecting his teammates.

Maynard is old fashioned when he speaks and certainly is old fashioned in how he plays.

In an era of high half-backs who gather midfield numbers, Maynard is a one-versus-one defender who is a terribly difficult opponent.

He thrives in the combative, body-on-body environment, which reflects a soulful approach to footy.

MUSIC MAN WHO HITS THE RIGHT NOTE

At the start of the season, new coach Craig McRae introduced an “I will ...’’ kind of mission statement. It required every player to stand in front of the group clutching his jumper and declare “I will …

“He’s held us accountable for these statements and pretty much what I said was ‘I want to compete my hardest and I want to protect my teammates at all cost’. I feel I’ve been able to do that, I’ve held to my word,’’ Maynard said.

He’s such a unique character.

He’s a headbanger in the gym, where he is in control of the music — the Maynard Mix is attached — and then is a soft talker in the moments before the team walks up the race.

Teammate Jeremy Howe says Maynard has a propensity to go among the group, pull players in tight and virtually whisper in their ears.

“Yeah, I do that,’’ Maynard said. “I feel sometimes pre-game and pre-warm up that I can be really up and about, but then there’s about five minutes there when we’re hugging and I really lock in, and I give my two cents to everyone I hug. And when we run out, that’s when I feel I become an animal again.’’

Brayden Maynard has been compared to Glenn Archer and Luke Hodge. Picture: Michael Klein

ARCHER, HODGE COMPARSION

He’s been likened to Shinboner Glenn Archer, which he loves, and in his draft year, was compared to a young Luke Hodge, which he also loves.

“Look, if I was to be compared to anyone it would be to those two,’’ Maynard said.

His recollections of Archer come via the multitude of videos on YouTube he watched growing up. “I’d always google and YouTube AFL best hits and tackles and fights and I’d watch Glenn Archer and Byron Pickett, they were just unbelievable,’’ he said.

“Honestly, I used to get goosebumps watching these hits. And I’d watch the AFL’s best chasedown tackles, Aaron Davey from Melbourne used to always do these amazing chasedown tackles.

“You could call me a bit of a frother in some sense because I love that side of footy. I get a bit of a thrill out of it.’’

ULTIMATE COMPLEMENT: SHADES OF MILLANE

Archer is an admirer. He recalled this week the 2020 elimination final between Collingwood and West Coast when Maynard went head-to-head with Liam Ryan.

“How good was it watching a traditional one-on-one contest for a whole game,’’ Archer said.

“I’ve always kept an eye on him because he was managed by our management group, and I definitely love the way he plays. He’s the type of player who would work in the ’80s and ’90s. He doesn’t shirk an issue, he has a crack and he’s actually very skilful. He’s the complete package.’’

Collingwood premiership captain, Tony Shaw, likened Maynard to Darren Millane.

“I can see the similarities,’’ Shaw said. “I can see an uncompromising, competitive beast that at times, early in his career, he got found out because he didn’t think his way through. But he’s matured with that now.

“He embodies what you want in any player who plays defence. I also love that he has a lot of flexibility. He can go into the middle and play on Cripps like they needed him to do in round 23, he can be a clearance player, he runs with the ball, and he’s got enormous courage, too.

“I never saw Millane shirk the issue. This bloke runs hard at the ball, Millane did, they’re built the same, and maybe Maynard doesn’t jump on heads like Millane did, but, yeah, I love them both.

“You go to war with these blokes and that’s what it’s about.’’

There’s your spirit animal, old and new.

Robbo: Finals form will decide De Goey’s future

The time has arrived for Jordan De Goey to repay the faith of his footy club.

Unquestionably, this next month — or for however long Collingwood’s campaign runs for — is the most important period in De Goey’s career.

After all the lies, the speed humps, the fights, the distrust, the lost respect, and the wayward partying, in New York and in Bali, all roads in his troubled career collide this September.

De Goey — who is out of contract at season’s end — wants to stay at Collingwood and Collingwood wants him to stay at Collingwood, but … and there’s always a “but’’ with Jordy.

The lost trust and embarrassment he brought on the club after New York, and then even more so after Bali, has somewhat been repaired, if not forgiven, at board level.

Robbo: Finals form will decide De Goey’s future

The board, or the majority of it, is now in De Goey’s corner.

The contract, however, has far less clarity.

De Goey wants somewhere between $800,000 and $900,000 a season to stay at Collingwood.

It’s a little rich from a bloke who has put his club through the ringer. Still, the club can make that happen if De Goey plays his part.

And that’s play to the level of a $900,000 player, starting on Saturday night against Geelong.

That’s play with real impact, matchwinning impact. That’s changing momentum and that’s kicking goals. That’s the space Lachie Neale, Patrick Dangerfield, Christian Petracca and Marcus Bontempelli live in every week.

De Goey is not in that space. Not yet anyhow.

Jordan De Goey rises over Adam Saad to mark in Round 23. Picture: Michael Klein

De Goey is seeking a deal of up to $900k a year to stay at Collingwood.

He’s a good player, but not a great player. If he wants 900k, he needs to play high-end football in finals matches, and he needs to justify why the Pies should shake up their salary cap to keep him.

Because as a consequence, De Goey’s money will affect what will happen with Brodie Grundy, and the potential recruitment of Daniel McStay and Bobby Hill and whoever else the Pies are chasing.

The bottom line is, if De Goey does get his money, or near enough to it, the likely outcome is Grundy is a goner, because McStay, Hill et al need to be paid.

If De Goey has a so-so finals series, the Pies certainly cannot justify a $900,000 salary, which would create issues.

And if he then left the Pies for St Kilda, we’ll absolutely know it was for the coin.

De Goey, and not for the first time, is a fascinating watch.

Collingwood star Jordan De Goey in New York.

A video from Instagram shows Collingwood footballer Jordan De Goey partying in Bali with friends.

Teammate Brayden Maynard this week joined a chorus of Magpies players and declared he wanted De Goey to stay.

“Jordy’s one of my closest mates at the club and for him to be caught up in the media and all those incidents … it’s frustrating … he’s a really, really good kid and I love him to bits,’’ Maynard said.

“I know what it’s like to be caught up with incidents like that, but because it’s him, it’s been massive in the media.

“I just fear for his mental health. He’s been in some areas where you don’t want to be in.’’

Maynard said De Goey was trying to learn from his mistakes.

De Goey has the chance to justify his big demands in this finals series.

“I’m always there for him no matter the situation,’’ he said.

“People make mistakes, but it’s about how you learn from those mistakes and how you move on. When I was young I learnt quite a lot, and that’s why I understand the position Jordy’s been in.

“I want him to stay so badly.

“Collingwood is the best for him and his career. I feel his home is Collingwood, I feel like we’re building something really special, and he fits right in.

“He has really special relationships with everyone, and he’s a really caring and loveable person.’’

The ball is in De Goey’s court.

Originally published as Mark Robinson: How bullying victim Brayden Maynard taught himself to protect his mates