St Kilda champion Danny Frawley dies in car crash a day after 56th birthday
The footy and media community is in mourning and shock after the sudden death of St Kilda legend and former Richmond coach Danny Frawley. Just yesterday, two of his daughters had been shopping for a birthday gift for their larger-than-life dad.
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The footy and media community is in mourning and shock after the sudden death of Danny Frawley, who was killed in a car crash yesterday, a day after he turned 56.
The St Kilda legend’s car ran off the road and crashed into a tree on the corner of Old Melbourne and Ryans roads in Millbrook, near Ballan, about 1.30pm.
Police are treating Frawley’s death as non suspicious.
A Victoria Police spokesperson said they will prepare a report for the coroner to determine the exact circumstances surrounding his death.
However it will not be included in the annual road toll, as is the case with other road fatalities.
Frawley was a popular Saint, known as the knockabout spud farmer from Bungaree.
He played 240 games from 1984-95 and captained the Saints from 1987-94.
He played 11 times for Victoria.
A father of three girls, Frawley recently spoke to the Herald Sun about his struggles with mental health.
He is survived by wife Anita and their daughters Danielle, Chelsea and Keeley.
Just yesterday afternoon, two of his daughters were in South Yarra, buying him a shirt for his 56th birthday.
His sacking as Richmond coach after five years at the end of 2004, and the stress he and his family suffered at the time, have been documented.
FRAWLEY’S MENTAL HEALTH MESSAGE HIS GREATEST LEGACY
He spoke on the Herald Sun’s Sacked podcast only last month about how his issues with mental health finally revealed themselves during his time as the AFL Coaches Association boss.
“I wasn’t in a position to deal with any of that. Stubbornly I should have walked away.
“It did my head in eventually. It was something in my psyche, maybe from the Richmond days, not playing in a final, all those things built up to a tipping point.”
He ended up having what he described as a mental breakdown, covering a game at the MCG but forgetting how to get home and having to ring wife Anita.
Q&A: DANNY FRAWLEY ON LIFE AND FOOTY
“I would be the first to admit that I had taken my eyes off the ball ... I was struggling with depression at that stage and I had no idea I was.
“That was a byproduct of being on this treadmill of life and not smelling the roses, trying to please everyone other than myself, that’s what it boiled down to. It made me really reflect and I thought, ‘I am really battling here’.”
Often the joker on Fox Footy’s Bounce program, and for many years on Triple M, Frawley played hard and partied hard, often with great mate Tony Lockett.
His tenure as senior Richmond coach saw the Tigers surge to a 2001 preliminary final. He then misjudged the quality of the club’s list and they battled in subsequent years.
As St Kilda captain, he spoke about playing and partying hard with Lockett, driving back and forth from Ballarat to Moorabbin.
Frawley was a popular member of Fox Footy’s Bounce program for 13 years and 350 episodes, remembered for his popular “Golden Fist’’ segment and the challenges with co-host and long-time friend Jason Dunstall in “Yesterday’s Heroes”.
His colleagues at Fox Footy yesterday spoke of their love for their mate.
A Millbrook farmer has left flowers at the scene of AFL legend Danny Frawley's fatal crash out of respect for the family. "It's just tragic news." @theheraldsun pic.twitter.com/OgjsJDPrhq
— Andrew Koubaridis (@akoubaridis) September 9, 2019
Brownlow Medallist Gerard Healy, host of the station’s On The Couch, said that Fox Footy had “lost a really big family member”.
“It’s hard to express the loss, it’s hard to express the shock that we felt when we first found out about losing Spud Frawley,” he said.
“Spud was a great footballer and he did a lot of things in football, Spud was one of us. Forget all the football stuff — Spud was a great mentor to a lot of people.”
Healy’s daughter Loui and Frawley’s daughter Danielle are also close friends.
“Feeling what they’d be going through right now is just incomprehensible.”
Former Brisbane Lions champ and Fox Footy commentator Jonathan Brown fought back tears as he recalled some of his fondest memories spent alongside Frawley.
“My first memory of Spud was with Roosy when they used to go around Victoria and do the Victorian super clinics,” he said on Fox Footy.
“Coming to the ground and seeing Spud, and then 20 years later I was doing the same thing with him, when we were going around country Victoria.
“I looked at those kids and I thought, I saw meself in those kids. I thought, 20 years ago I was doing that.
“And Spud’s still bringing a smile to these kids’ faces. He was just so infectious.”
If you or someone you know needs help, contact LifeLine on 13 11 14.
READ MORE: TRIBUTES FLOW FOR BELOVED FOOTY LEGEND
Police describe crash as “significant collision scene”
Danny Frawley died at the scene when his white four-wheel drive struck a large tree at Millbrook, near Gordon — 20km east of Ballarat — at 1.30pm.
The accident happened on a bend near the corner of Old Melbourne and Ryans roads.
He was the only person in the vehicle, police said.
Mark Weigall owns the property at Millbrook where Frawley was killed yesterday and left the first flower at the scene this morning.
He told the Herald Sun he did so out of respect.
“They have an incredible reputation, the Frawleys, a very good family name, who have made a big contribution to a tight-knit community.”
Mr Weigall wanted to do something small for Frawley’s daughters especially.
“It’s just tragic news, there is so much disbelief,” he said.
The road Frawley died was not particularly dangerous, and had been improved in the last two or three years.
Victoria Police Superintendent Jenny Wilson said at a 5pm press conference it was too early to confirm the circumstances of the crash.
“At this stage police are still contacting next of kin and our thoughts are with the next of kin and family members and the community who will be impacted. All in all it’s another tragic event for the community,” she said.
ROBBO: THE SPEECH THAT DEFINED SPUD
Supt Wilson described it as a “significant collision scene”.
It was too early in the investigation to confirm if speed was a factor, or if he was wearing a seat belt, Supt Wilson said.
The four-wheel drive came to rest in a ditch next to a large tree.
Investigators appealed for anyone who saw the crash or who has dashcam footage from the area to come forward.
Contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or visit www.crimestoppers.vic.com.au
Originally published as St Kilda champion Danny Frawley dies in car crash a day after 56th birthday
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