Just met Gary Baker ex Demon ruckman who owns a restaraunt in Hobart called Rockwall.

Top bloke who was one of my heroes as a kid.

I had the Barrassi special, which is an Eye fillet steak with melted blue cheese....amazingly good.

He sat down and had a chat with me about Dees stuff, he was chuffed that Hoges won the rising star, and we got talking about past champs, and he said Gary Hardeman was one of the most underrated players in the History of the VFL /AFL, played centre half back and regularly beat superstar centre half forwards in his day.

A great night, totally unexpected after a good day for the Dees.

Gary Hardeman played for The Big V year after year. Dead set legend.

Does he still have the big beard?

Yeah he still has a beard, although it's not as long, he said he sold a 10% share in his business to Barrass.

Great place thoroughly recommended.

Top bloke.

Gary Baker boy could he play. I forget which year he was BOG game after game and of course did his knee, and stopped him winning a Brownlow but that was so MFC. Great player.

I can remember vaguely a game in the 70's where Hardeman gave Royce Hart a bath or 3 and 3/4 quarters but then Royce gets loose for 5 minutes and finally has 3 possessions which turn into 3 goals and the Tigers get over the line. Votes Hart 3 Hardeman 0 if I remember correctly. Such is the lot of a backman.

Viking !!!!

Just met Gary Baker ex Demon ruckman who owns a restaraunt in Hobart called Rockwall.

Top bloke who was one of my heroes as a kid.

I had the Barrassi special, which is an Eye fillet steak with melted blue cheese....amazingly good.

He sat down and had a chat with me about Dees stuff, he was chuffed that Hoges won the rising star, and we got talking about past champs, and he said Gary Hardeman was one of the most underrated players in the History of the VFL /AFL, played centre half back and regularly beat superstar centre half forwards in his day.

A great night, totally unexpected after a good day for the Dees.

This is music to my ears. Loved watching the big guy play and he is spot on re Gary Hardeman who is also a top bloke. Must go to his pub when next down that way.

Didn't Hardeman also come second in a Brownlow?

Yeah I'm pretty sure he did.

Great bloke, great player, great pub.

Viking !!!!

Farmer!!

Gary Baker boy could he play. I forget which year he was BOG game after game and of course did his knee, and stopped him winning a Brownlow but that was so MFC. Great player.

I can remember vaguely a game in the 70's where Hardeman gave Royce Hart a bath or 3 and 3/4 quarters but then Royce gets loose for 5 minutes and finally has 3 possessions which turn into 3 goals and the Tigers get over the line. Votes Hart 3 Hardeman 0 if I remember correctly. Such is the lot of a backman.

may have been the year Glenn McLean got his chance & did very well, prior to his departure as well.

Gary Hardeman - No.33 - what a champion.

CHB to start with (leading to multiple Big V selections) and then displayed his versatility by becoming a mobile/damaging CHF.

Had a soft spot for Gary Baker as well - No.1 on my jumper as a kid (when I met him, couldn't bring myself to tell him I had originally put it there a couple of years prior when Max Walker was my idol)

Gary Baker boy could he play. I forget which year he was BOG game after game and of course did his knee, and stopped him winning a Brownlow but that was so MFC. Great player.

I can remember vaguely a game in the 70's where Hardeman gave Royce Hart a bath or 3 and 3/4 quarters but then Royce gets loose for 5 minutes and finally has 3 possessions which turn into 3 goals and the Tigers get over the line. Votes Hart 3 Hardeman 0 if I remember correctly. Such is the lot of a backman.

true warrior

http://demonwiki.org/tiki-index.php?page=Garry+Baker

Gary Hardeman played for The Big V year after year. Dead set legend.

He packed up and went home to SA for 4 yrs '78-'80 and came back for a year in '81 and was great. From memory he was a Board member for a while.

Came 2nd in the '74 Brownlow. He at CHB and Greg Parke at CHF were probably the best combination in those positions I can remember. Soon to be finally rivalled by J Hogan and T McDonald or possibly O McD.

Has the unfortunate distinction of being only one of 4 players to have played more than 200 games and never to have played in a final. Steve Smith is another one. Trevor Barker and Geoff Cunningham are the others.

He packed up and went home to SA for 4 yrs '78-'80 and came back for a year in '81 and was great. From memory he was a Board member for a while.

Came 2nd in the '74 Brownlow. He at CHB and Greg Parke at CHF were probably the best combination in those positions I can remember. Soon to be finally rivalled by J Hogan and T McDonald or possibly O McD.

Does make you wonder why we weren't more competitive in the mid '70's. Those two plus the greatest centre line I've seen in Alves Wells Flower and Ray Biffin either at FB or FF. Big Carl or Gary Baker in the ruck. There was some talent in those teams.

Has the unfortunate distinction of being only one of 4 players to have played more than 200 games and never to have played in a final. Steve Smith is another one. Trevor Barker and Geoff Cunningham are the others.

Check my avatAr ~ words not pics

Let's say I don't think Melbourne supporters ever saw the best of Royce Hart

Hardeman returned in 81 after a few years in Adelaide. Wore 9 on return.

Before my time, but according to the mug I'm currently drinking from, Gary Hardeman was CHB in our Team of the Century. Quite an accolade.

Didn't Hardeman also come second in a Brownlow?

Might have been the year after Greg Wells

Gary Hardeman - No.33 - what a champion.

CHB to start with (leading to multiple Big V selections) and then displayed his versatility by becoming a mobile/damaging CHF.

Had a soft spot for Gary Baker as well - No.1 on my jumper as a kid (when I met him, couldn't bring myself to tell him I had originally put it there a couple of years prior when Max Walker was my idol)

I am sure Gary wouldn't have minded. Max was also a great bloke and another Taswegain. Gone are the days when you could represent the MCC in both footy and cricket. Shame Max got poached by the Australian team before going on to become Australia's highest selling author.

Check my avatAr ~ words not pics

Let's say I don't think Melbourne supporters ever saw the best of Royce Hart

Hardeman returned in 81 after a few years in Adelaide. Wore 9 on return.

Rubbish !! I went to multiple Melbourne v Richmond games in the mid to late 70's. My abiding memory is of Royce Hart destroying us, Drifting across packs and taking mark after mark kicking heaps of goals. Add to that Sheedy trying to kill everyone in a red and blue jumper, Roger Dean, Dick Clay and a half a dozen others

He packed up and went home to SA for 4 yrs '78-'80 and came back for a year in '81 and was great. From memory he was a Board member for a while.

Came 2nd in the '74 Brownlow. He at CHB and Greg Parke at CHF were probably the best combination in those positions I can remember. Soon to be finally rivalled by J Hogan and T McDonald or possibly O McD.

Has the unfortunate distinction of being only one of 4 players to have played more than 200 games and never to have played in a final. Steve Smith is another one. Trevor Barker and Geoff Cunningham are the others.

not sure he went *home* to sa, it

was from bentleigh tech and played under age with mfc fourths and thirds

always wondered why he went to sturt. he tried to go 2 years earlier but was still contracted and blocked

I remember Baker very well - he was one of those players who stood out in the early days of colour television. Great story about meeting him the way you did.

But Gary Hardeman... I was young-ish but I remember him as steady and reliable in a Brouce Doull kind of way, but with the ability to easily account for Hudson, Wade, Hart etc... and those kind of players. I still rate him as the best CHB I have ever seen from any team. In my best ever 22 only have 2 MFC players make it - Flower and Hardeman.

He definitely came 2nd in the Brownlow to Keith Greig and it annoyed me on two fronts

I hated the fact that a soft outside player (very skilfull mind you) like Keith Greig got 2 Brownlows when courageous brilliant players like Flower never got one.

It was the first Brownlow count my parents me stay up for, and I went to bed crying when Hardeman got run down by Greig in the last few rounds.

He packed up and went home to SA for 4 yrs '78-'80 and came back for a year in '81 and was great. From memory he was a Board member for a while.

Came 2nd in the '74 Brownlow. He at CHB and Greg Parke at CHF were probably the best combination in those positions I can remember. Soon to be finally rivalled by J Hogan and T McDonald or possibly O McD.

Does make you wonder why we weren't more competitive in the mid '70's. Those two plus the greatest centre line I've seen in Alves Wells Flower and Ray Biffin either at FB or FF. Big Carl or Gary Baker in the ruck. There was some talent in those teams.

Has the unfortunate distinction of being only one of 4 players to have played more than 200 games and never to have played in a final. Steve Smith is another one. Trevor Barker and Geoff Cunningham are the others.

Gary Hardeman was probably the best taxi driver to ever play the game.

He was very athletic (despite all that time behind the wheel) but his kicking was atrocious - hence he was a great of the 70s, but would have been given the Grimes treatment by most current Demonlanders.

As for sticky-hands police officer Parke, he was an exceptional mark, but was a very unreliable kick.

Neither would get a game today, but then I'm sure they would have been taught kicking skills way better from a young age nowadays.

Gary Hardeman was probably the best taxi driver to ever play the game.

He was very athletic (despite all that time behind the wheel) but his kicking was atrocious - hence he was a great of the 70s, but would have been given the Grimes treatment by most current Demonlanders.

As for sticky-hands police officer Parke, he was an exceptional mark, but was a very unreliable kick.

Neither would get a game today, but then I'm sure they would have been taught kicking skills way better from a young age nowadays.

l

Can't agree. You don't come second in the Brownlow and wear the Big V on multiple occasions if you are not good enough.

He was a champion of the Club and should be respected as such.

Have to agree about Greg Parkes kicking though, it was atrocious.