Collingwood honoured two of its 2010 premiership players with life membership at tonight’s Annual General Meeting.
Travis Cloke and Brent Macaffer were admitted into the exclusive company of life members, as were former director Paul Leeds and long-time head physiotherapist, Dave Francis, who were also involved in the 2010 triumph.
A crowd of 400 at The Glasshouse heard confirmation of Peter Murphy’s return to the club as a director and the unopposed re-election of directors Christine Holgate and Alex Waislitz.
Murphy, chairman of the Collingwood Foundation and interim chief executive in 2017, had casually filled the vacancy around the board table created by the retirement of Leeds at the end of the 2018 season. He has now been elected for a full three-year term.
Collingwood president, Eddie McGuire, presented the honours to Cloke, Macaffer, Leeds and Francis, as well as special services awards to Pam Lamaro and Peter Thorne.
Lamaro has been a member of the Collingwood Foundation board for a decade and a driving force behind the club’s homelessness initiative, the Magpie Nest program, and the establishment of the Collingwood Community Centre at Victoria Park.
Thorne has been a member of the Collingwood recruiting team for two decades and influential in decisions to recruit the likes of Leon Davis, Alan Toovey, Sharrod Wellingham, Heritier Lumumba and Alex Fasolo.
McGuire described Cloke as one of the great power forwards to have played for Collingwood.
“Outstanding endurance, courage and strength. Trav was a man mountain,” McGuire said.
“He kicked over 400 goals, won a Copeland trophy, a premiership, a couple of All-Australian jumpers and was a fantastic team-mate. For a long time he was the best contested-marking player in the game. By any measure, his career was magnificent.
“I’m thrilled for him and his family who, of course, have such a strong connection to our club.”
Macaffer shared in the glory of grand final day 2010 after being promoted from the rookie list the previous season. He played 73 matches across nine seasons, two of which were lost to serious knee injuries.
Like Cloke, he was a treasured teammate. Macaffer switched his jumper number to three at the end of the 2012 season as a tribute to his late friend and teammate, John McCarthy, who died during the 2012 off-season.
In 2016, his last season, Macaffer won the Darren Millane award for best clubman. He continues to play a role with the club as a member of Collingwood’s athlete welfare and engagement team.
Leeds served Collingwood as a director for over a decade, a time in which the club played in four grand finals, won a premiership and completed the construction of its world class Holden Centre training facility.
Francis has been Collingwood’s ‘Football Whisperer’, confidant and counsel to two generations of players. Known affectionately by all as ‘Scruff’, Francis joined the Collingwood medical staff in 1995. He has helped to prepare players for over 500 matches.
“The strength and integrity of football clubs is very much dependent on the quality and commitment of the people who serve it. Great clubs have great people and Trav, ‘Caff’, Paul, ‘Scruff’, Pam and Peter are all great Collingwood people,” McGuire said.
“They and their families have given a lot, and given up a lot, to help make Collingwood the great institution it is. Tonight, we say thank you in return.”
