Few players experienced such a range of footballing circumstances in such a short space of time as Luke Ball did.
The midfielder goes down in Collingwood history as one of the stars of the 2010 premiership, but the events that led up to it could not have been scripted.
A prized draftee and St Kilda captain, he left the club at the end of 2009. A member of the Saints’ losing Grand Final side that season, Ball would eventually get his wish to join Collingwood after one of the most convoluted trade and draft periods in the game’s history.
Little did he or anyone know at the time, but Ball would go on to feature in, not one, but two Grand Finals against his old club later that year. He would come out on top in the Grand Final Replay, collecting 25 disposals in a 56-point win.
Memories of this, plus the inglorious finish to the 2011 Grand Final, ACL surgery and retirement, as well as his early days at St Kilda, all feature in the latest episode of the Collingwood Conversations podcast, hosted by club historian Michael Roberts.
Other talking points include:
- Why Ball chose to move from St Kilda to Collingwood at the end of 2009 (2.18)
- A trade that never happened (11.52)
- Waiting for pick No. 30 to arrive (11.56)
- Ball’s football background (19.13)
- A member of the fabled 2001 Super Draft (22.02)
- Starting out as a Saint (27.01)
- How did Ball feel joining Collingwood? (32.17)
- When did Ball think Collingwood could win the 2010 premiership? (35.40)
- Dodging a hamstring injury against Geelong in the 2010 Preliminary Final and its impact on his Grand Final (37.15)
- Memories of the 2010 Grand Final draw with his old club (40.40)
- The difference a week made between two Grand Finals (44.45)
- The mix of emotions of winning a flag against your old friends (45.43)
- Critical finals goals against West Coast and Hawthorn to kick Collingwood to famous victories (52.28)
- Reflections on the 2011 Grand Final loss (53.34)
- Rupturing his ACL early in 2012 (58.57)
- Retirement at the end of 2014 (1.01.52)
- Life on the outside and what’s to come (1.04.40)
"It was awkward, tough. Once the ball was bounced, they’re just a jumper, but you had gone through a Grand Final and lost it the year before," - Luke Ball on playing against his old St Kilda teammates for the first time in 2010.
"I was as nervous as I was walking into Moorabbin when I was 18. By the time I came back from Arizona, I felt part of the group," - Luke Ball on his arrival at Collingwood at the end of 2009.
"When you see the lifelong supporters, that’s when it sinks in. The President, the volunteers, it’s as much for them. When you see what it means to them, it’s good to take a moment to let it wash over you," - Luke Ball on winning the 2010 premiership.
