Now aged 72, Burns speaks to collingwoodfc.com.au about his life in football as well as telling a few stories about some of the club's stars when they were juniors.
The start to his life in football
I started playing footy in the under-14s with the Preston Wanderers when I was 12 years old. I didn’t watch most of the Collingwood senior games because I went to Preston games with my family and my dad’s best mate’s family. I finished up playing at Preston in the under-19s when I was 15. I was 17 when I first went to Collingwood, and reckon I hold one distinction. It was back in the days when the under-19s played before the seniors and the seconds on match day. I had a couple of weeks out with a shoulder injury, and I came back ready to play, but they hadn’t picked me, so I went off and took my bag and returned to the thirds. They didn’t know I was fit to play, but they fitted me in and I played in front of the Collingwood people and I got best on ground.
Would you believe it, I hadn’t even trained in the seniors, but I got called to train with the them on the Thursday night. I was picked in the seniors that week as a 17-year-old. I went from one week playing in the thirds to playing in the ones. I was (shocked), especially when I didn’t know many of the players. We couldn’t afford a TV back in those days, so I was at my neighbour’s house when the press photographers turned up and I had no idea what was happening.
I debuted against Richmond (in round nine, 1957). I was a paperboy in those days in the mornings. I’d get up to do a paper round then I’d go on the corner and sell papers. On that corner I used to have regular clients who would pull up in their cars to get a paper. One of my clients used to get an Age every day, in a little Morris Tourer, and that morning I went over to him and he said to me ‘congratulations on getting a game - don’t worry, you’ll be alright’.
His name was actually Roy Wright, the captain of the Richmond senior team. He was one of my clients and I was most surprised. I played my first game on Tommy Hafey, and he was a dirty little player, but he didn’t touch me. And I didn’t realise until much, much later that Roy had worded them up!
Life after Collingwood
I went to Collingwood and said, ‘I had a great year in ’60, but not a good year in ‘61’. I said ‘is there any chance of getting a run elsewhere?’ and they said yes! So I finished up down at Sandringham where they made me a good offer, and I won the Liston Trophy the next year (1962). I was playing as a rover, but funnily enough it wasn’t my favourite position, even though I played it all the time. My favourite position was on the wing, I loved the wing, and I loved night footy. The teams that didn’t make the finals would play out at South Melbourne. I used to love them when I got a game. I used to play pretty well.
Becoming a coach
I probably fell into it because in 1962 I played at Sandringham and I won the Liston Trophy. I got told that I was appointed coach and I didn’t even apply for the job, but I went about it anyway. I had a Phys Ed background as a teacher, which helped. The year before, a bloke called Neil Bencraft coached Sandy to a premiership and in one year I learned more from him than I did in five years at Collingwood, would you believe. I learned about fitness and the ability to talk to the players. I made it a habit from then on that no matter the quality of a player, you always talk to them, and that was one of my philosophies when I was coaching the under-19s and the Northern Knights. I always spoke to every player at sometime through the first night.
Burns on...
The 1986 Under-19 premiership team
Gavin Brown was like a 15-year-old skinny rake. Damian Monkhorst was a big man. The rest of the boys from the 1986 under-19s premiership team were only youngsters, like Gavin Crosisca, but even then he was more a man than half of them. It was a terrific group, and we never looked like losing that game.
Gavin Brown
I can still remember it vividly. We were playing in a practice game against Hawthorn at the South Melbourne Oval at the ground next to the soccer ground. I said to Ian Flack, ‘I think Browny’s a bit soft mate’, and he said ‘He’s not! He’s not soft mate’. Anyway, halfway through the last quarter, he went where angels fear to tread with his skinny little frame and I said to Flacky, you are right - he is not scared. And it taught me a lesson in coaching. I never ever said a kid was scared from then on if they were lightly framed. I said he just lacks confidence in his body and we saw what sort of a player Browny turned out. He was a good one.
Keith Burns, Michael Clark and Peter Furness share a laugh at the Bob Rose Lecture during the week. Photo: Shane Barrie.
Damian Monkhorst
Monkey was a big country boy. It took him a while to learn like most of these tall players. But he was good, Monkey. I had to take him off one day against North Melbourne. They were starting to get him in so he looked like he was going to kill this North ruck and he was about to throw punches so I took him off and told him off. The North bloke was absolutely petrified of him. He’s a great bloke, Monkey.
Brad Boyd
Brad Boyd was my captain. Collingwood sacked him. He finished up captain of Fitzroy. He was very light, and I think they thought he was a bit soft, but he wasn’t. He could be brushed off the ball but with a couple of years under his belt he became an excellent player. I couldn’t talk them out of that one!
Saverio Rocca
Sav only came down to play with his mate, little Fab Carelli, who was the vice-captain of our side, and he only came down because he went to Reservoir High. He only came down because he was talked into it, and he was a man mountain, as you know, and he was a discus and shot put champion in underage athletics. I actually talked him into playing footy and to give the athletics away, because asked him what he was going to get out of it. He was good, Sav, but once the ball went behind him he was a big of a ‘wide arc turnaround’ man but, gee, he used to bomb goals from the centre square regularly. He was a super kick. He was a better kick than Anthony. He had better control. We had to work hard on Anthony’s kicking. He had had a bit of an awkwardness in his technique so he’d spray them occasionally. This is where I was lucky. I had a bloke called Barry Davis as a skills coach, and he’s a legend of the AFL.
Jarrod Molloy
I loved him. He was the toughest player I’ve coached. I’ve got a lot of time for Jarrod. He played at Box Hill when he was 15. He was full forward and his dad was coaching them. He’s a great young man. As a matter of fact, we played a shifty to knock off the Western Jets in the first Grand Final in 1993. They’d beaten us by 25 goals halfway through the season and by six goals in the second semi so we had to come up with something different. He became our fifth onballer. Our captain played at full forward and had to mind two backmen but worked brilliantly. Chrissy Johnson kicked seven from the half forward flank and - you watch the video - when he got the ball, his opponent or whoever was chasing was knocked over and that was Jarrod protecting Chris. Shannon Gibson also kicked 10 that day at full forward. Unfortunately he was the wrong size for AFL. As a full forward, he was a great lead and beautiful kick. Give him 10 kicks and he kicks 9.1 as a minimum. He later went to the Northern Bullants in the VFL and played for years, but just wasn’t tall enough to be a tall full forward and didn’t have the pace to be a shorter forward.
Ben Johnson
He was a good player at TAC Cup level but I didn’t think he’d play over 200 games. But he’s got there because of him - his attitude and willingness to work, and I admire Benny. He was still going through as an under-18 player he should have been captain one year, but thought it might have interfered with his development, but he’s done a terrific job to get to where he’s at. There are players like that who you can go through and say ‘I didn’t think he’d make it’ but they do. But there are others on the reverse side who have the skill but just don’t want it enough.
Keith Burns' coaches report in the October 1989 edition of the In Black and White magazine.
