One of the game’s most colourful figures, Dermott Brereton is widely regarded as one of the best centre half-forwards of all time, and now works as a commentator and personality for Foxtel’s AFL coverage.
Despite playing a season for both Sydney and Hawthorn at the tail end of his career, Brereton earnt his name in the imperious Hawthorn side of the 1980s. Making his in debut in 1982 as a 17-year old, Brereton earnt the nickname ‘The Kid’ which would endure during his time at Hawthorn. For the Hawks, Brereton played 189 games, booting 427 goals, and picking up 5 premierships.
However, Brereton’s career is less memorable for the stats and more about his reputation as one of the hard men of the game. Never was this reputation so apt as in the infamous ‘shirtfronting’ incident of the 1989 Grand Final, when Geelong player Mark Yeates targeted Brereton immediately after the centre-bounce with a fierce off-the-ball shoulder charge. This shirtfront felled Brereton, causing broken ribs and concussion. However, after bringing up his lunch, Brereton valiantly, perhaps foolishly, played on, kicking three goals in Hawthorn’s eventual 6-point win.
Brereton has turned his hand to several pursuits since his retirement from footy. For eight years he served on the board of directors at Hawthorn Football Club, before completing the transition into a media career. He was one of the mainstays on channel 9’s AFL Footy Show, as well as a commentator for channel 7. However, not all of Brereton’s media work has been football-related, as he also presented travelogue tv series Getaway for channel 9, as well as being a contestant on Torvill and Dean’s Dancing on Ice.
After spending much of the last decade on Melbourne’s airwaves, Brereton now predominantly works at Fox Footy. He is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable characters working in the AFL media today.
