Rodney Eade

Rodney is one of the finest footballers Tasmania has produced.

A highly skilled wingman and half back, 'Rocket' began at the Glenorchy Football Club before being recruited to Hawthorn, where he played 229 games, winning four premierships (1976, 78, 83 and 86).

He was a key figure in an era of domination by Hawthorn and in each of the premiership wins, Rodney was one of Hawthorn's best players. In the 1986 Grand Final victory over Carlton, he completely nullified Carlton's star midfielder Craig Bradley and was considered unlucky by many commentators not to have won the Norm Smith medal for the best player on the ground.

In 1988 Rodney moved to the Brisbane Bears where he played 30 games, retiring in 1990.

Regarded as one of the best kicks of any era, he was highly proficient on both sides of his body and was a great reader of the play.

Rodney became an exceptional and innovative coach with the Sydney Swans - where he led them to a grand final in his first year in 1996 - and with the Western Bulldogs whom he led to three consecutive Preliminary Finals in 2008, 2009 and 2010.

He was named in the Tasmanian Team of the Century in 2004 and was elevated to icon status in the Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame in 2011.