Sam Newman

Infobox afl player NEW
playername = Sam Newman
fullname = John Noel William "Sam" Newman
image capt = Sam Newman


birthdate = birth date and age|1945|12|22|df=y
birthplace = Geelong, Victoria, Australia
originalteam = Geelong Grammar School
draftpick =
heightweight = 189 cm / 94 kg
position = Ruckman
currentclub =
guernsey =
dead = alive
deathdate =
deathplace =
years = 1964 – 1980
clubs = Geelong
games(goals) = 300 (110)
coach = notcoach
coachingteams =
statsend = 1980
careerhighlights = AFL
* All-Australian Team 1969
* AFL Hall of Fame

Geelong
* Club Champion 1968, 1975
* Geelong Team of the Century (Ruckman)

Representative honours
* Victorian Representative 8 times

John Noel William "Sam" Newman (born 22 December 1945 in Geelong, Victoria) is a retired Australian rules football player and current television personality. He is a featured star of the AFL version of "The Footy Show".

VFL/AFL career

Newman's entire VFL/AFL playing career was spent at Geelong. He played his first senior game for the club in 1964, having been recruited while still at Geelong Grammar School. Being a tall man, in his first four seasons he played with acknowledged ruck master Graham 'Polly' Farmer.

As a player, Newman quickly distinguished himself because of his prodigious athletic skills and the wide range of positions that he could play in an era when players tended to specialise to a great degree.

In the 1967 finals series he suffered a serious kidney injury in the first semi-final, and as a result missed the Grand Final, which Geelong lost to Richmond. He had part of one kidney removed, but returned to play the next season and win Geelong's Best and Fairest award.

During his 17 season career he played 300 games, primarily as ruckman. He played 41 games as Geelong captain before he was sacked from the job in a dispute with the club, and threatened to transfer to Richmond.

Football honours

He twice won club Best and Fairest (1968 and 1975), was selected All-Australian (1969), and played for the Victorian state team 8 times. He retired in 1980, having polled 100 Brownlow Medal votes throughout his career. In 2002, he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame and has also been honoured as a "Legend of the Geelong Football Club".

In December 2005, Newman was appointed as ruck coach for the Melbourne Football Club to mentor players such as Jeff White, Mark Jamar and Paul Johnson.

Media career

Newman is a regular on the AFL version of "The Footy Show" on the Australian Nine Network. He acts as sidekick and resident clown, and frequently stirs up controversy.

He regularly hosts "Street Talk", a "vox populi" segment in which he interviews people on the streets, usually in Melbourne. His interviews often contain sexual innuendo (especially when interviewing women) and mocking of the interviewees, including those with obvious intellectual disability, physical disability or people whose first language is not EnglishFact|date=August 2008. Also, Newman is known for his continual defence of the Nine Network, and often takes the opportunity to mock the coverage from Channel Seven and Network Ten, given they own the television rights for the AFL.

His other media appearances have included the Sunday sports show "Any Given Sunday" in 2005, and also co-hosting Sam and The Fatman

On radio station Triple M, Newman previews Friday night and Saturday afternoon matches. He formerly provided special comments during AFL games, but on 8 May 2006, was suspended indefinitely from those duties for telling a talkback caller that he was a "fuckwit" after the Round 6 match between the Western Bulldogs and St Kilda.

Two weeks earlier, he walked out on a broadcast midway through a round 4 clash between the Western Bulldogs and Geelong, having expressed disgust at the style of football being played and the perceived quality of umpiring.

Tabloid celebrity & personal life

Newman has been married three times and has also been linked to a number of other women:
*Australian model Imogen Bailey, but the two have refused comment to such rumours.
*Pamela Anderson, who is apparently 'just a good friend', although Newman erected a large image of her on the front exterior glass wall of his Melbourne home without obtaining council permission. However, he was later allowed to keep the artwork when permits were issued. The building later won architectural awards and is renowned as a St Kilda landmark.
*Jo Hall from Channel Nine.

Other reported incidents include:
* having his nose broken in a fight with an ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend.
* having a female fan break a window whilst trying to break in to his Brighton house. [ [http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Newmans-wakeup-call/2005/04/14/1113251721345.html Newman's 'aggressive' female wake-up call - National - www.smh.com.au] ]
* being ejected from Perth's Burswood Casino for being drunk.
* In 1997 his leg was broken after it was run over by Leonie Jones, a woman 26 years his junior (who was pregnant with the youngest of Sam's three children, Max) eight days after he had clashed with another pregnant woman in a Brighton supermarket. Jones said in an interview with New Idea magazine that Newman had not bothered to see Max until three weeks after he was born.

In 2004, Newman was reported to have had plastic surgery, most noticeably a facelift. Fact|date=December 2007

In 2005, he bought a Lamborghini Murciélago.

Cancer diagnosis

On 5 March 2008 it was revealed that Sam Newman was in hospital, undergoing treatment for prostate cancer. [ [http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,23324285-661,00.html Sam Newman has prostate cancer | Herald Sun ] ] [ [http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=387962 Sam Newman diagnosed with cancer ] ] On 6 March he underwent a procedure at Epworth Hospital in Melbourne to have the cancerous prostate removed. Sam asked that television cameras from Channel Nine's program 60 Minutes have full access to the procedure, as he believed it could help raise awareness of the issue amongst the greater public. Channel Nine personality and close friend Eddie McGuire covered the story for the program.

The program went to air on Sunday, 9 March. It contained footage filmed earlier that day in which Sam's urologist, Dr Laurence Harewood, told him that the operation had been a success and that he had been cleared of the cancer. Sam is now expected to make a full recovery. [ [http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23346500-1702,00.html?from=public_rss Sam Newman gets prostate cancer all-clear after surgery | NEWS.com.au ] ]

See also

* "The Footy Show"
* Geelong Football Club
* Melbourne Football Club
* List of Australian rules football incidents

References

External links

*
* [http://gfc.com.au/default.asp?pg=news&spg=display&articleid=107170 Newman's "Legends Lunch" at GFC]
* [http://fullpointsfooty.net/n-o.htm#John%20Newman%20(Geelong) Player Bio at Full Points Footy]
* [http://stats.afl.com.au/public/statistics/person.shtml AFL statistics]
* [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1113177/ Sam Newman] at the Internet Movie Database
* [http://www.abc.net.au/austory/transcripts/s146992.htm The Trouble With Sam]
* [http://footyshow.ninemsn.com.au/afl/ "The Footy Show" AFL official website]
* [http://www.triplem.com.au/ Triple M website]
* [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1727736448796735576&q=afl Google Video featuring Sam Newman being punched by Shane Crawford on the Footy Show]
* [http://www.scopical.com.au/articles/Tech_Media/5041/Sam-Newman-in-hot-water-over-Footy-Show-stunt Sam Newman in hot water over Footy Show stunt]