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Key Facts
Full name
Anthony Dale Modra
Known as
Tony Modra
Born
1 March 1969 (age 54)
Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 23y 41d
Last game: 32y 135d
Height and weight
Height: 188 cm
Weight: 95 kg
Senior clubs
West Adelaide; Adelaide; Fremantle
Jumper numbers
Adelaide: 6
Fremantle: 6
Recruited from
West Adelaide (1992); Adelaide (1999)
Hall of fame
South Australian Football Hall Of Fame (2014)
Tony Modra
| Club | League | Career span | Games | Goals | Avg | Win % | AKI | AHB | AMK | BV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Adelaide | SANFL | 1988-1995 | 34 | 112 | 3.29 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Adelaide | AFL | 1992-1998 | 118 | 440 | 3.73 | 47% | 7.68 | 1.29 | 4.51 | 19 |
| Fremantle | AFL | 1999-2001 | 47 | 148 | 3.15 | 23% | 7.15 | 1.15 | 3.79 | 7 |
| SANFL | 1988-1995 | 34 | 112 | 3.29 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| AFL | 1992-2001 | 165 | 588 | 3.56 | 40% | 7.53 | 1.25 | 4.30 | 26 | |
| Total | 1988-2001 | 199 | 700 | 3.52 | — | — | — | — | — | |
AFL: 10,313th player to appear, 1,035th most games played, 38th most goals kickedAdelaide: 41st player to appear, 42nd most games played, 2nd most goals kickedFremantle: 68th player to appear, 107th most games played, 12th most goals kicked
Arguably no footballer of recent times has attracted a comparable level of adulation to that enjoyed by Tony Modra during his stint with Adelaide between 1992 and 1998. Blond-haired, good looking, and occupying the glamour position of full forward, he was 'Godra' to thousands of Crows supporters, particularly those of the younger generation for whom he was sometimes the primary reason for their interest in football.
Modra commenced his senior career with West Adelaide where he played 15 SANFL games and kicked 46 goals between 1988 and 1991. With the Crows he initially took a back seat to his fellow full forward Scott Hodges, but in 1993 he came into his own, playing an exhilarating and often spectacular brand of football that saw him amass 129 goals to head the league list. There is little doubt that had he elected to run for premier of South Australia at this point he would have won in a landslide.
Over the next few seasons, Modra's achievements diminished somewhat, although he did head the Crows' goal-kicking list every year from 1994 to 1997. In 1997, in fact, he won the Coleman Medal, and earned AFL All Australian selection for the second time (the first having been in 1993), but his season ended in heartbreak when, after injuring his knee during the Preliminary Final win over the Western Bulldogs, he was unable to recover in time for the following week's Grand Final against St Kilda, which the Crows won. All told, Modra played 118 AFL games during his career with the Crows, kicking 440 goals.
From 1999 to 2001 Tony Modra played 47 games and kicked 148 goals for Fremantle in a much less highly publicised but nevertheless creditable concluding phase to his AFL career. At his best, he combined almost unmatched aerial ability with lightning reflexes at ground level, and was without doubt one of the most exciting players of his generation to watch. Unfortunately, however, Modra's best was produced too sporadically for him to be accorded a place among the genuinely great full forwards of history.
Author - John Devaney