The Spud Story

As the 20th Century was drawing to a close, there emerged from the deep, quiet earth a many-eyed tuber bent on observing the curious behaviour of those attending and participating in the multi-faceted, confusing, yet fascinating sport of Australian Rules football. Followed with a dedication bordering on obsession in certain regions of the mighty brown continent, there followed a conscientious philosophical quest to document the many, often contradictory, actions perpetrated in the name of supporting the chosen ones (in this case, the St.Kilda Football Club).

In 1994, John Spud chronicled the exploits of his beloved Saints in the form of an 8-page mini-comic for each game of that year, focusing on the legendary full forward of the team at the time; a moist-eyed tribute to the larger than life figure of Tony “Plugger” Lockett. The comic was not to be a compendium of statistics and scores, but a weekly chronicle of what it was like to be in the stands at the football following a team for whom success is elusive. The sort of narrative that even those who don’t care for, or even hate, football could read and gain some measure of understanding about the rituals involved in going to games no matter how slim the chance of victory.

In a broader sense, the work could also possibly be seen as a microcosm of the workings of society as a whole, examining the concepts of loyalty, faith, stoicism and blind devotion to a cause, though this wasn’t really the intent at the time.

Mostly, it was about having a few laughs.