AT home, on the football field, in business, and on the battlefields of war, Bob Quinn lived by one mantra: Always give more than anyone else.
On Saturday, Port Adelaide will use Quinn’s words – concealed inside the team jumper – as a benchmark for on-field virtue against West Coast.
In salute to the Rat of Tobruk’s courage, leadership and devotion in battle, the phrase appears on the inside back collar of the club’s ANZAC Round guernsey. The silhouette of a lone soldier at dawn rises on the front.
"Dad’s whole attitude was everything or nothing," said Quinn’s son Greg.
"I think a lot about it at this time of year and contemplate what he was like in business, and as a father, and a critic of mine as a football and cricket coach.
"He was big on me trying to be the best I could, and hard work was something he ingrained in all of us; you always had to do more than anyone else – you had to be fitter, and you had to be stronger.
"Whether he adapted them or not, he probably had those sayings in his head and took some of the courage he showed on the football field into battle."
Quinn played for Port Adelaide in the SANFL from 1933 to 1947 and captained and coached the club. He twice won the Magarey Medal, either side of his military service, and was the state's captain and coach from 1945-47.
His courage under fire at the siege of Tobruk in 1941, for which he earned the Military Medal, is revered by generations of Port Adelaide faithful.
"He wouldn’t like the prominence, he was a very private man, but he would be so proud of what they could make of his words," Mr Quinn said of Port Adelaide’s guernsey tribute.
"He loved to see them win. Dad was the number one ticket holder for the Power, and he’d watch them intently and marvel over how fit and strong they were."
Military history runs deep in the Quinn family.
Mr Quinn’s uncle George, Bob’s younger brother, was killed in action in Egypt in 1942, aged 23 years. Later that same year, Mr Quinn’s mother’s brother, Flying Officer Charles Walker, a former South Australian wicketkeeper who toured England with Australia, died in a raid over Germany. His body was never recovered.
"The rear gunner in the Lancaster bomber got sick and Charlie took his place, but the plane got shot down on the way back and he didn’t make it home," Mr Quinn said
"These people touch us all our lives, and this time of year brings that to a head."
Port Adelaide will auction the match-worn guernseys from Saturday’s game with proceeds to go towards the RSL’s Anzac Appeal, supporting the families of service men and women past and present.
"The RSL in SA has a wonderful relationship with the Port Adelaide Football Club and what they do for our veterans is very special to us," said RSL state president Cheryl Cates.
"Other AFL clubs throughout the year do not do what Port Adelaide does for veterans in South Australia
"They might be doing it tough on the field, but the way the club is getting out there and saving faith and fighting hard, and remembering those who made the ultimate sacrifice and those currently serving - it means a lot to everybody.
"It is wonderful that the RSL and Port Adelaide can come together for Anzac Round not only to raise funds but to show they respect their forefathers, they respect what we have today, and they respect the veterans who have gone and are still serving."
Support the Anzac Appeal and donate online anzacappeal.com.au
