THE Port Adelaide Football Club congratulates John Cahill Medallist Paddy Ryder on being awarded AFL Life Membership.
The AFL Commission on Tuesday confirmed Ryder would be among eight Life Members who would be honoured at the competition’s season launch in Melbourne next month.
Ryder played a total of 281 AFL premiership games and 26 pre-season games for Essendon, Port Adelaide and St Kilda in an exceptional 17-year career which came to a close at the end of last season.
He came to Port Adelaide from Essendon at the end of the 2014 season, playing 73 games and booting 54 goals before moving to St Kilda in 2020.
Ryder was awarded the John Cahill Medal in 2017, a year in which he was also named an All-Australian for his dominant performances in the ruck.
Among the other player inductees are Richmond’s Trent Cotchin, North Melbourne’s Todd Goldstein, Josh J. Kennedy who played at Carlton and West Coast and Collingwood’s Steele Sidebottom.
Others to be recognised with AFL Life Membership will be broadcasters Bruce McAvaney and Eddie McGuire along with women’s football pioneer Lisa Hardeman.
Hawthorn historian and museum curator Peter Haby has been awarded the Jack Titus Service Award for outstanding service to football.
The honours will be made official at the AFL’s season launch on Thursday 9 March.
Paddy Ryder
281 premiership games and 26 pre-season games played for Essendon, Port Adelaide and St Kilda
All-Australian, 2017
John Cahill-Medallist (as Port Adelaide best and fairest), 2017
International Rules game, 2017
