Anthony Koutoufides (/kuːtuˈfiːdiːz/; born 18 January 1973), also known by his nickname of Kouta, is a retired Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL).[2][3] Considered by many as one of the most powerful and athletic players of all time, he played in almost every position and was often called the prototype of the modern footballer.[4]
| Anthony Koutoufides | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Nickname(s) | Kouta | ||
| Date of birth | 18 January 1973 | ||
| Place of birth | Lalor, Victoria[1] | ||
| Original team(s) | Lalor (NFNL) | ||
| Debut | Round 13, 1992, Carlton vs. Adelaide, at Princes Park | ||
| Height | 191 cm (6 ft 3 in) | ||
| Weight | 98 kg (216 lb) | ||
| Position(s) | Utility | ||
| Playing career1 | |||
| Years | Club | Games (Goals) | |
| 1992–2007 | Carlton | 278 (226) | |
|
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2007. | |||
| Career highlights | |||
| |||
| Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com | |||
Of Greek Cypriot and Italian descent, Koutoufides has been an Australian celebrity, making numerous television appearances both during and after his football career. He was a gladiator in the Australian television series Gladiators in character as Kouta, "a Gladiator touched by the gods"[5] and won the Australian version of Dancing with the Stars in 2006.[6]
Early life
editThe son of Anna (a migrant from Northern Italy) and Jim Koutoufides (a Greek-Cypriot refugee from Egypt) he was born and raised in Lalor, Victoria a suburb in Melbourne near the border of Thomastown. He was raised in Thomastown and began playing football for the Lalor Football Club juniors and was schooled at Lalor Secondary College.[1]
Koutoufides was an outstanding track and field athlete, competing from grade six and winning gold in high jump at the 1984 Australian All Schools Championships.[7] He also competed in the 110m hurdles and the discus.[8] He aspired to the Olympics.[7]
His older brother Paul Koutoufides (who also played for Lalor and East Thomastown) was recruited by Carlton.[9] The club had also pursued Anthony, however, he initially rejected a 3-year professional contract to focus on amateur athletics. After his brother made his reserves debut for Carlton on Round 22 1990 Koutoufides followed him as a career move and was officially recruited by the club.[7] He played 50 games in the reserves, where he won the 1991 reserves best and fairest with Carlton.
AFL career
editAnthony made his AFL debut in 1992, quickly establishing himself as one of the most versatile and athletic players ever to play the game.[citation needed] He was a strong mark, a beautiful kick and a hard runner.
His profile grew through the early to mid-1990s, and he was a star of the game by 1995.[citation needed] Koutoufides was best known for both his strong mark, and his incredible one-handed capability at stoppages. He was better than any other player in the league at picking the ball up off the ground with one hand, and then looping that arm over opponents to set up clearing handpasses.[citation needed] He played in Carlton's 1995 premiership, earning All-Australian selection in that year.
From 1996 to 1999, Koutoufides was a solid contributor to the team, playing more often in key positions. This was usually in defence, but played some games in the forward line, scoring his career-best 6.4 against Collingwood in 1997. He was the club leading goalkicker in 1997 with 28 goals. In 1999, he was selected in the final Victorian State of Origin team, his only ever Big V.
Koutoufides rose to greatness in 2000[citation needed], his best season. He played 20 games, averaging 26 disposals, over six marks and nearly two goals a game. He managed his career-high 39 disposals against Sydney in Round 8. He was clear favourite in the Brownlow Medal, but suffered a knee injury (torn posterior cruciate ligament) in Round 20 against Essendon in front of 91,000 fans; he held the equal-lead in the Brownlow count at the time of his injury, but unable to poll votes in the final three games, he ultimately finished fourth.[10] He would also fail to win Carlton's best and fairest, that prize shared between Brett Ratten and Scott Camporeale, but he won the prestigious AFLPA MVP Award (now known as the Leigh Matthews Trophy), and would gain All-Australian selection for the second time; his knee injury would prevent him from taking part in the International Rules series.
Koutoufides' PCL injury was healed before the start of 2001, and he had another stellar season[citation needed], finally winning his first club best and fairest. However, in the semi-final against Richmond, he again sustained a knee injury, this time a very serious torn anterior cruciate ligament. He would not play again until Round 15, 2002, playing only three games in that year and wearing a specially designed game-day knee brace. Koutoufides' capacity to jump was severely limited for the following years. Carlton's poor season was put down to his long-term injury.[citation needed]
Following the retirement of Andrew McKay, Koutoufides was made the captain of the team in 2004, a position he held until 2006. As captain, Koutoufides won his second best and fairest in 2005, once again a key figure in Carlton's midfield. In 2007, he handed the captaincy to Lance Whitnall.
Retirement
editKoutoufides announced his retirement from AFL football on 31 July 2007. The decision was made following a hip injury that he suffered against St Kilda in Round 17, 2007 which was discovered to be more severe than first expected.[11] In Round 18, 2007, Carlton vs Collingwood game, he had a lap of honour and a standing ovation before the match from the Carlton players and the supporters. Having played 278 games, Koutoufides is eighth all-time on Carlton's list. Despite the usual practice of players changing to lower numbers after their junior seasons, Koutoufides wore the No. 43 guernsey through the prime of his career, and holds VFL/AFL record for games in that number.
Koutoufides was selected in both the Italian and the Greek teams of the century, in the latter of which he was named a vice-captain. He is a life-member of the Carlton Football Club. Furthermore, having played a total of 305 games (278 regular season games, 26 pre-season games, 1 State of Origin game), he is a life-member of the AFL. In 2014, he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame.
Memorable performances
editStanding out amongst Koutoufides' career are two particularly memorable performances. In Round 5, 1996, against West Coast at Subiaco Oval, Koutoufides dominated on the wing.[citation needed] He took his career-high 18 marks, including the final game-saving mark which kept the Blues ahead by one point.[12] It was included in the "Memorable Moments" competition for the Subiaco Oval farewell.[13]
The second was his final quarter against Essendon in the 1999 preliminary final. In the final quarter, Koutoufides moved into the midfield, and drifted forward and back, to finish with ten kicks and six marks, generating four clearances, three rebounds and two goals, helping the Blues to come from 11 points behind to famously beat the heavily favoured Bombers by one point. The performance was described by club legend (and later, president) Stephen Kernahan as "the greatest quarter of football ever played".[14]
Controversy
editThrough the mid-1990s, Koutoufides was hot property, becoming a pin-up boy for the club, appearing in the Men For All Seasons calendar on numerous occasions and being an AFL face of Nike and Adidas in the mid-1990s. Competition between those rival companies for boots sponsorship caused a particular controversy in 1997, with Koutoufides having an individual adidas sponsorship, and Carlton having a team Nike sponsorship. The "Kouta's Boots" scandal nearly resulted in Koutoufides missing games unless he could fulfil his own endorsement contract, but the issue was resolved before any such action was taken.[15]
There was criticism that, in later years, Koutoufides did not deserve his $1 million contract, as he missed a vast number of matches due to injuries to his knee, hamstring and hand. However, much of Koutoufides' salary during the height of his career was deferred to later contracts for salary cap reasons.[16]
Playing statistics
edit G
|
Goals | K
|
Kicks | D
|
Disposals | T
|
Tackles |
B
|
Behinds | H
|
Handballs | M
|
Marks |
| Season | Team | No. | Games | Totals | Averages (per game) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | B | K | H | D | M | T | G | B | K | H | D | M | T | ||||
| 1992 | Carlton | 43 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 49 | 27 | 76 | 13 | 1 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 8.2 | 4.5 | 12.7 | 2.2 | 0.2 |
| 1993 | Carlton | 43 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 68 | 48 | 116 | 19 | 13 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 8.5 | 6.0 | 14.5 | 2.4 | 1.6 |
| 1994 | Carlton | 43 | 22 | 6 | 10 | 222 | 107 | 329 | 62 | 26 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 10.1 | 4.9 | 15.0 | 2.8 | 1.2 |
| 1995 | Carlton | 43 | 25 | 22 | 13 | 294 | 216 | 510 | 128 | 50 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 11.8 | 8.6 | 20.4 | 5.1 | 2.0 |
| 1996 | Carlton | 43 | 24 | 24 | 15 | 318 | 201 | 519 | 145 | 36 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 13.3 | 8.4 | 21.6 | 6.0 | 1.5 |
| 1997 | Carlton | 43 | 22 | 28 | 32 | 270 | 156 | 426 | 95 | 20 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 12.3 | 7.1 | 19.4 | 4.3 | 0.9 |
| 1998 | Carlton | 43 | 21 | 11 | 12 | 225 | 126 | 351 | 95 | 23 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 10.7 | 6.0 | 16.7 | 4.5 | 1.1 |
| 1999 | Carlton | 43 | 20 | 9 | 5 | 236 | 164 | 400 | 116 | 19 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 11.8 | 8.2 | 20.0 | 5.8 | 1.0 |
| 2000 | Carlton | 43 | 20 | 36 | 19 | 282 | 239 | 521 | 127 | 40 | 1.8 | 1.0 | 14.1 | 12.0 | 26.1 | 6.4 | 2.0 |
| 2001 | Carlton | 43 | 22 | 32 | 20 | 271 | 238 | 509 | 126 | 62 | 1.5 | 0.9 | 12.3 | 10.8 | 23.1 | 5.7 | 2.8 |
| 2002 | Carlton | 43 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 14 | 28 | 7 | 4 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 9.3 | 2.3 | 1.3 |
| 2003 | Carlton | 43 | 22 | 6 | 7 | 234 | 234 | 468 | 55 | 77 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 10.6 | 10.6 | 21.3 | 2.5 | 3.5 |
| 2004 | Carlton | 43 | 12 | 15 | 10 | 109 | 86 | 195 | 43 | 43 | 1.3 | 0.8 | 9.1 | 7.2 | 16.3 | 3.6 | 3.6 |
| 2005 | Carlton | 43 | 22 | 13 | 11 | 223 | 205 | 428 | 75 | 62 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 10.1 | 9.3 | 19.5 | 3.4 | 2.8 |
| 2006 | Carlton | 43 | 18 | 12 | 14 | 169 | 172 | 341 | 89 | 65 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 9.4 | 9.6 | 18.9 | 4.9 | 3.6 |
| 2007 | Carlton | 43 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 81 | 97 | 178 | 29 | 27 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 7.4 | 8.8 | 16.2 | 2.6 | 2.5 |
| Career | 278 | 226 | 176 | 3065 | 2330 | 5395 | 1224 | 568 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 11.0 | 8.4 | 19.4 | 4.4 | 2.0 | ||
Honours and achievements
edit| Brownlow Medal votes | |
| Season | Votes |
|---|---|
| 1992 | 1 |
| 1993 | — |
| 1994 | 3 |
| 1995 | 12 |
| 1996 | 12 |
| 1997 | 6 |
| 1998 | — |
| 1999 | 6 |
| 2000 | 19 |
| 2001 | 8 |
| 2002 | — |
| 2003 | 5 |
| 2004 | 5 |
| 2005 | 5 |
| 2006 | — |
| 2007 | — |
| Total | 82 |
| Key: | |
| Green / Bold = Won | |
- Team
- AFL Premiership (Carlton): 1995
- McClelland Trophy (Carlton): 1995
- Pre-Season Cup (Carlton): 1997, 2005, 2007
- Individual
- Leigh Matthews Trophy (AFLPA MVP Award): 2000
- All-Australian: 1995, 2000
- Australian Football Media Association Player of the Year Award: 2000
- Robert Reynolds Trophy/John Nicholls Medal (Carlton F.C. Best & Fairest): 2001, 2005
- Carlton F.C. Leading Club Goalkicker Award: 1997
- Carlton F.C. Captain: 2004–2006
- Victorian Representative Honours: 1999
- Carlton F.C. Life-Member
- AFL Life-Member
- Greek Team of the Century – Centre (VC)
- Italian Team of the Century – Centre Half-Back
- Australian Football Hall of Fame inductee: 2014
Beyond football
editIn October 2002, Koutoufides married Susie Angeloski. They have two sons and a daughter.[citation needed]
On 28 November 2006, Koutoufides won the fifth season of the Seven Network's Dancing with the Stars.
In 2008, Koutoufides played "Kouta the Greek God" in the Seven Network's revival of Gladiators. On the show he was usually referred to as "Kouta, a Gladiator touched by the gods".
Koutoufides owned the Souvlaki Hut restaurant in Templestowe Lower with former Carlton teammate Ang Christou and became the advertising face for the franchise until its closure in early 2011.[5][18]
Koutoufides is running as a Lord Mayor candidate in the 2024 Melbourne City Council election.[19]
References
edit- ^ a b For Mum and Dad - Kouta's multicultural story By Tony De Bolfo, Carlton Media on 19 July 2018
- ^ "Pagan shocked by Kouta's blast". Fox Sports. 25 October 2007. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ "Kouta to return for the Blues in AFL". The Sydney Morning Herald. 19 July 2006. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
- ^ Lynch, Alastair (31 May 2008) Anthony Koutoufides leaves legacy for game
- ^ a b Kouta's new field of dreams
- ^ Kouta conquers chess queen
- ^ a b c FORMER AFL STAR ANTHONY KOUTOUFIDES WAS ONCE A SCHOOL ATHLETICS CHAMPION Published 23 November 2017
- ^ Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2002). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: every AFL/VFL player since 1897 (4th ed.). Melbourne, Victoria: Crown Content. p. 358. ISBN 1-74095-001-1.
- ^ Paul Koutoufides from Blueseum
- ^ "2000 Brownlow Medal". AFL Tables. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
- ^ "Koutoufides announces retirement". ABC News. 31 July 2007. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
- ^ Johnson, Len (28 April 1996). "Eagles lack vision as Blues get the breaks". The Age.
- ^ McClure, Geoff (17 May 2005). "Sporting Life". The Age. Melbourne.
- ^ Piesse, Ken (19 September 1999), "Anthony Koutoufides.....Carlton", Herald Sun, Melbourne, p. 9
- ^ The Sports Factor Archived 19 January 2005 at the Wayback Machine; Radio National; (16 May 1997)
- ^ Niall, Jake (6 December 2002) I'll take $600,000 cut: Kouta
- ^ Anthony Koutoufides' player profile at AFL Tables
- ^ "Anthony Koutoufides vows to pay Souvlaki Hut staff". Herald Sun. 21 January 2011. Retrieved 31 May 2011.
- ^ https://neoskosmos.com/en/2024/08/27/features/afl-great-anthony-koutoufides-sets-sights-on-melbournes-lord-mayor-role/
External links
edit