Support Systems

DANNY'S LEGACY: Spud's Game Brings the AFL and AFLW Community Together In A Moment of Silence To Honour Those Who Struggle With Mental Health

By Jazz Cowling.                                            20th October 2025

In elite sports programs, players, coaches, officials and even the fans rely on a strong support network. 

The AFL and AFLW have implemented a range of programs to help support their community aimed at their wellbeing, funding and medical access. However, many still believe that this is only the beginning and can be improved further 

Support systems play a vital role in the success and wellbeing of players and their clubs, with the AFL and AFLW beginning to role model this for both state and Local clubs across the country. 

The success of both AFL and AFLW players, coaches, officials and clubs rely heavily on a strong network of medical staff, educators, relationships with others and financial supporters in order to perform at their best. 

The AFL  and AFLW currently incorporates an abundance of support systems that are easily accessible to players, coaches and officials, with some even being accessible to the general public. 

Medical assistance and support such as insurance, ambulance cover and healthcare benefits are offered to players through their clubs and their partnerships in conjunction with the AFL. Partnerships with mental health services such as headspace, lifeline, beyond blue and black dog institute also provide often free or discounted and accessible assistance to the entire AFL community. 

The AFL Players Association strives to benefit players in various health areas by offering psychologists, counselling, recommendations to community programs including  Play Community Connect and also player development managers. This has proven to be a vital tool for players of both leagues to access and is a great addition to the leagues. 

The importance of these support systems that the AFL and AFLW have in place can not be overstated as they contribute directly to many player attributes such as performance, health and career longevity. 

Each year, one game in both the AFL and AFLW is hosted by St Kilda and is dedicated towards mental health in remembrance of Danny Frawley. Danny Frawley was a past player for the Saints and was a proud advocate for mental health, even sharing some of his own personal battles with the community as a sign for others that they are not alone.

Tragically, in 2019 Danny passed away as the result of a tragic misadventure, this then pushed for the inclusion of a mental health game which is commonly known as Spud's Game and is ran by the Saints in conjunction to the Danny Frawley Centre.

The Danny Frawley Centre is the AFL's first and only current mental health facility that has been founded directly associated to the game. The centre was founded on the 1st of March 2022 by his Family and is co-run by Belgravia leisure. the centre is located at RSEA Park, Home of the Saints and is a vital resource that is key to promoting player wellbeing. The centre is also open to the public and offers a range of services to support mental health. 

Each year before the siren sounds at spuds game, players, umpires, coaches and the Frawley family gather in a circle in-front of the crowd who are encouraged to join in from their seat to honour Danny and is followed by a minute of silence to remember and honour those who have struggled or are struggling with their mental health. Spud's game is still the only mental health related round in both the AFL and AFLW, with members of the community pushing for a whole round to be dedicated to mental health.

The funds that are raised by the centre and its significant game go towards not only the centre itself, but also towards supporting key research facilities and assistance centres for mental health to promote their iconic "Time 2 Talk" mission. 

In 2022, the AFL conducted research towards Community clubs as a way to find what needed to be improved and what was working well in promoting the players of the future. One aspect that the AFL decided to look into was the support that clubs offer that are contributing to shape the emerging new stars of our game. 

The results from this were able to show the extent of  the support systems that are offered at a local level. However, results proved to be eye opening and concerning with the research showing that there is an extreme lack of support staff within community clubs. Often, areas such as medical support and insurance are left uncovered for players at local level, making it difficult to commit to the game incase of an emergency as there is no coverage or financial support that go towards this. 

However, at a state level, physio's, doctors, hospital referrals, health insurance and mental health support is always made available to players, with many players including Woodville- West Torrens young gun Alice Tentye stating that she feels "extremely supported" by the league and her new club. This is a major jump compared to local leagues, which can oten be a reflection of the funds that are put towards supporting the local clubs that help shape the players of the future.

Regular check ins with players, coaches and officials are becoming more common within both local and state competitions, as a reflection of the push for mental health inclusion in the national leagues.

Talent Pathways also often offer educators who aim to work with young players as they progress through their football journey. This is something that is included at both local and state level, depending on the players development and is designed to guide players through managing emotions and mental stress that can become a result of the game.

Ultimately, the incorporation of support systems into the AFL and AFLW have proven to provide players, coaches, officials and the extended AFL community with services that can help to change the life of an individual. 

In the future, the AFL and AFLW aim to extend their inclusion for suppor towards players and a proposed mental health round to promote the importance of speaking up towards the younger genertions.