Allen Jakovich Biography

Allen Jakovich, like Jesse Hogan, lost his father to cancer as a young man chasing his football dream outside his home state of Western Australia.

"I feel for young Jesse. I hope he runs out there and remembers his old man every time he does, and that will help," Jakovich said.

"It's sort of cathartic. (My coping mechanism) was wearing a black armband just randomly sometimes. I had to fib about it and say an old mate in Darwin or South Australia (had died), but it wasn't – it was for my dad.

"That helped me get through that. I just hope Jesse has got a lot of support there, even if he's got to jump on the plane every now and then … I found that helped, too.

"When I could, I'd get back to Perth and surprise mum and sometimes not tell her and just rock in through the door and spend the weekend. I think your family is the best thing you need at times like that, that's the most important."

Allen Jakovich has emerged from the football wilderness in an entertaining two-hour-plus interview on his extraordinary but brief career.

Jakovich remains a fan favourite – even a mythical figure – for how he burst onto the AFL scene and left it almost as quickly with a failed stint at Footscray after sitting out the 1995 season.

The 49-year-old's final tallies read 54 games and 208 goals, including 47 and 201 for the Demons, with hamstring woes ensuring his brilliant stay at the top was all too short.

Jakovich was the fastest AFL player to kick 50 career goals, in just nine games and only the legendary John Coleman slotted 100 majors as swiftly as Jakovich's 21 matches.

"It's just, I suppose, another of them famous stats, but when I look at it, if I was 18 or 19 years of age at that time and that happened at that age, I'd say it was a real great feat," Jakovich said.

"But being 23 years of age, I'd had a fair bit of senior football under my belt with Woodville in the SANFL and also a bit of a stint up in Darwin, so I was pretty primed and ready to go.

"What unfolded in that season probably fuelled me to really get crackin'. It was a bit of a purple patch there, and that was fuelled by a lot of different emotions and … a want to succeed and kick some goals."