Former Bulldogs greats Scott West, Steven Kretiuk and Tony Liberatore will grace the field again next Tuesday night when they line up at Etihad Stadium for the annual Ray White EJ Whitten Legends game.
A star-studded team of AFL greats, including Glenn Archer, Matthew Lloyd, Brendan Fevola, Michael O’Loughlin and Dermott Brereton, will lace up for Victoria in the showdown against the All Stars, made up of former interstate players.
The teams will be joined by guest players, including boxer Sam Soliman, comedian Dave Hughes, TV host Karl Stefanovic and Abbey Holmes, the first woman to kick 100 goals in a season in a women’s competition.
Liberatore said the game would be fun but also had the serious aim of raising awareness of men’s health issues such as prostate cancer, which claimed the life of Bulldogs great Ted Whitten. “It’s just a really good cause and something I’ve enjoyed, meeting up with the guys and having a laugh,” ‘Libba’ said.
The former Bulldogs stars taking part are all ambassadors for the Sons of the West, a men’s health initiative of the Bulldogs that has taken the west by storm. The program passed the 1000-man milestone at the weekend.
Liberatore said it was an honour to be an ambassador in the Maribyrnong area and work with men on improving their health.
“We have had a regular group coming to a series of talks on things like smoking and diabetes. The men are really engaged,” he said. “They’ve been really open in asking questions about food and gambling and many other things. I feel proud to be involved.”
The game is a collaboration between the EJ Whitten Foundation and Baker Smith Management. Gates open at Etihad Stadium at 6pm for a 7.45pm bounce.
Tickets: www.legendsgame.com.au
