Peter "Spida" Everitt (born 3 May 1974) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for St Kilda, Hawthorn Hawks and the Sydney Swans in the AFL. He made his debut for St. Kilda in 1993 and in 2003 began playing for Hawthorn. Everitt was traded to the Sydney Swans at the end of 2006. Following the club's 2008 semi-final loss to the Western Bulldogs, he announced his retirement. He finished his career on 291 games.

[edit] Career

[edit] Early career

Everitt was born and bred on the Mornington Peninsula. He lived for part of his childhood in Wantirna, and won a league best and fairest while playing in the under 10 team for the Wantirna Devils coached by his father, Peter snr.

[edit] St Kilda Career

Making his debut for St Kilda in 1993, the then dreadlocked Everitt became one of the Saints' best ruckmen.

Everitt played in St Kilda’s 1996 AFL Ansett Australia Cup winning side - the club's first AFL Cup win.^[1]

Everitt played in 22 of 22 matches in the 1997 AFL Premiership Season home and away rounds in which St Kilda Football Club qualified in first position for the 1997 AFL Finals Series, winning the club’s 2nd Minor Premiership and 1st McClelland Trophy. ^[2]

He won All-Australian selection in 1997, and tragically suffered a collarbone injury late in the year, missing the Grand Final.^[3] He again won All-Australian selection in 1998. In Round 2, 1999, at Waverley Park Everitt racially abused Melbourne's Scott Chisholm after kicking a goal. Peter received a $20,000 fine, a self-imposed four-match suspension, a racial awareness training program and loss of match payments. Everitt publicly apologised to Chisholm and his family and to the Aboriginal community.^[4]

[edit] Hawthorn career

At the end of 2002 Everitt was traded to Hawthorn, after too many off-field discretions and a lack of discipline at the Saints. The Hawks offered him a fresh start, and he has been one of the premier tap ruckmen in the competition, winning All-Australian selection in 2005. He was traded to the Sydney Swans for the 2007 season.

[edit] Fallout at Hawthorn

In September 2006, it was announced that Everitt would not be playing for the Hawks in 2007. Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson said in a statement released by the club that Everitt had failed to reach an agreement with Hawthorn regarding his contract. Everitt had allegedly requested a two-year contract, but Hawthorn was only prepared to offer the then 32-year-old ruckman a one-year deal. The Hawks agreed to seek to trade Everitt with another club.^[5]

Consequently, on 13 October 2006, Everitt was traded to the Sydney Swans in the final minutes of trade week in return for draft pick 33 to Hawthorn.^[6] The trade ended strong belief that Everitt would be forced to nominate for the pre-season draft and risk being picked up by another club rather than Sydney following a stall in negotiations between the two clubs.^[7]

[edit] Season Statistics

[edit] Personal life

On 12 January 2008, Everitt married partner of 7 years Sheree in New Zealand. Everitt has 3 daughters and a son.^[8] His younger brother Andrejs Everitt plays for the Western Bulldogs after being selected in the 2006 AFL Draft. Since retiring from AFL in 2008 Spida and Sheree have their own TV Show called Great Australian Doorstep, where they travel around Australia by motorhome filming smaller towns with what to see and do.^[4] He also competed in the 9th season of Dancing With The Stars and was the first competitor to be eliminated.

[edit] References/Notes

[edit] External links

• Peter Everitt's statistics from AFL Tables