Michael Voss

Voss was born in Traralgon, Victoria and lived as a child in Orbost until the age of 11, when he moved with his family to Beenleigh[4] in Logan, Queensland. Voss attended Trinity College during his high school years in Queensland.[5][6] His younger brother Brett also played for the Brisbane Lions before transferring to St Kilda Football Club to enhance his opportunities to play senior football.

Voss' football skills were excellent from an early age. He made his senior debut for Morningside in the QAFL at the age of 15 years.[7] A year later he kicked 14 goals for Queensland in an under-17 representative match, before eventually winning the Hunter-Harrison Medal for the tournament. The following week, at 17 years and 11 days of age,[8] he debuted for the Brisbane Bears against Fitzroy at Princes Park in Melbourne, the youngest ever player to play a senior game for the club.

Although highly skilled, he was also slight, but worked as hard as any veteran in getting the most out of his body. By 1996 he was one of the most accomplished players in the competition, and at the end of the season he shared the Brownlow Medal, the game's highest individual honour, with James Hird.

At the end of 1996, following the merger of the Fitzroy Football Club and the Brisbane Bears, Voss and team mate Alastair Lynch were named as inaugural co-captains of the newly formed Brisbane Lions. Voss would go on to become regarded as one of the greatest captains in Australian football history.

In 1998 Voss suffered a catastrophic injury while contesting a mark at Subiaco Oval in Perth in a match against Fremantle. He collided with the Dockers Shane Parker and broke his lower leg in half. The subsequent operation was at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital and it was a year before he was fit and in training to play again. This injury, along with the destabilisation caused by the merger of Fitzroy and the Bears was a key factor in the Brisbane Lions finishing 16th (last) with a 5-1-16 record.

Voss captained the Brisbane Lions in four consecutive AFL Grand Finals, yielding three premierships (2001–2003). His performance in the 2002 grand final against Collingwood was an outstanding example of courage, skill and leadership, only narrowly conceding the Norm Smith Medal to opposing captain and former Bears teammate Nathan Buckley.[9]

In early 2004, Voss kicked a career best seven goals against a struggling Adelaide at AAMI Stadium as coach Leigh Matthews looked to play him in the forward line during the latter part of his career. However, a heavy injury toll to the Lions meant that Voss continued his career in the midfield.

In 2005, Voss suffered a badly cut calf before Round 2 whilst renovating his home.[10] He recovered to play his 250th game the following week,[11] but the Lions suffered an embarrassing six-point loss to eventual premiers Sydney after they had led by 32 points at the final change.[12] Prior to this, Voss had suffered from tendinitis of the knee but had been able to curtail the problem. The calf injury affected his performances, with the four games after the injury yielding a high possession count of only 16. Voss later improved and in Round 21 picked up 35 possessions against Port Adelaide.

Soon after the completion of the 2006 season, Voss announced his retirement from the AFL after 289 games and 15 years at the Brisbane Bears/Lions with three premierships and a Brownlow Medal to his name. He was subsequently employed as a sports journalist by Channel 10 in Brisbane. Voss said farewell in what turned out to be his last game, at the Gabba in Round 22 against St Kilda, gathering 34 possessions and two Brownlow Medal votes as a struggling Brisbane Lions team went down by 50 points to finals bound St Kilda who won in Brisbane for the first time in a decade. Despite losing badly, the Lions received a long standing ovation from a sold-out home crowd after the game for their premiership efforts and farewell to several other players.

• Team:
  • AFL Premiership (Brisbane Lions): 2001 (C), 2002 (C), 2003 (C)
• Individual:
  • Brownlow Medal: 1996 (tied with James Hird)
  • Brisbane Bears Club Champion Award: 1995, 1996
  • Merrett-Murray Medal (Brisbane Lions): 2000, 2001, 2003
  • Brisbane Lions Captain: 1997–2006
  • All-Australian: 1996, 1999, 2001, 2002 (C), 2003 (C)
  • AFLPA Most Valuable Player Award (Leigh Matthews Trophy): 2002, 2003
  • AFLPA Best Captain Award: 2001, 2002 2003, 2004
  • AFLPA Robert Rose Most Courageous Player Award: 2001
  • Herald Sun Player of the Year Award: 2003
  • Lou Richards Medal: 2001
  • Australian Football Media Association Player of the Year Award: 2001

Voss joined the Network Ten AFL commentary team in 2007 in a special comments role.[15] He was also appointed the role of sports anchor on Ten's 5 o'clock weekday news in Brisbane.

In 2011, Voss was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame.[3]

In 2007, Voss was charged for his role in a melee with Simon Black, Fraser Gehrig and three other high-profile AFL players at a Melbourne nightclub.[16] At the resulting trial, Voss agreed to enter a diversion program and therefore no conviction was recorded.[17]

When announcing his retirement at the end of the 2006 season, there was speculation that Voss would soon become a senior coach or join Leigh Matthews in the Brisbane Lions coaching team. Voss instead joined the Channel 10 sports commentary team.

Voss coached Australia's AIS Under 17 squad to victory against the South African national Australian rules football team at North West Cricket Stadium in Potchefstroom, South Africa.[18]

Voss was often mentioned as a candidate to coach the Melbourne Demons after the resignation of Neale Daniher. He was also linked to various other coaching positions, most notably Carlton.[19]

Voss was seen by many to be the likely inaugural coach of the Gold Coast side, but instead signed a two-year deal with the West Coast Eagles as an assistant coach and formally pulled himself out of the Gold Coast bid.[20]

When Leigh Matthews, coach of the Brisbane Lions, resigned at the end of the 2008 season, Eagles' chief executive Trevor Nisbett gave Voss permission to talk with his former club. The Lions later announced Voss as their new senior coach until the end of 2011.[21][22]

Voss made his coaching debut in Brisbane's defeat of the West Coast Eagles in Round 1, 2009.

Voss's first season as coach could be described as one of exceeding expectations. The rookie coach managed to guide the Brisbane Lions into their first finals campaign since 2004 including a comeback elimination final victory over Carlton after trailing by 30 points early in the fourth quarter.

However, what followed were two seasons of disappointment at the club. After the club won its first four matches to be sitting on top of the ladder in early season 2010, the Lions would only win three more games to finish 13th (out of 16) on the ladder. Season 2011 brought in an even worse low – the Lions finishing 15th (out of 17 teams) in season 2011, its worst placing since 1998 when it won the wooden spoon.

On 13 August 2013, Voss was told that he would not be receiving a contract extension with the Lions for 2014.[23] Former Fremantle Dockers head coach Mark Harvey was appointed caretaker coach of the Lions for the remainder of the season. Justin Leppitsch was eventually appointed as the new head coach of the Lions from 2014 onwards.

Voss left the club having coached 109 games for the Lions, achieving 43 wins, 1 draw and 65 losses, for a winning percentage of 39.91%.[24]

In October 2014 Voss joined the Port Adelaide Football Club as their midfield manager, replacing Phil Walsh who had joined the Adelaide Football Club.[25]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Michael Voss.

• Michael Voss at the Brisbane Lions website
• Michael Voss's playing statistics from AFL Tables