During the countdown to complete the draft of a book being compiled by the Hawks Museum to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the 1971 Premiership, the Museum received a call from John Kennedy Jnr asking whether we would like to go through some of his parents’ collection to ascertain what the club might like to receive.
John Snr through the outstanding generosity of his wife, Dulcie had been significant donors to the Hawks Museum since its inception in 1992. Thousands of visitors have revered the great man’s famous coat and his three Jock McHale Premiership Medals, his last number 10 guernsey on display in the Legends cabinet and his Best & Fairest trophies.
Whilst looking at old boots, trophies, framed photos, certificates, and two amazing scrapbooks lovingly compiled by his mother, Dulcie, John Jnr casually pointed to a large envelope with the simple statement, “might be something in there for you”.
The large envelope from the Herald and Weekly Times proved to be pure gold. One of the frustrations with the ’71 book was finding photos that captured the tension, the desperation, the magic moments and the joy of the Hawks hearing the final siren. At this very late stage in production of the ’71 book, we had found what we had been seeking for over two years! Almost with disbelief the envelope contained not one or two photos, but almost 30 large photos that capture it all.
By now, John Jnr had left us to pack the Kennedy treasure trove into Craig Williamson’s van to head back to Waverley. Once inside the Museum, we laid out the photos with an urgent message sent to the book’s designer that there would be major changes to the Grand Final section of the ’71 book. It was almost as though some divine intervention came from the coach to reveal his team in images rarely seen, under the title, ‘from the John Kennedy Snr Collection’.
The Club and Its legion of fans will enjoy seeing this very important collection as it goes on display highlighting the achievements of Club Legend John Kennedy Snr. To the Kennedy family we offer our sincere thanks.
A postscript: Kennedy’s Commandos – The Story of the ’71 Hawks is due to be released mid-June. To reserve a copy of this limited edition please contact the Hawks Museum hawksmuseum@hawthornfc.com.au or call (03) 9535 3075
