The atmosphere at the Melbourne Cricket Ground was thick with emotion as Neale Daniher's state funeral took place on Wednesday. Emcee Hamish McLachlan commenced the proceedings with a powerful tribute that instantly captivated all in attendance.
Drawing on his highly refined skills as a commentator and interviewer, the Channel 7 sports caller did not miss a beat as he poetically recalled the life of the much-loved AFL icon, who recently lost his inspiring battle with Motor Neurone Disease.
McLachlan began: 'Welcome to the state funeral service for Neale Daniher. Neale, the great man, back at the colosseum again on a typically Melbourne winter's day, rain falling all morning. My 10-year-old boy, Lex, said on the way to school today, even God's sad today. Good crowd in, players, coaches, officials, commentators, family, and friends everywhere, Danihers are all about, feels like game day. Neale had a great sense of timing and theatre; the Dees and the Bombers, the next match to be played here. It's pretty hard to script.'
He continued: 'The state funeral, a rare honour reserved for Australians who changed the nation. So today we gather not in grief alone, but in gratitude for a man who turned his hardest days into a gift for the rest of us. What a privilege to have lived at a time where we could learn from a man we celebrate, honour, and remember. Today, Neale was the best of us in so many ways. He understood something many of us learn when it's all too late, that a life's worth isn't in its length, but what you do with the time that you're given. He reminded us all that the mark of a person is not what you say, but what you do, and a lot will be said today about a man who did an awful lot.'
McLachlan then had the crowd in stitches, recalling one of Daniher's famous one-liners. 'The one line I can't get out of my head is ... one many of us have been told by Neale over the journey ... often as he left the house with an order, he'd often utter, just don't muck it up. Muck, I have to say, was pronounced differently when Neale said it,' McLachlan said to much amusement.
He also called Daniher a great 'frontman', comparing him to rock 'n' roll legends Mick Jagger and Bruce Springsteen. 'So here we all are, keen not to muck it up and get it right for a man who got it right a lot. Neale loved his music, and I think secretly he would have loved to have been Brandon Flowers from The Killers, Mr Brightside, or Mick Jagger from the Stones. But I think in so many ways he would have been the boss, Bruce Springsteen. Timeless, generational, enduring, unifying, soulful, and just a sensational frontman. Neale was a great frontman.'
One particularly impressive moment from the 50-year-old McLachlan was a stream-of-consciousness poetic passage. 'It's hard to sum up Neale's life in a sentence or seven. The son of legends, Jim and Edna, the third of 11 kids, the only real-life superhero I've ever met. He grew up on the farm which shaped him, worked hard, he was made of the right stuff, given values from Mum and Dad, loved his siblings, very good cricketer, slightly better footballer, captain of the Bombers at just 21, injured, studied theology, married, fathered, grandfathered, played, coached, stared, pointed, scared, diagnosed, taught, fought, mentored, motivated, galvanised, connected, all with humour. Victorian of the Year, Australian of the Year, uniter of a nation, to borrow a line from the family, he has inspired, he has loved, he has lived. It's fitting we're together here today for Neale, the MCG, the venue he turned blue once a year. He did it again on Monday, a record for the Big Freeze, and here we are, blue again.'
The tribute was a spine-tingling success. Media manager Paul Cochrane said: 'Gee, Hamish McLachlan is bloody good at his job. An outstanding host and public speaker. Doing a stellar job to get the Neale Daniher service rolling.' Fans agreed: 'Couldn't be anymore true, that underrated of how good of a job he does. He's voice hits different. Powerful, unbelievable.' 'Seconded!' added another.
Other highlights included stunning performances from Paul Kelly and Gary Pinto, and emotional speeches from Daniher's family and grandchildren brought tears to many eyes.
McLachlan closed out proceedings with more emotionally charged words. 'Neale was the best of humans,' he said, his voice trembling, eyes wet. 'Teacher to us all. A man who showed us what is possible, how to live a life full of purpose and to live, importantly, without complaint. He turned personal adversity into national inspiration. He showed us the attitude we choose each day is entirely up to us. I think it's fair to say he changed the way many of us look at the world and the cards we've been dealt. He never asked much of us because he knew a little from many could change everything. Some are measured by what they won on the field, Neale will always be measured by what he refused to lose off it — his hope, his humour, his heart. He never asked us to feel sorry for him, he just asked us to fight alongside of him ... and a country picked up the beanie and answered collectively. We are a better community because of you ... Neale, you lost your voice and you are gone but your message remains very loud. We honour you today with our grief, and we will honour you, ongoing, with our doing. The world feels less without you, Neale, but much better because you were here.'
