'Abhorrent victim-blaming': Mick Malthouse slammed over 'disgusting' Robert Muir nickname claim
Legendary AFL coach Mick Malthouse has been slammed after claiming that Indigenous great Robert Muir was "served well" by the nickname 'Mad Dog' during his career.
Malthouse's comments came after an eye-opening ABC article revealed just how much Muir had been impacted by widespread racist abuse during his time in the game.
The 66-year-old mentioned how much he despised the infamous nickname in the article, saying he hated the notoriety that came from it.
"I'm sick of people being frightened to ask for an autograph or talk to me," Muir told ABC.
"I want my grandkids to be proud of me. I want them to say, 'That's my grandfather, he played for St Kilda.' I don't want people to say, 'There goes Mad Dog'."
Robert Muir stated that he strongly dislikes the infamous nickname of 'Mad Dog' that was given to him The Age
The nickname is understood to have come from Kevin 'Cowboy' Neale after he saw Muir tear up the training track in 1974 and said, "You're like a sheep dog, Muir. You're mad."
However, Muir stated that in addition to the name being associated with violence, it carried racial underdogs, saying "The blackfella thing came into it. It was terrible".
Mathouse, who was briefly teammates with Muir at St Kilda and boarded with him in Melbourne, believes Muir was "quite happy" with the nickname and tried to live up to it.
"When he was nicknamed 'Mad Dog' Muir, that was basically Lou Richards and Lou wouldn't have had any intent to hurt," Malthouse told ABC Grandstand.
"It was just 'Mad Dog' Muir. I never knew him as that, it was always Robbie. He picked up this nickname, and I think Robbie tended to try and live that name and that's a shame because that really wrecked his ability because he was a very good footballer.
Incredibly, Malthouse believes the infamous nickname only helped Muir during his career
"It really wasn't a nickname that players called him, we didn't call him 'Mad Dog' Muir. You don't stop and call 'Mad Dog, Mad Dog' for a handpass, it was 'Rob, Robbie'.
"Don't forget this is the 1970s, and I still think that Robbie lived up to that name. I think he was quite happy with that name, and I question that he questioned it because it served him well to get recognised.
"He never said to me ever that he was upset by the nickname, because we didn't discuss it. He may well have been, but we'd never discuss it because it wasn't something to discuss.
"That was a public name and I think in the end he tried to live up to that name."
Robert Muir pictured during his time with St Kilda in the 1970s The Age
Malthouse's claim was slammed by the author of the initial ABC article on Muir, Russell Jackson.
"A few things: he refused to be interviewed; he evidently hasn't read the article; speaking on Rob's behalf and diminishing his abuse as 'a little bit' of racism is disgusting; victim-blaming; blatant factual errors; 'I think he was quite happy with that name.' Where do you start?" Jackson tweeted.
Jackson was far from the only figure in the AFL community to take issue with Malthouse's comments, with the three-time premiership winning coach slammed.
