AFL star Shane Crawford reveals the inspiration behind his decision to join Dancing With The Stars as he prepares to make his debut on the show
AFL legend Shane Crawford is back on the small screen, this time with the cast of Dancing with the Stars.
After years of entertaining fans on Channel Nine’s The Footy Show and various other entertainment ventures, Crawford has decided it’s time to step back into the spotlight.
The football icon, who won the prestigious Brownlow Medal in 1999 and captained Hawthorn from 1999 to 2004, is keen to set an example for his four sons Charlie, Ben and twins Jack and Harry.
âIt’s funny because my boys have never seen me play football,â Crawford told the Herald Sun.
“They know I used to be a famous football player, that’s what I did for a living. The last thing they saw me do was a musical where I was dressed up as a character playing a king,” he said, referring to his role in the musical Joseph and The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat.
“I don’t know what they’ll say to their friends, like their dad… I just want them to say, ‘You know what, daddy tried,’ and hopefully that leads to whatever they want to do with their lives,” Crawford added.
He said he wants to teach his children that they can âtry different things and fail at them,â as long as they try.
Since hanging up his boots in 2008 after playing 305 games and winning the league for a year, Crawford has enjoyed a successful media career, including a long stint on The Footy Show.
AFL legend Shane Crawford is back on the small screen, this time as an addition to the cast of Dancing with the Stars
In 2022, he made his musical theater debut after landing the lead role of Pharaoh in the hit musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat.
The AFL legend makes his Dancing With the Stars debut on Sunday night, partnered with professional dancer Ash-Leigh Hunter.
Crawford is joined by a cast including four-time Gold Logie winner Lisa McCune, model Nadia Bartel and singer Samantha Jade.
The football icon, who won the prestigious Brownlow Medal in 1999 and captained Hawthorn from 1999 to 2004, is keen to set an example for his four sons Charlie, Ben and twins Jack and Harry
SAS Australia’s Ant Middleton, Masterchef favourite Julie Goodwin and Olympian and former Senator Nova Peris will also be showing off their skills.
This year’s contestants include comedian Nikki Osborne, Home and Away’s James Stewart, Better Homes and Gardens presenter Adam Dovile and chef Hayden Quinn.
Dancing With The Stars continues on Sunday at 7pm Channel Seven and 7Plus.
“All I want to say to them is, ‘You know what, Dad tried’ and hopefully that flows into whatever they want to do with their lives,” Crawford told the Herald Sun. Shane pictured in musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat