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Sport Nation
Demon to Eagle: The Bali call from Malthouse that ended in a trade
Andrew Slevison • August 1st, 2025 4:00 pm
Andy Lovell was a quality player for Melbourne in the 1980s and 90s.
A rover who could also operate as a small forward, Lovell was second to Glenn Lovett in the Demons’ best and fairest in 1992 when he averaged 24 disposals.
He was also capable of kicking a bag, evidenced by his career-best eight goals against Richmond in 1993.
But Lovell’s career at the Dees would not extend beyond 121 games as he was traded to West Coast prior to the 1995 season.
The former Gold Coast assistant coach recalled the phone calls he received from key Eagles figures at the time - Mick Malthouse and Trevor Nisbett - while he was on a footy trip in Bali.
“That was a moment in time,” Lovell said on SEN Tassie’s The Devil’s Advocate.
“I spent eight years at the Dees, I loved the footy club, all my mates were there. I had no intention of leaving.
“I just recall that I was out of contract. It was the day before we went to Bali on the footy trip and I went to see the footy manager and we had a bit of a yarn. I didn’t have a manager back then, only the great Garry Lyon and the great players had managers.
“I went in myself and said I’d had a few good years and I wouldn’t mind this. He said leave it with me and we’ll get back to you.”
It was back in the days of no mobile phones so Nisbett, and the following day Malthouse, had to make calls to Lovell’s hotel.
“About five days in to the footy trip I had a message at the hotel to ring Trevor Nisbett - the then-footy manager who went on to become CEO of the Eagles,” he added.
“I rang ’Nizzy’ and he said, ‘We’re really keen, we’ve scouted you for a while and we’re keen for you to come over and play for us’.
“I said, ‘I was really flattered but I want to be a one-club player and play at the Dees’. He said no worries and hung up.
“I got another message the next night and it was Mick Malthouse. He said, ‘We’re really keen for you to come and play’. I said the same to him (as I said to Nisbett).”
Despite telling two-time Eagles premiership coach Malthouse that he wanted to stay put, Lovell was informed that the deal - which saw Craig Turley move to the Demons - had already been decided on.
“He said, ‘Look, I don’t know how to tell you this but Melbourne have already done the deal and Craig Turley is heading to the Dees. We just need you to agree to come and play with us’,” Lovell continued.
“I was put on the spot a little bit and I just said, ‘You know what, you’ve made the effort to ring me twice in Bali, so absolutely I’ll come’.
“I finished up in Bali, went home and packed my gear, and within a week I was living in Perth. So it was pretty random.”
Lovell admits it would have been a massive decision to leave the Dees, but was glad in a way that the call was made for him.
“It was made for me. It was obvious at the time that Melbourne felt they wanted to go down the other path,” he said further.
“At the time they were the most successful club in the comp, they were a big club, and I just thought maybe it’s an opportunity to test myself somewhere else.
“I ran into Neil Balme, who was the coach then and footy manager years later, I look back and must have been a frustrating player to coach at times. I was inconsistent.
“So there were no hard feelings, I totally understood where they were coming from.”
The product of Tasmania was a star wood chopper in his teens leading to the affectionate nicknames ‘Chopper’ or ‘Chop Chop’.
The Demons picked him up from Glenorchy ahead of the 1988 season in which he played in the losing Grand Final.
Lovell would play a total of 164 V/AFL games (121 for the Dees, 43 for the Eagles) and kicked 166 goals (146 for the Dees, 20 for the Eagles) across 11 seasons before finishing up in 1998.
