Football followers in Shepparton took notice when a blond-haired dasher started to show his brilliance.
And it didn't take long for Stephen Tingay to be snapped up by AFL recruiters and he found himself landing at Melbourne after it selected him with pick 50 in the 1987 National Draft.
Interestingly, from Melbourne's first two draft meetings, Tingay was the only Victorian player chosen from 10 picks.
Instead, Melbourne’s first four players selected in 1986 were from Tasmania, with the rest travelling from South Australia.
The club was impressed with Tingay's talent, his pace and his determination.
Tingay, who is part of the first kick, first goal club at AFL level, developed into a highly-skilled winger who was adored by Demons fans.
By 1993, he was established as a top Melbourne player and won selection in the Victorian team a year later, playing in the State of Origin clash against South Australia.
He was also named in the All-Australian team in 1994.
Tingay also finished second in Melbourne’s best-and-fairest the same year as he played 24 games and averaged 22.5 disposals.
He played 162 games for the Demons and kicked 84 goals across his career and his achievements were enough for the club to honour him with life membership in 1998.
But despite all that he achieved, Tingay's career was cut short by injury.
Chronic hip problems and hamstring injuries curtailed his career, so much so that Essendon great Matthew Lloyd listed him, in an interview on Sportsday Radio in 2018, as one of seven players whose careers were interrupted or ended by injury, barring them from reaching their potential.
After missing Melbourne's run to the grand final in 2000 due to ongoing injury problems, the Demons let him go before he was picked up in the 2001 Pre-season Draft by Sydney.
However, further issues with his body meant he never played a game for the Swans.
