Robert DiPierdomenico

Robert DiPierdomenico, popularly known as Dipper, is a retired Australian rules footballer who represented Hawthorn in the Australian Football League from the 1970s to the 1990s. Born on 5 May 1958 in Hawthorn to Italian parents who had emigrated from Abbateggio, he is one of the most successful Italian Australians to play the game and was selected in the VFL and AFL Italian Team of the Century. He began with Hawthorn in 1975, played 99 reserve-grade games while moving between the first team and the reserves, and established himself in 1978 with a best-on-ground performance in the Grand Final. He played 240 games and kicked 130 goals for the Hawks before retiring in 1991. Known for his toughness and his moustache, he won the Brownlow Medal in 1986, tying with Greg Williams of Sydney.