Paul Barnard commenced his career with Hawthorn in 1994 after he was taken with pick 32 in the 1993 draft.
He played three games in his debut season and would add a further eight the following year before the opportunity arose to make the move elsewhere.
Leaving the Hawks for arch enemy Essendon was not seen as the most popular decision but Barnard admits he jumped at the chance to be part of the trade which involved Bombers legend Paul Salmon.
He joked on SEN’s Bob and Andy that the idea of moving on was not so much sold to him, but more so requested.
“It wasn’t really sold, it was, ‘mate, we’re getting rid of you’,” he laughed.
“No, that’s not true.
“I was told to get a Melbourne-based manager, I had a WA-based manager, and effectively they stalled once Peter Knights had been dismissed and Ken Judge had come in (as coach).
“There was a bit of lag time and everything went silent and I knew something was up then. It was put to us and I was more than happy to go.
“If the club wants to trade you and you think there’s opportunities at other clubs, why wouldn’t you take it?
“Particularly a massive club like Essendon which was dripped in heritage, tradition and success.”
Barnard would play 140 games for the Dons, after his initial 11 with the Hawks, and described how it felt to end up at a club where he achieved the ultimate success.
“Coming from Bunbury in Western Australia and having a long journey over, I didn’t want to waste it,” he added.
“Then moving on from Hawthorn and the pressure of being traded for Paul Salmon - a club legend and Team of the Century member - so it was good to get one back.”
The versatile and tough Barnard, who would play many roles for the Dons, made an immediate impact at Windy Hill after crossing from the Hawks.
He would go on to be an integral figure in the 2000 premiership team, kicking four goals in the Grand Final win over Melbourne.
Known as a fiery competitor, he lifted the lid on the techniques used by Bombers coach Kevin Sheedy in order to have him ‘frothing and angry’ prior to a game.
“He called me a redhead… when I’m a strawberry blonde!” he said jokingly.
“No, I didn’t need too much. He knew I was cranky with my English/Irish/Welsh heritage.
“He’d fire me up a little bit. But I didn’t need much motivation. I had a little bit of white-line fever. Pretty much self-motivated to be honest.”
Barnard called time on his 10-year career in 2003 after a total of 151 games and 79 goals for the two clubs.