Luke Darcy's family revelation as he opens up about why he quit cushy Channel 7 TV gig
Beloved AFL figure Luke Darcy has opened up about the true motives behind his decision to walk away from his cushy Channel 7 media role.
Former ruckman Darcy, 49, played 226 games with the Western Bulldogs before entering the media upon his retirement in 2007.
Initially plying his trade with Network Ten, Darcy moved to Channel 7 in 2011 and until the end of last year filled a variety of hosting and commentary roles on both the TV network and Triple M.
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Darcy gained huge notoriety for his interviews during the 2013 Essendon peptide saga and his repetition of the phrase, 'Say that again'.
But he shocked the AFL world when he declared he would be leaving at the end of last year and gave very little clarification on the reasons behind his decision, until now.
In an open and honest admission, Darcy said he felt he needed to walk away altogether after Channel 7 told him he had to work a game his son, Sam, was playing in, despite repeatedly asking not to.
'I was very conscious of giving clear air to him and it was getting uncomfortable,'' Darcy told Dylan Buckley on his Dyl & Friends podcast.
'I'd been at Seven for years and suddenly you're rostered on a game your son's playing. I said hard no, I'm not doing it and understandably (they're) going we've paid you … we'd like you to do it.
'Had a fairly healthy debate around not doing it, I did it once and I just regretted it straight away. That made it easier wanting to give him as much space as I could as well.'
Darcy also said he wanted to pursue other businesses and interests and spend more time with his family.
'I felt like I'd had this great chapter and I'd been unbelievably lucky to fall into the Triple M footy with those guys, it's about as much fun you can have,'' he said.
'From the age of 17 to I'm turning 50 in a couple of months' time, all my winter months had been on a plane and travelling and that was the main decision. Unbelievable wife who's a superstar, who I genuinely love spending time with. I just felt like there were some other chapters of passion I wanted to pursue. There's some stuff in the business world that I was really loving. Can I buy back all that time? Would I regret not calling another 100 AFL games? No. Would I regret not jumping into that pond and having a crack … bit of the unknown, stuff I love, trying to build something I've been working on.
'It's nice to do it on your own terms. You don't get to do that too often in that space. You normally get sacked.'
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