death_date birth_date heightweight years death_place repstatsend image_size statsend nationalyears originalteam image name caption fullname birth_place nickname sooteams careerhighlights nationalteams position sooyears article_title
20 march 2012 23 april 1966 199 ; kg & nbsp ; cm / 99 & nbsp 1987 -- 1998 st kilda , victoria , australia 1998 150px 1998 1987 -- 88 , 1998 1990 ballyboden st enda 's jim stynes.jpg jim stynes oam stynes in 2008 james stynes dublin , ireland jimmy victoria * night premiership : -lrb- 1987 -rrb- australia ireland ruckman 1990 -- 1994 jim stynes

jim stynes

james `` jim '' stynes oam -lrb- 23 april 196620 march 2012 -rrb- was a prominent irish-born australian footballer who was best known for his career as a professional australian rules football player and administrator .
he was also a philanthropist , charity worker and writer .
during his 264-game career with the melbourne football club in the australian football league -lrb- afl -rrb- between 1987 and 1998 , stynes became the only non-australian-born vfl/afl player to win the prestigious brownlow medal , which he achieved in 1991 .
after his retirement he was inducted into the australian football hall of fame .
stynes had a high profile in both australia and ireland as a result of his involvement in the melbourne football club 's ambitious international recruitment program -lrb- now known as the `` irish experiment '' -rrb- .
born in dublin ireland , where he was a promising gaelic footballer , stynes made an ambitious move to australia at the age of 18 following his side 's win in the 1984 all-ireland minor football championship .
debuting in the australian football league in 1987 , he played a league record 244 consecutive games between 1987 and 1998 .
playing as a mobile ruckman , stynes is credited as having changed the way that the position is played and along with his brownlow his australian rules achievements included the leigh matthews trophy , two time all-australian team selection , a night and day grand final and four club trophies for melbourne .
he also represented victoria in interstate football matches , and both australia and ireland in international rules football , a hybrid of gaelic football and australian rules football .
following his football career , stynes focused on youth work using his profile to launch the reach foundation , which he co-founded in 1994 .
as a result of his work with young people in victoria he was named victorian of the year twice , in 2001 and 2003 , and with the expanded profile of reach nationally , awarded the medal of the order of australia in 2007 .
stynes also served as president of the melbourne football club from 2008 and was involved in fundraising efforts which brought the club out of debt .
in 2009 , stynes was diagnosed with metastatic melanoma and continued to work during his treatment for brain metastasis .
he died in march 2012 and was honoured by a state funeral held at st paul 's cathedral in melbourne on 27 march 2012 .
