Full name Robert John Wiley Name Robert Wiley Years Club | Position(s) Rover Height/Weight 178 cm / 80 kg | |
 | ||
Date of birth (1955-03-24) 24 March 1955 (age 60) Original team(s) Manning JFC / Scotch College | ||
Robert wiley interview 4 october 2012
Robert John Wiley (born 24 March 1955) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Perth in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL) / West Australian Football League (WAFL) and Richmond and West Coast in the Victorian Football League (VFL). As of 2016, he is the coach of East Fremantle.
Contents
Career
Born in Kalgoorlie, and educated at Scotch College, Wiley was zoned to Perth in the WANFL, making his debut for them in 1974 at the age of 19. He won the Butcher Medal as Perth's best and fairest in his first season. He was a member of premiership sides in 1976 and 1977, and in that latter season kicked over eighty goals despite missing nine weeks through injury before the Grand Final. Remarkably for a rover, Wiley twice kicked ten goals in a match in 1977, including once against West Perth where he had forty-two possessions for ten goals and four behinds. An exceptionally pacy rover, Wiley played with Perth before and after his VFL stint and won a club record eight best and fairest awards in total. He finished with 178 senior games and coached the club in 1988 and 1989. In 2015, Wiley was inducted into the Perth Hall of Fame, as one of its four inaugural members of its elite 'Mighty Demons' category.
Richmond had recruited Wiley in 1979 and he played in their 1980 VFL Grand Final winning side. He kicked forty goals in 1982 and left the club the following season, returning to Western Australia where in 1987 he would return to the VFL for a season with the newly formed West Coast.
Coaching
After his season with West Coast, Wiley returned as coach of his old club Perth, succeeding Mal Brown. In his first season (1988), Wiley took the Demons to their second season with more wins than losses since 1978, and they were unlucky not to make the finals, losing out only when South Fremantle and East Fremantle beat top two sides Claremont and Subiaco in the final round after having been third for most of the season. The following year, however, Perth fell away to sixth after being last for a substantial period and Wiley's contract was not renewed. He still has the best win/loss record, however, of any coach of Perth since Ken Armstrong retired. Wiley later was the last State of Origin coach for Western Australian in 1998. He served for many years as assistant coach with former club West Coast. At the end of 2012, Wiley reunited with 1980 Richmond premiership teammate Mick Malthouse at Carlton. He was appointed to the role of director development and coaching.
Since 2016, Wiley has been the coach of East Fremantle in the WAFL, after signing on for 2016 to 2018 seasons.