Remember when Damian Mori’s wedding ring stopped him from playing? The Australian football legend explains what happened on this week’s edition of The Players Pod.
In round nine of he 2005-06 Isuzu UTE A-League season, Perth Glory welcomed Melbourne Victory to HBF Park (then, Members Equity Stadium). Damian Mori was named in the starting XI by then-coach Steve McMahon, taking his place alongside strike partner Bobby Despotovski.
However, referee Mark Shield noticed Mori was wearing his wedding ring prior to kick-off and told him to remove it.
The issue was, Mori couldn’t get it off, forcing the Glory to play the opening five minutes with 10 men.
Mori was soon after substituted for Brian Deane, as Perth would go on to win thanks to strikes from the Englishman and Naum Sekulovski either side of Archie Thompson’s equaliser.
But the Australian football legend believes he would have been able to take the field had it not been for a rule change.
In season 2022-23, you can listen to Robbie weekly on his new KEEPUP podcast – The Players Pod, with Robbie Cornthwaite. He chats to Damian Mori and Bobby Despotovski on the 17th episode. Listen below or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
“They brought that stupid rule in, so we put tape around it (the ring) which we were allowed to do,” Mori said.
And then all of a sudden I couldn’t get it off and then they were trying to cut it with scissors. And I think it (the ring) was a bit stronger than that.
“Nobody had any tools to get it off at the time. So I ended up not even getting on the ground that day… It was quite disappointing.
“That’s just one of those funny rules that seems to pop up every now and then and we’ve got those same funny rules happening now in the league.”
In order to play the following week against Queensland Roar, Mori had to have his wedding ring cut off.
“I got it cut off and then made bigger,” he said.
“Now it still won’t come off. The fingers are swelling even more. I don’t know what it is, it’s arthritis then!”
Mori went on to score five more goals for the season, before departing Perth at the end of the campaign – as the Glory missed the finals by two points.
