Tony Liberatore Biography

Tony Liberatore watched in ecstasy as his son, Tom Liberatore, becomes part of the Bulldogs' premiership winning team.

"It's enormous - this is such a surreal moment," he said.

"Footscray people are incredible people; so humble. I'm just so happy - ecstatic.

"I can't believe it."

After watching the club fall short of Grand Finals on so many occasions, Tom Liberatore said he was still searching to understand what had just happened.

"I don't know what I thought I'd feel. I don't know what it feels like now," the 24-year-old said.

"It means so much to me because of growing up at the club and how hard it was watching those prelims. It's unbelievable.

"There's been moments but I'm sure it will sink in later."

Tony Liberatore believes the hype around tall midfielders is a "fallacy" and is tipping diminutive Bulldog Caleb Daniel to have a long and successful AFL career.

Liberatore has taken a keen interest in the 168cm South Australian since Daniel arrived at Whitten Oval last November and has been impressed with the smallest player to grace the AFL since 2002.

"Last year (Bulldogs recruiter) Simon Dalrymple mentioned to me that the club had picked up a player my height and I thought that was fantastic," said 163cm Liberatore.

"He's made a big impact so far and I'm really impressed with how he takes the game on and his ball use is good.

"He's got a few tricks up his sleeve, so there's certainly a role for him."

Western Bulldogs champion and Brownlow medalist Tony Liberatore says Bulldogs recruit Caleb Daniel is set to become "a cult hero" at the Whitten Oval.

The 168cm South Australian was selected by the Bulldogs with pick No. 46 in the 2014 NAB AFL Draft, and is the shortest player to be drafted into the AFL since Liberatore, who played at 163cm.

"I've seen Caleb play in a couple of matches and I was very, very impressed with the way he played," Liberatore said.

"I love hearing little guys getting up there and I'm very excited for Caleb. I want to see more small players come back and play AFL footy again, it's wonderful. I can see him being a cult hero actually. He should be a really exciting prospect."

Tony Liberatore admits to punching Matthew Knights during the Bulldogs' clash with Richmond in 2001.

"I took things into my own hands, I probably shouldn't have done what I'd done," Liberatore told Fox Footy's Open Mike.

"He was niggling one of our wingmen, Matthew Robbins, and I thought he's pretty fired up.

"From the corner of my eye I thought he was going to come through and collect me. I just felt that something was going to happen, so unfortunately I did what Charlie Sutton told me. I got in first."

Tony Liberatore has broken his silence on a painful public spat with the Western Bulldogs, declaring: "I got it wrong."

The 1990 Brownlow medallist is easing his way back into the Bulldogs fold after apologising to president David Smorgon and chief executive Campbell Rose.

"I made a mistake over a year ago - February 14th, 2008," Liberatore said.

"The situation I was dealing with at the time personally wasn't good and I was going through change.

"So you make poor decisions. We all make mistakes in life."

Tony Liberatore last night was turfed off the Whitten Oval by the Western Bulldogs staff after trying to use the ground as a training venue.

The AFL rules that Carlton has no case to answer in response to recent claims by former Blues assistant coach Tony Liberatore that he felt the club tanked games in 2007.

Talks had been initiated between the AFL and Liberatore with the former stating that it was his belief that the Carlton players always played to win matches as well as the fact that at no stage was he ever directed to deliberately lose matches.

In response to the AFL's decision, Liberatore said he was merely giving his opinion.

"My opinion hasn't been acted upon. I can't change what was decided," Liberatore said.

In contrast to his revelations that Carlton deliberately lost games, Tony Liberatore now claims they did not tank.

"If they say to me, 'Do you think Carlton tanked?', I would say, 'I don't think they did'." Liberatore told radio station SEN.

Liberatore stressed that he had a good relationship with the Carlton Football Club and its coaching staff.

"Certainly, I've got nothing against the Carlton Football Club," he said.

"People don't realise myself and Brett Ratten got on very very well as assistant coaches under Denis Pagan in a tough year. We had lunch together often and talked about football.

"Greg Swann in his press conference and the Carlton Football Club did say to me that we left on good terms. And we did leave on good terms."

Despite Liberatore's backflip, the AFL reaffirms its intention to speak to the ex-Carlton assistant coach regarding his earlier claims.

"I have said in the past, and I know people want to take me up on it, but I actually find it really abhorrent that people are accusing a club, and various people who I've got very high regard for, of actually losing games and having people call them cheats," AFL chief Anderew Demetriou said.

"If someone wants to get up and call a club cheats, or anyone at a club a cheat, they should substantiate that."

Tony Liberatore shares his belief that Carlton were guilty of deliberately losing matches during his time as an assistant coach at the club.

In a segment on the Nine Network's AFL Footy Show, Liberatore said that winning "wasn't the be all and end all" for the club during the final matches of 2007.

Liberatore, however, did say that there was not any specific directive from Blues executives to lose.

"Nobody ever said we're not going to win today but the feeling in the group was that it was a bit of a laugh."

In response to Liberatore's comments, Carlton emphatically denies any claims that it tanked matches.

"At no stage did we ever, ever talk of losing or throwing games of football. We picked our teams based on giving people experience and we went out every week and we played to win," Carlton CEO Greg Swann said.

Swann added that the club would explore legal options against Liberatore and that an investigation into the claims by the AFL was unnecessary.

"We're pretty peeved about it, we'll have a look at it because a lot of the things that were said were just wrong.

"There's been talk about an investigation, I don't think there's any need for that, but if the AFL wants to send someone down we're happy to talk about it, we've got nothing to hide."

Tony Liberatore delivers a scathing critique of the Bulldogs, slamming chief executive Campbell Rose, president David Smorgon and coach Rodney Eade.

"I'd like to see Campbell Rose move on and if that means there has to be a change from the top, whether that be the president," Liberatore said. "They've been at the club for a long time now."

"I truly believe the Bulldogs need to make the eight this year for Rodney Eade to survive. If they don't then he should move on."

Smorgon replies by saying that Liberatore is bitter at having missed out on employment opportunities at his former club.

"He's applied for coaching jobs and he hasn't got them because his credentials don't stack up against other candidates," Smorgon said before giving some words of advice to Liberatore.

"I suggest you stick to coaching, stick to playing, stick to fighting, what you're known for."