Danny
10-04-2005, 05:22 PM
Heart surgery for Collins
12:09:42 PM Sun 10 April, 2005
Paul Gough
Sportal for afl.com.au
Carlton president Ian Collins is in hospital undergoing heart surgery after falling ill following Saturday's loss to Collingwood at the MCG.
Collins, 62, admitted himself to Epworth Hospital - just metres from the MCG - on Saturday night after becoming aware he was suffering heart problems.
Carlton media manager Ian Coutts said Collins underwent a triple by-pass operation on Sunday.
Coutts said the Blues were unsure how long Collins, who is also the chief executive of Telstra Dome, would be away from work and said the club wished him a speedy recovery.
Collins, a former Carlton player and chief executive, took control of the Blues at the end of 2002 after a bitter struggle for power with former Carlton president John Elliott - under whom Collins served as chief executive.
The former AFL football operations manager took control of the Blues with the club at its lowest ebb - following the club's first and only wooden spoon finish at the end of 2002 and a near million dollar fine for systematic breaching of the salary cap.
Collins has since presided over a steady improvement in Carlton's precarious financial position as well as overseeing the club's shift from its ageing Optus Oval home base to play home games at both the MCG and Telstra Dome.
The Blues' on-field performances have also improved since Collins took over as president and the club recently lifted its first trophy for eight years when it won the 2005 Wizard Home Loans Cup.
Collins also played 161 games for the Blues from 1961-71 and was a member of the club's 1968 premiership side before then serving as the club's chief executive from 1981-93, before joining the AFL.
He then resigned from the AFL in 1999 to become the chief executive of Telstra Dome and has since helped transform that stadium from its difficult beginnings into one of the best stadiums in Australia.
12:09:42 PM Sun 10 April, 2005
Paul Gough
Sportal for afl.com.au
Carlton president Ian Collins is in hospital undergoing heart surgery after falling ill following Saturday's loss to Collingwood at the MCG.
Collins, 62, admitted himself to Epworth Hospital - just metres from the MCG - on Saturday night after becoming aware he was suffering heart problems.
Carlton media manager Ian Coutts said Collins underwent a triple by-pass operation on Sunday.
Coutts said the Blues were unsure how long Collins, who is also the chief executive of Telstra Dome, would be away from work and said the club wished him a speedy recovery.
Collins, a former Carlton player and chief executive, took control of the Blues at the end of 2002 after a bitter struggle for power with former Carlton president John Elliott - under whom Collins served as chief executive.
The former AFL football operations manager took control of the Blues with the club at its lowest ebb - following the club's first and only wooden spoon finish at the end of 2002 and a near million dollar fine for systematic breaching of the salary cap.
Collins has since presided over a steady improvement in Carlton's precarious financial position as well as overseeing the club's shift from its ageing Optus Oval home base to play home games at both the MCG and Telstra Dome.
The Blues' on-field performances have also improved since Collins took over as president and the club recently lifted its first trophy for eight years when it won the 2005 Wizard Home Loans Cup.
Collins also played 161 games for the Blues from 1961-71 and was a member of the club's 1968 premiership side before then serving as the club's chief executive from 1981-93, before joining the AFL.
He then resigned from the AFL in 1999 to become the chief executive of Telstra Dome and has since helped transform that stadium from its difficult beginnings into one of the best stadiums in Australia.