Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Bob Neil


 * The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review).  No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was no consensus. King of &hearts;   &diams;   &clubs;  &spades; 03:45, 7 January 2017 (UTC)

Bob Neil

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No evidence of any notability for this guy. An amateur sportsman whose name has been used to spoof foreign sports fans. References clearly show that he is a lower tier player who has been around for years but never been notable. His assumed notability arises from the simple fact that he not notable. Being paradoxical is not the same as being notable on Wikipedia  Velella  Velella Talk 03:32, 13 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Sportspeople-related deletion discussions. Shawn in Montreal (talk) 05:14, 13 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Note: This debate has been included in the list of Australia-related deletion discussions. Shawn in Montreal (talk) 05:14, 13 December 2016 (UTC)

 Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.
 * Strong keep There are multiple independent reliable sources referring to this subject matter.  Only has to meet GNG, and does not have to meet NSPORT of any type unless that is the sole category of notability, but it appears not so in this case.  Notability is conferred by multiple IRS, not necessarily the prowess or level of activity.  The whole section on this subject  should be moved over and merged and wiki-rationalised.  It is currently longer than the main article.  There would appear to be a lot more to this than the content of the current article in question indiicates.  Aoziwe (talk) 12:48, 13 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Keep this one. I second what Aoziwe has said above. The evidence of notability starts with the news articles already referred to in the article. Being named a South Australian "Living legend" by the ABC is an important factor. The section at Adelaide University Football Club needs paring down, as much of it is inappropriate. AtHomeIn神戸 (talk) 00:29, 15 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Delete. Definitely not notable based solely on his football career – WP:AFLN doesn't even afford automatic notability to 200-game SANFL players, let alone guys playing in the ammos. Without further context it's hard to assess whether being a "South Australian Living Legend" is particularly noteworthy – if there were a big statewide vote and lots of media coverage it might get him over the WP:GNG barrier, but that doesn't appear to have been the case. The source used in the article even states that Neil is "not widely known outside of the Adelaide University Football Club".  IgnorantArmies  (talk)  15:16, 16 December 2016 (UTC)

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, &mdash; Music1201  talk  23:47, 20 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Delete coverage is not enough to meet GNG and nothing comes close to meeting sport related notability guidelines.John Pack Lambert (talk) 13:54, 23 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Keep. I took a fairly good look at the articles and there is enough press coverage in the Adelaide media to meet WP:SECONDARY even if he doesn't meet WP:AFLN.  That said, I may just be one of the "foreign sports fans" being spoofed.  Fiachra10003 (talk) 16:52, 27 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Comment - can anyone prove that this is a real person? Hack (talk) 16:44, 28 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Delete as article says all there's needed to say, he's not a professional major player and there's nothing substantial, there's nothing to suggest actual notability. SwisterTwister   talk  04:39, 29 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Delete - I don't think there is any proof that Bob Neil is a real person. The group photo of players on the club website has a face blurred which ties in with the text only hinting at where he may be or what he may have done, but no specific reference given or source identified. Even the direct comment on the 1986 Grand Final discusses his name being called out to inspire the team, not any deeds he did himself. RossRSmith (talk) 23:16, 29 December 2016 (UTC)

Keep per the significant coverage in reliable sources.  The article notes: "HE REPUTEDLY charms snakes and pats tigers. Songs are written in his honour and, now he has been painted on canvas, Bob Neil's mates want him immortalised as an icon. 'He's an SA legend. We're actually thinking we should register him like the Balfour's frog cake as a heritage icon,' University of Adelaide Football Club (UAFC) member David Gordon said. In 1986, the club adopted Mr Neil as its hero, turning him into name now familiar across the world sporting scene. Mr Gordon said it started at the 1986 A1 grand final as UAFC was making a comeback against Riverside Football Club. Everyone started chanting 'Bob Neil' to the tune of 'Here We Go, Here We Go, Here We Go'.  They've since flogged his name on stubbie holders, song books, stickers and T-shirts.  UAFC members have waved placards at cricket matches in India emblazoned with: 'Bob Neil charms snakes, pats tigers and worships cows'. Unley artist Rebecca Hunt painted Mr Neil for the Archibald Prize but the painting was not accepted."  The article notes: "It is the Bob Neil phenomenon that is as startling as any in the club's history. Neil, a humble mathematician, was a C grade player of modest but reliable ability. Without having met the man, you could imagine him wearing green or brown and playing in a back pocket. The sort of club man who was always there to tap the keg or to clean up the mess, Neil has been immortalised in what surely started as an irreverent 'mickey-take'. But the legend inexplicably grew, and the 'Bob Neil' banner appears on stands at all the world's major sporting events and the club has its own business enterprise with 'Bob Neil' memorabilia. Indeed in 1991, before the Crows' first ever-game against Sydney at the SCG, the players were bewildered but heartened to see the 'Bob Neil' banner adorning the Bill O'Reilly Stand."  The article notes: "Adelaide University Blacks football legend Bob Neil (left), former AFL chief executive Wayne Jackson and first year footballer Jonathan Hamer, wearing the club guernsey. ... And what of Bob Neil, the Blacks’ famous living talisman? A whole movement has been built around this former half-back flanker who has distinguished himself for being - well - unremarkable. The epitome of a clubman, who is happy to serve selflessly and inconspicuously, Neil has become the most famous and conspicuous Black of all. The club’s website is bobneil.com and Bob Neil signs and banners have appeared across the world, at every major event. He, along with that other club stalwart, Fred Bloch - long serving and loyal, the man who wrote the club song - is at the core of this great club. It is a club that, as the amateur, suburban and country clubs struggle with the demands of paying players and fielding teams, provides just a glimmer of hope."  The article notes: "Adelaide University Football Club is the bane of the SA Amateur Football League for its riotous chants and signature 'Bob Neil' anthem (Bob Neil is an unassuming club member who was turned into their mascot years ago). A couple of years ago the club was fined $400 because its fans put Bob Neil's name in place of the words of Advance Australia Fair." <li> The article notes: "The Bob Neil phenomenon began as an in-house joke but has he has developed into a peculiar and fitting club icon. Mr Maddern described Bob Neil, a former C Grade player, as something of an 'anti-hero'. 'Bob was the ultimate clubman. His playing abilities were somewhat limited, but he was the first to buy you a drink after the game and help out around the club and he really represents what we are all about.' The Bob Neil legend has even spawned a range of merchandise, and Bob Neil banners have been spotted at sporting events across the globe."</li> <li> The article notes: "Bob Neil Bob Neil, a man not widely known outside of the Adelaide University Football Club is number seven. The South Australian Minister for Recreation and Sport Leon Bignell was one of a huge number of people to the nominate Neil. Legendary feats of heroism abound about Neil. Andrew Darcey of Prospect said 'he was the greatest figure head, legend and down to earth bloke that ever walked onto a footy field' Mitchell Francis said 'there is no one man who is more symbolic of everything that it is to be South Australian'."</li> </ol>There is sufficient coverage in reliable sources to allow Bob Neil to pass Notability, which requires "significant coverage in reliable sources that are independent of the subject". Cunard (talk) 09:20, 30 December 2016 (UTC) </li></ul> <div class="xfd_relist" style="border-top: 1px solid #AAA; border-bottom: 1px solid #AAA; padding: 0px 25px;"> Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus. Relisting comment: Please review the added sources   czar  04:26, 31 December 2016 (UTC)

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, czar  04:26, 31 December 2016 (UTC)
 * I meant to comment sooner about the sources and I'll say that he's still not satisfying the applicable notability and that's how we judge this article, not about any listings and notices as the links above are, and thus it's not the needed substance thus still delete. SwisterTwister   talk  04:27, 31 December 2016 (UTC)
 * Keep Just read the quotes posted by User:Cunard, such as "signs...across the world".  The world has great reason to want to review reliably sourced information about this topic.  Unscintillating (talk) 17:46, 6 January 2017 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.