Dean Laidley: age, children, wife, parents, new name, original team, profiles

The life of a celebrity, however glamorous it may look outside, is not without its difficulties. Some famous personalities have found themselves and their names in the mud for one reason or another. Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston, among others, come to mind when discussing celebrity scandals. Unfortunately, Dean Laidley recently joined the league of troubled stars.

Dean Laidley was a professional player in Australian rules football. He later coached several teams in the league, including the one he played for between 1993 and 1997. The player turned coach has retired from anything football while moving on to other things, including transitioning into a woman.

Profile summary

Birth name: Dean Laidley
New name: Dani Laidley
Nicknames: The Junkyard Dog, Tunnel, Daniella, and Ms Laidley
Date of birth: 27th of March, 1967
Age: 54 years old
Profession: Former Australian Rules Football player and coach
Famous for: Transitioning into a woman after giving birth to three children who are now adults and getting arrested and charged for stalking a woman in St. Kilda, Australia
Birthplace: Western Australia, Australia
Hometown: Balga, Perth, Australia
Nationality: Australian
Sexuality: Bisexual
Current residence: Australian
Gender: Transgender
Ethnicity: White
Zodiac sign: Aries
Height: 6 feet
Weight: 74 kilograms
Body build: Fit
Mother: Carmel Friburg
Marital status: married
Spouse: Joanne Laidley
Dean Laidley's children: Kane, Molly, and Brooke

Background information

The former North Melbourne player and coach was named Dean Laidley at birth. He was born in Western Australia on the 27th of March, 1967, which means that Dean Laidley's age is 54 years. The Junkyard Dog grew up in Balga, the northern part of Perth, Australia.

Unfortunately, information about Dean Laidley's parents and siblings are scanty online except for the mention of his mother, Carmel Friburg, in the aftermath of his arrest in 2020.

Career and original team

Dean Laidley started his Victorian Football League journey with the West Perth Football Club, participating in senior football. His performance led to inclusion in the West Coast Eagles' squad of 1987. There, he was nicknamed The Junkyard Dog because of his aggressive nature and commitment to winning every ball as a player in the half-back line.

Interestingly, he remained an important part of the West Coast Eagles until he copped a knee injury in 1990 and could not break into the team when he was fully recovered. As a result, he was relatively absent in the West Coast's squad that won a premiership title in 1992.

The Tunnel, as he is often called, signed with Northern Melbourne towards the end of the 1992 season. He became an integral part of that team until he left in 1997.

After retiring from active football, The Junkyard Dog took up several coaching positions with different clubs in the AFL. He was an assistant to Mick Malthouse at Collingwood until 2003, when his former club, North Melbourne, recruited him as a senior coach.

He experienced mixed fortune in this new position, but the highlight of his coaching career was at the club. He took the club to three finals in 2005, 2007, and 2008 before Dean left the club in 2009.

Other clubs that the former AFL player coached include:

Port Adelaide Football Club between 2010 and 2011
St. Kilda Football Club between 2011 and 2013
Carlton Football Club between 2013 and 2015
Maribyrnong Park in 2019

Controversy

Dean got himself in front of the media's camera for the wrong reasons after his arrest in May 2020. Why was Dean Laidley arrested? The charges against him centred around breaking a restricting order while stalking a certain woman. Unfortunately, too, he was also found with a controlled drug known as methamphetamine.

The ex-West Perth half-back recruit was remanded in jail for nine days after he decided against applying for bail and then charged to court on the 11th of May, 2020. Tunnel was sober and pleaded guilty while getting a bail verdict that mandated that he be on his best behaviour for another 18 months.

Dean Laidley's transition

During Laidley's court hearing, his lawyer informed the court that his client had started transitioning in November 2019. He said that Dean Laidley's new name was Dani or simply Ms Laidley. Before then, news of a transgender Dean was hush-hush and almost unheard of in the news.

Dean Laidley's photos were leaked to the public by some police officers on duty during his arrest and subsequent interrogation. He was wearing a long blonde wig and a female dress in the picture that was released. Nevertheless, he sued the police force for this action since it was against the law.

Personal life

Although Dean Laidley now prefers to be addressed as a woman, he was once married. He fathered three children in his marriage. Dean Laidley's wife was Joanne Laidley, and their marriage had bittersweet moments.

Dean Laidley's wife's photo is online, though news of a divorce between the couple has not appeared in the media.

Where is Dean Laidley now?

Laidley completed a mandatory rehabilitating treatment at the Hader Clinic in Geelong. This was part of the court's requirement if he wanted the charges against him to be forgotten. The court also insisted that he remain in his Moonee Ponds house as part of his bail requirements.

Net worth

According to the All Famous Birthday website, Dean Laidley's net worth is estimated at $1.5 million. This massive fortune results from a lucrative Australian Football League career as a player and a coach.

Dean Laidley is now better known as Dani. His decision to transition into a woman despite being a father portrays the human nature to identify with something believable. However, this does not erase his feat as a player and coach.

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