The story behind Ginnivan’s bizarre ‘tummy rub’ celebration

With 114 career goals, Hawthorn star Jack Ginnivan is one of the AFL’s most exciting young talents – and most polarising players.

Armed with a great kick and a larrikin personality, he’s earned himself a legion of fans – and foes.

For many, the most entertaining part of Ginnivan’s on-field behaviour has nothing to do with his actual goalscoring, but the seconds after it.

From cheeky aeroplane gestures, controversial shushes to Telstra memes, Ginnivan’s post-goal celebrations have gone viral on social media and inspired schoolyard re-enactments.

Ahead of Hawthorn’s semi-final against Adelaide on Friday, we’ve rounded up Ginnivan’s most iconic and bizarre post-goal antics.

The Anzac Day shush

Ginnivan arrived at Collingwood without fanfare via the 2020 rookie draft, but quickly made headlines with his outlandish persona and infectious love of the game.

In 2022, he became the first teenager since Mark McGough to win the Anzac Medal for his best-on-ground-performance after lighting up the MCG with five goals.

After one of those goals, the bleached-blond forward turned to the crowd of furious Essendon fans over the fence and put his finger to his lips and told them to hush.

Collingwood coach Craig McRae later spoke about Ginnivan’s controversial goal celebrations on SEN. McRae revealed he told Ginnivan to “find the balance” and reminded the young forward to celebrate the goal with his teammates.

Ginnivan would endure a turbulent, but short-lived tenure at Collingwood, including a two-game ban for admitting to illicit drug use and criticism for attending a horse-racing event on grand final eve in 2023. After winning the flag, he departed the club for Hawthorn.

The cameraman and the ‘call me’

During Saturday’s elimination final against GWS, Ginnivan snapped a goal and celebrated by pointing his finger towards his forehead while teammate Changkuoth Jiath pretended to snap a picture.

“He just has a point with the cameraman to say ‘This is me, click, click’,” commentators declared.

The duo has numerous other joint celebrations, including a handshake and bow celebration inspired by NBA superstar LeBron James.

Moments earlier, Ginnivan had celebrated another goal with a cheeky “call me” gesture, fulfilling an earlier promise made on Nine’s Players show, when he had said he would reenact former Port Adelaide star Warren Tredrea’s famous call-me gesture.

The Telstra celebration

After booting the opening goal against Carlton earlier this year, Ginnivan confused commentators with an unusual celebration – leaning back and waving his arms up and down before flashing a grin.

For the uninitiated, Ginnivan was referencing Telstra’s infamous Wherever we go jingle, which was publicly voted in July as Australia’s most unforgettable advert. 

The ad features a whistling man’s laid-back, slow strut and shoulder lean – inspired by Mick Jagger – and has quickly become a meme across social media channels.

The tummy rub

During last weekend’s elimination final against GWS, Ginnivan circled his hands over his stomach after booting a goal.

According to teammate Mabior Chol, the gesture was a reference for ex-Bomber Michael Hibberd and his, well, stomach.

“It’s a little gag that he had with Michael Hibberd,” Chol told this masthead.

“They have got a little group chat going and on and he asked him to do that because he has a bit of a belly going on at the moment; that is Ginny.

“His ‘cellys’ have been good, but his footy is actually doing the talking more this year.

“Credit to him, if he can keep playing [footy] that way I think ‘Mitch’ [coach Sam Mitchell] is happy for him to do whatever celebration he wants.”

The plane

If you’re unfamiliar with the aeroplane-lore between Jack Ginnivan and now departed Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley, here’s quick rundown:

The duo made headlines during last year’s semi-final between Port and the Hawks. Before the game, Ginnivan posted an Instagram comment implying Hawthorn would beat Port and fly to Sydney the following week to face the Swans. Hawthorn ended up losing the game and Hinkley raised his arms to mimic an aeroplane.

The veteran coach was slapped with a $20,000 fine for conduct unbecoming. Fast-forward to July 2025, Ginnivan snapped a goal and then raised his arms for a cheeky aeroplane-style goal celebration. 

Fox Footy cameras panned immediately to Port coach Ken Hinkley, who offered a wry smile and even a chuckle.

Cracking a cold one

Ginnivan’s pre-final controversies haven’t been limited to his time at Collingwood. He turned heads again last year when he was spotted at a Richmond pub, less than 24 hours before the Hawks were set to face the Western Bulldogs in an elimination final at the MCG.

Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell said he had no “no issues” with Ginnivan’s pub visit, however the young gun copped criticism from many including former player turned commentator Kane Cornes.

“The Jack Ginnivan thing fascinates me. I don’t know why he would put himself in that position and cause a distraction,” Cornes told SEN.

In response to his critics, Ginnivan mimed cracking open a can of beer as he celebrated a goal during the final quarter.

That one was easy to interpret, but some of Ginnivan’s celebrations remain a mystery – for example, this masthead’s investigators were stumped by his effort below, so any answers are welcome in the comments.

But one thing is certain – he’ll always come up with something.

With Peter Ryan

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