The AFL is a many-layered beast, with secrets within secrets. For the casual observer, many interesting things lie just beneath the surface.

Here are the top secrets that even the most ardent fan would have trouble discovering.

Mike Pyke is Canadian

Sydney Swans ruckman Mike Pyke is from the land of Justin Bieber, Canada!

This little known fact is never mentioned and I’m not even sure if footy commentators are aware of it.

Otherwise, they’d probably mention it every two minutes.

Mike is a former Rugby Union player and I imagine is a big fan of poutine, ice hockey and the Queen.

Wikipedia says ‘He is known for his understated goal celebrations.’ How Canadian of him, eh?

Tania Hird is a lawyer

Despite all the media coverage of the Essendon supplement scandal, one secret that hasn’t emerged is that Tania Hird is herself, a lawyer.

Can you imagine! A footy player's wife having a law degree. The mind boggles.

I bet like all lawyers she takes lots of notes and is constantly reminding you of the exact wording of something you said when you were drunk.

Not that I have experience with that.

Bruce McAvaney is a big Cyril Rioli fan

Bruce isn’t the sort to wear his heart on his sleeve or endlessly repeat himself, but you just get the feeling he likes Cyril Rioli a lot.

Being the ultimate pro, Bruce hides his admiration under a balanced call that doesn’t disproportionately focus on any player.

Behind the scenes though, if you catch him in a moment of quiet reflection, he’ll say to you “Gee, Cyril Rioli is special, isn’t he?’

Paul Roos once coached Sydney

This has been kept pretty quiet over the last few years, I’m sure at Paul’s urging, but he once coached the Swans to a Premiership.

Despite this, he never constantly mentioned it when he was commentating and even now refrains from saying ‘when I was at Sydney’ in a media conference.

In fact, I imagine the vast majority of fans would be surprised to know Paul coached at all before Melbourne.

Buddy Franklin is dating a former Miss Universe Australia

You’d think a massive AFL star moving to Sydney to be with his former Miss Universe Australia girlfriend would generate a lot of interest in the media, but surprisingly it has flown under the radar.

You’d be hard pressed finding a photo of the two together and they never speak of it publicly or post about it on social media.

I’ve been surprised that Jesinta hasn’t been out in the media, defending Buddy against Hawks fans that are mean to him.

Eddie McGuire thinks Collingwood are hard done by

Eddie isn’t the complaining type, but deep down below that ‘I just want what’s best for everyone’ façade, he thinks Collingwood are hard done by.

Of course, he could run this agenda through the media ad nauseam, but that’s just not his style.

Instead, Eddie hides his concerns about how disadvantaged Collingwood is, only raising them in private meetings.

It really is a testament to his enormous self-control that he manages to stay silent in the face of such obvious discrimination.

I know many other AFL Presidents admire his restraint.

Mick Malthouse doesn't like the media

It’s almost impossible to spot, but Mick Malthouse is not a fan of the media.

Underneath that smiling, charm offensive that he hides behind, Mick harbours a deep disdain for people he sees as soft-handed, computer users.

Luckily for the media, Mick’s professionalism means he would never show this disdain and instead he treats them with nothing but class.

Adam Goodes is the current Australian of the Year

Earlier this year, Sydney star Adam Goodes was quietly awarded the honour of Australian of the Year.

Surprisingly, AFL coverage this year has barely mentioned this achievement and have definitely not mentioned it every five minutes or so when he plays.

Adelaide Oval is loud

The newly redeveloped Adelaide Oval is the loudest in the country, but you’d be hard pressed to find any mention about it.

During games at the Oval, commentators never say how loud it is and continually mention how difficult it must be to hear out on the ground.

They definitely don’t cross to the boundary rider every few minutes to ask ‘is it as loud down there as it seems?’