Go straight to the biography of your choice by clicking on the appropriate link:
[Allan La Fontaine] [William N. Lacey] [Don Laffin] [Les 'Bruiser' Laing] [Milton Lamb] [Phil Lamb] [Chris Lambert] [Craig Lambert] [George Lambert] [Harold Lampe] [Esmond Lane] [Gordon Lane] [Alex Lang] [Don Langdon] [Chris Langford] [Frederick Langford] [Frank Langley] [Gilbert Langley] [Don Langsford] [Len Lapthorne] [Matthew Larkin] [Ian Law] [John Law] [Barry Lawrence] [Ron Lawrence] [Stephen Lawrence] [Victor Lawrence] [J.B. 'Ivo' Lawson] [Joe Lawson] [Harry Laxton] [Norman Le Brun] [Keith Leach] [Bernie Leahy] [Rex Leahy] [Tom Leahy] [Lancelot Leak] [Jack Leckie] [Graeme Lee] [Mark Lee] [Scott Lee] [Walter 'Dick' Lee] [John Leedham] [Ted Leehane] [Geoff Leek] [Ron Leishman] [Allan Leitch] [Jack Leith] [Hubert Lenne] [Trevor Leo] [John Leonard] [Justin Leppitsch] [Martin Leslie] [Rod Lester-Smith] [Chris Lethbridge] [Clive Lewington] [Chris Lewis] [Frank Lewis] [Fred Lewis] [John Lewis] [Percy Lewis] [William Libbis] [Tony Liberatore] [Alick Lill] [Herbert 'Hubba' Limb] [Doug Lind] [Don Lindner] [Theo 'Hank' Lindner] [Haydn Linke] [Ray Linke] [Alby Linton] [Harold Littler] [Brian Livesey] [Edward Llewellyn] [Tony Lockett] [Stewart Loewe] [Colin Lofts] [Wesley Lofts] [Keith London] [Jack Londrigan] [Doug Long] [Geoff Long] [Michael Long] [John Longmire] [Clarrie Lonsdale] [Alistair Lord] [John Lord] [John Loughridge] [Robert Loveday] [Edwin Lovegrove] [Brett Lovett] [Dave Low] [Ian Low] [William Lowenthal] [Peter Lucas] [Ray Lucev] [Roger Luders] [Troy Luff] [Gavin Luttrell] [Alastair Lynch] [Allan Lynch] [Jack Lynch] [Harold Lyne] [Tony Lynn] [Garry Lyon]
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| Sublimely
skilled, Melbourne's Allan La Fontaine could
probably have been a success in any position on the field (he kicked 9
goals from full forward against Hawthorn
in only his second league game), but perhaps not surprisingly ended up
playing the majority of his VFL career as a centreman. That career began
in 1934 and ended, three premierships and 171 games later, in 1945.
Winner of four Melbourne best and fairest awards (a club record shared
with Jim Stynes),
La Fontaine gave the impression that everything he accomplished on the
field came easily to him, but of course that was scarcely likely to have
been the case. Enormously respected at Melbourne, he captained the
club from 1936 to 1941, and after the war spent three years as non-playing
coach before giving way to Norm
Smith. Prior to his time in the VFL, La Fontaine was a top
amateur footballer with University Blacks,
winning the VAFA
A Section best and fairest award in 1933.
In the year 2000, Allan La Fontaine was the no doubt almost automatic choice as centreman in Melbourne's official 'Team of the Twentieth Century'. |
| Once
described as "the finest centre player the Colony has seen" (see
footnote 1), Carlton's Billy Lacey was a member of an illustrious Carlton
line-up that won Victorian premierships in 1871, 1873, 1874 and
1875. Some records also show the Blues as having secured the 1869
premiership, but other sources cite Melbourne as premier for that
year. Born in 1855, Lacey served for many years as headmaster of
Maryborough Grammar School. As a footballer, his finest hour
undoubtedly came in 1874 when he was voted Champion
of the Colony. Prior to the start of the following season,
Carlton formally recognised this achievement by presenting Lacey with a
commemorative locket.
William Lacey died on 6 June 1925 at Maryborough, Victoria, aged seventy-five. His name is often wrongly rendered in official football-related records as 'William J. Lacey', but his full given name was actually William Nicholas Lacey, the same as his father's. William Nicholas Lacey senior arrived in Australia from Co. Wexford, Ireland, with Lacey's mother, Bridget Parell, in 1854, one year prior to William junior's birth (see footnote 2). |
Footnotes1. An unnamed source, quoted in The Carlton Story by Hugh Buggy and Harry Bell, page 31. Return to Main Text 2. I am indebted to William Lacey's great grandson, Roger Young, for supplying me with some fascinating biographical facts about Lacey. Any errors in the interpretation of these facts, as presented here, are mine. Return to Main Text |
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| Neither the tidiest nor most spectacular of footballers, and frequently overshadowed by his partner in the ruck Allan Crabb, Don Laffin was nevertheless always wholehearted and honest in his approach to the game, and gave Glenelg consistently useful service over the course of a ten season career that ran from 1946 to 1955. During that time he played a total of 136 SANFL games, including the losing grand final of 1950 against Norwood, and booted 83 goals. In a clash with Norwood at the Parade in 1949 he lived out the dream of every league footballer when he capped a remarkable last gasp Tiger recovery by kicking the winning goal of the match right on the siren. |
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| Evocatively
nicknamed 'Bruiser', Les Laing was every opposition forward's nightmare,
and a key if sometimes unheralded reason for Subiaco's
dominance of the WAFL competition between 1912 and 1915. Recruited
from Meekatharra, he made his senior debut during a 1911 season that saw
the Maroons give the odd hint of what was to come by managing 5 wins,
their best result since 1906. Most of his 89 games were played as a
permanent back pocket, in which position he was resolute, aggressive, and
arguably without peer in the state, although the dearth of interstate
football engaged in by Western Australia during the course of his career
meant that he was never given the opportunity to prove this at the game's
highest level.
Laing's astute football brain coupled with his happy knack of being able to unsettle or intimidate even the the most gifted of opponents made him a vital component in the Subiaco success story under Messrs Scaddan, Matson and Leckie. When the Maroons beat Perth by a couple of goals to win the 1913 premiership, Laing rated highly in most observers' best player lists, and he also performed creditably in both the 1912 and 1915 flag triumphs. His career continued after the Great War, but in some respects the boot was on the other foot by this time and he found himself frequently sidelined by injury. He finally retired in 1921. |
| Milton Lamb, who died in June 2006, was the last surviving member of Geelong's 1931 premiership team. An extremely consistent, close-checking back pocket player, he joined the Cats from Geelong College and played a total of 72 VFL games between 1928 and 1932. In the 1931 grand final win over Richmond he was one of the best players afield, collecting 13 kicks, and keeping a tight rein on the two Richmond rovers, Maurie Hunter and Frank Ford, whenever they were stationed in the forward pocket. Early in his career he was sometimes used at full back to good effect. |
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| A tough if unobtrusive player with a never-say-die approach, Phil Lamb was a key member of Subiaco sides for well over a decade. Originally from Wembley, he made his league debut in 1976, and went on to amass 227 senior games over the ensuing twelve seasons. Phil Lamb was a Subiaco premiership player in 1986. |
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Chris Lambert (Essendon & Coburg)
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| With
139 senior games between 1939 and 1951 Chris Lambert's VFL career with Essendon
traversed World Two, although he was forced to miss a good deal of
football when his service in the RAAF saw him posted to Darwin. Equally
adept across the centreline or in a back pocket, Lambert's straight ahead
approach belied his somewhat slight (170cm, 78kg) stature. A VFL
interstate representative in 1949, he was a reserve in Essendon's 1946
premiership team, and was on a wing when the Dons overcame North
Melbourne in the grand final of 1950. A hamstring injury forced
him out of the 1949 premiership side.
After leaving Essendon, Chris Lambert spent the 1952-3 seasons as captain-coach of Coburg in the VFA. He finished his career with Ballarat Football League club Redan. |
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Craig Lambert (Dandenong, Richmond, Brisbane)
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| Craig Lambert began his senior career with VFA club Dandenong, but it was as a deceptively unkempt looking but highly creative midfielder for Richmond that he made his name. Tough and hard running, he used handball to great effect to open up the play, and was almost a lone shining light in the Tigers' struggling sides of the late 1980s and early '90s. After 123 V/AFL games and 53 goals with Richmond between 1988 and 1993, Lambert transferred to Brisbane, where he promptly won the 1994 best and fairest award to go with the one won three years earlier with the Tigers. In 96 games from 1994 to 2000 Lambert was a superb contributor to the Brisbane cause, and was widely recognised as one of the most damaging on-ballers in the game. He was a key player when the Bears made the finals for the first time in 1996, achieving AFL All Australian selection the same season. The quality of his football in his last few seasons was undermined by niggling calf and groin injuries, but he still managed to put in some telling performances. |
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| Fitzroy's George 'Snowy' Lambert made an extremely impressive start to his VFL career, but never quite fulfilled his early promise. He joined the Maroons in 1909 from Abbotsford, and was soon playing with the aplomb of a veteran. He ended up sharing his club's best and fairest award with Bill Walker. Over the ensuing eight seasons, Lambert found himself in and out of Fitzroy's senior team, and although he performed serviceably at times, he lacked the consistency to be regarded as a top player. Most of his 107 league games were played on a half back flank. Unfortunately for Lambert, he was not selected in either the 1913 or 1916 premiership teams. |
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Harold Lampe (South Melbourne)
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| Heftily built, Harold Lampe was a formidable player who gave South Melbourne solid, consistent service, initially as a forward, but later, and mainly, as a backman, in 135 VFL games between 1899 and 1907, during which he booted 57 goals. He hailed from Wagga Wagga, and was selected to represent the VFL in 1901. His last game for the red and whites was the losing grand final of 1907 against Carlton, in which, playing in a back pocket, he produced a performance of typical authority and determination. |
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| Winner of South Melbourne's 1955 best and fairest award, 'Eddie' Lane was a nimble, clever rover with a keen eye for goal. He topped South's goal kicking list with 28 goals in 1954 and 36 the following year, and went on to amass a career total of 130 in 86 VFL games between 1951 and 1956. A sure ball-handler whose foot passing was excellent, he also played state football for the VFL. |
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Gordon Lane (Essendon & South Melbourne)
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| Gordon
'Whopper' Lane was one of those footballers about whom opinion was
divided. In the view of some, he was among the finest key position
forwards in the VFL for at least some of his 178 game, 349 goal senior
career with two different clubs which ran from 1940 until 1952.
Among the evidence in support of this opinion was his knack of producing
his best form when it mattered most, such as in Essendon's
winning grand finals of 1942, when he booted 6 goals, and 1946 (reviewed here)
when he went 1 better. Besides being a superb overhead mark, Lane
was also a dynamic and damaging player at ground level, capable during his
peak years of snapping goals with either foot from distances of up to 50
metres.
The converse viewpoint regarding Lane was that he lacked sufficient consistency to be regarded as an out and out champion, and it is certainly true that he was prone to 'disappear' from matches on occasion. Perhaps that is one reason that he was never selected to play interstate football. Questions were also asked from time to time about his physical toughness, although one of the toughest league footballers of all time had an answer to that one. Interviewed late in a 1946 season that would bring Essendon one of the club's most memorable premierships, with Lane playing a prominent role, Richmond legend Jack Dyer pulled no punches when he declared, "'Whopper' Lane is the one (opposition) player I would want at Richmond, first because he's the best centre half forward in the game, and next, because he has all the qualities I demand of a league top-liner. Two seasons ago, Lane did not count. You brushed him out of the way and left him there. But in the last two seasons he has developed seventy per cent. He has built up physically. Try to push him aside today - he'll come back full of fire and bite, and he'll be willing to go on with the business. He's a brilliant mark and a 'Dead-eye Dick' with either foot". Adding weight to Dyer's assessment, if the pun can be allowed, Lane was a gangly, 79kg, 187cm youth when he made his Essendon debut in 1940, but by the time of the 1946 grand final he had put on more than a stone, and while this did not make him a 'man mountain' it demonstrably did make him harder to fend off or impede. Lane ran second in the Dons' best and fairest voting in 1946, but soon afterwards things began to go awry. Broken ribs sustained in the 1947 preliminary final defeat of Fitzroy forced him out of the Bombers' team for the grand final clash with Carlton, a match which Essendon lost by a point, despite amassing 30 scoring shots to 21. Had Lane been fit to play, who knows what impact he would have had, but judging by his form prior to being injured in the Fitzroy match he might realistically have been expected to sway the balance in Essendon's favour. As it was, Lane recovered from his rib injury, only to hurt his knee badly in the following season's round three clash with South Melbourne. Bomber fans would never again be treated to the best of 'Whopper' Lane, and in 1950, after 131 games in a black and red jumper, he crossed to South Melbourne as captain-coach. Lane's three seasons with South saw him rediscover elements of his best form as he topped the club's goal kicking list twice, while as a coach he preformed creditably, overseeing steady improvement in a side that went from one position off the bottom of the ladder in his first season, to narrowly missing the finals in his last. |
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| Alex 'Bongo' Lang (see footnote 1) was one of the finest, and ultimately one of the most controversial, VFL footballers of the pre-World War One era. He began playing for Carlton in 1906, and was a rover in the club's 1906-7-8 premiership teams. Clever, dashing and persistent, he was rated by 'The Australasian' in 1909 as the outstanding player in the VFL. The following year, however, he found himself at the centre of enormous controversy when he was dropped from Carlton's 2nd semi final team amidst allegations that he had accepted a bribe to play dead. When the allegations were proved to the satisfaction of the Carlton committee, he was banned from playing for five years. In 1916, after the ban had expired, he actually resumed with the Blues, and was a member of that year's losing grand final team against Fitzroy. When he finally hung up his boots at the end of the following season he had amassed 105 VFL games and booted 85 goals. |
Footnotes1. The spelling of Lang's surname in the above illustration is incorrect. Return to Main Text |
| In Don Langdon, East Perth had a player who combined height, strength, pace and cleverness to admirable effect. Most of his football was played at centre half forward, where he acted as the fulcrum of the Royals' attack, expertly gaining possession whether in the air or at ground level, and typically feeding it off with lightning quick handballs before the opposition realised what was happening. He made his senior debut in 1959, and was a key contributor later that year to the Royals 12.17 (89) to 9.14 (68) grand final defeat of Subiaco, booting 4 goals and being some observers' nomination as the best player afield. He went on to make a total of 69 league appearances and kick 99 goals. His last game for East Perth was the losing grand final of 1962 against Swan Districts, in which he once again booted 4 goals. Don Langdon represented Western Australia 5 times. |
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| Defender Chris Langford was the essence of solidity, strength and sureness in 303 V/AFL games for Hawthorn between 1983 and 1997. Of imposing physique, he was powerful overhead, and polished in everything he did at ground level; he was also extraordinarily hard to beat one on one, and had the wood on most regular opponents for the majority of his career. He was a key player for the Hawks in the winning grand finals of 1986, 1988, 1989 and 1991, and captained the club in 1994. A regular Victorian representative, Langford achieved All Australian selection in 1987, and was an AFL All Australian in 1994. He was named on the interchange bench in Hawthorn's official 'Team of the Century'. |
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Frederick Langford (Railway, Collingwood, Glenorchy, Wellington, North Hobart)
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| Combining
coolness with considerable assurance and skill, Fred Langford - invariably
known as 'Dickie' - commenced his senior career with Hobart club Railway,
where his prowess quickly came to the attention of a number of mainland
clubs. In 1894, he was enticed to cross the Bass Strait by Collingwood,
with whom he immediately impressed as a player of the highest
calibre. However, after a game against Port
Melbourne midway through the year he was suspected of having accepted
a bribe to 'play dead', and amidst a welter of acrimony on the part of the
club's supporters, he was told to pack his bags and return home, partly at
least for his own safety.
The following season saw Langford resuming his football career, which was to last for another eighteen seasons without any further controversy, with his original club, Railway. He later spent time with Glenorchy (see footnote 1), Wellington, where he oversaw premierships in 1903-4, and North Hobart, which won a flag during his first season in 1908. Langford's peak years as a player were the early 1900s, and in 1903 he was voted the best all round player in the STFA. |
Footnotes1. Not to be confused with the later club of the same name which emerged from the New Town Football Club. Return to Main Text |
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| A running defender who could also take a turn on the ball, Frank Langley proved himself a top class player in 89 VFL games with Melbourne between 1900 and 1906. He also represented the VFL. In his debut season he starred on a half forward flank as the Fuchsias overcame the grand final challenge of Fitzroy to clinch their first ever VFL pennant. The 61 goals he amassed during his senior career testify to his penchant for resting up forward from where he often provided his team with its primary route to goal. |
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Gilbert Langley (Sturt & Essendon)
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| Although
he was probably better known as a cricketer, in which sport he represented
Australia 26 times as a wicket-keeper, Gil Langley was also an
accomplished footballer. Indeed, Jim Rosevear made the point in his
recent biography of Langley, The Humble Hero, that initially
Langley was actually a footballer who only played cricket in order to keep
fit. He made his league debut with Sturt
as an eighteen year old in 1939, and when he retired in 1950 had
accumulated a total of 160 senior appearances for the club, booting 341
goals. Those appearances included the grand final of 1940 in which
he produced a typically energetic and influential performance in helping
the Blues overcome South Adelaide by 21
points.
During the war, Gil Langley worked in munitions, and when he was posted to Melbourne briefly in 1943 he lined up with Essendon, for whom his 4 VFL games included the losing grand final of that year against Richmond (as 19th man). Returning home to Sturt he produced the best and most consistent football of his career, winning club best and fairest awards in 1945 and 1946, captaining the side in 1945 and 1947, and topping its goal kicking list with 40 goals in 1948. Langley's 11 interstate matches for South Australia yielded 19 goals, and included games at the 1947 Hobart carnival. Always insatiable in his appetite for a contest, of whatever sort - Rosevear felt that the modern footballer he most resembled in approach and style was John Platten - he later enjoyed success in the political sphere. As a footballer, he played for most of his career as a rover, and he was selected in that position, changing in the forward pocket, in Sturt's official 'Team of the Twentieth Century'. |
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Ted Langridge (Richmond & Sturt)
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| A clever rover who combined direct methods with sure foot passing skills and a keen eye for goal, Ted Langridge worked his way through the ranks at Richmond before making his senior debut as an eighteen year old in 1955. He went on to play a total of 92 VFL games for the Tigers, kicking 149 goals. He was Richmond's top goal kicker in 1958 with 28 goals, 1961 (29) and 1962 (42). In 1963 he transferred to Sturt and promptly topped the Blues' goal kicking list with 37 goals. He spent three seasons with the club, playing 54 SANFL games and kicking 80 goals. |
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Don Langsford (Swan Districts)
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| Originally from Scotch College, Don Langsford debuted with Swan Districts in 1977 and went on to enjoy an auspicious, thirteen season career. Always hard at the ball and constructive, Langsford was a key component in the Swan Districts machine that landed a hat trick of flags between 1982 and '84. His best season was probably 1983 when he landed the prestigious 'Westside Football' Player of the Year Award, and represented the state. Appointed Swans skipper in 1985 Don Langsford led from the front both that season and next. In 1987 he was a member of West Coast's inaugural VFL squad, but never played a competitive match for the club. He resumed with Swan Districts in 1989, and when he retired twelve months later he had played a total of 237 senior games for the club, kicking 60 goals. |
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Len Lapthorne (South Adelaide)
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| Of
almost elfin stature and appearance, Len Lapthorne had an impish
disposition to match, and "always seemed to be fleeing from
justice" (see footnote 1). His career
straddled World War Two and involved 193 games with South
Adelaide and a further 15 with the Sturt-South
Adelaide combine which operated between 1942 and 1944. A
quick-thinking and agile rover, he was especially damaging when resting in
a forward pocket, and overall bagged an impressive tally of 365
goals. He topped South Adelaide's goal kicking list on four
occasions, and captained the club in 1949-50. His 2 interstate
appearances for South Australia came at the 1947 Hobart carnival.
Len Lapthorne was included on the interchange bench in South Adelaide's official 'Greatest Team'. |
Footnotes1. The Pash Papers by Jeff Pash, page 38. Return to Main Text |
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Matthew Larkin (North Melbourne)
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| Resolute and tough, Matthew Larkin was a fulcrum in the North Melbourne midfield for a decade, playing 172 V/AFL games and kicking 143 goals between 1984 and 1993. Originally from Boronia, he adapted to league football immediately, winning a club best and fairest award in his second season, and earning Victorian state representation for the first time in his third. Renowned for his ability to win the hard ball, Larkin won further best and fairest awards in 1987 and 1988. He captained the 'Roos from 1990 to 1992. |
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| A
superb, terrier-like rover, Ian Law played a handful of games for Hawthorn
in 1960 before making a pronounced impression the following year, when he
not only won his club's best and fairest award, but ran third in the Brownlow,
and was close to best afield in the Hawks' inaugural VFL premiership
win.
Recruited from VAFA side Old Scotch Collegians, with whom he had won the 1959 Woodrow Medal, and whom he later coached, Law's amateur sensibilities only lasted one game at Hawthorn. During the course of his debut, he was spectacularly out-marked by an opponent, whereupon, in true amateur fashion, he burst into sincere applause, a gesture which earned a fiery rebuke from Hawk coach John Kennedy. Needless to say, the misdemeanour was never repeated. Fleet of foot, tough, courageous and highly skilled, Law continued to exhibit superb form for the next three seasons, winning further club champion awards in 1963-4. Thereafter, a combination of commitments overseas and niggling injuries undermined his impact, and he seldom recaptured the form of his early career. He retired in 1969 after 106 VFL games. In later years, the Ian Law style of roving was maintained at Hawthorn courtesy of the likes of Peter Crimmins and Johnny Platten. |
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| On joining North Melbourne from Strathbogie John Law was used initially as a forward but his resolute, straight ahead style was much better suited to a half back flank, which was where he ended up spending the vast majority of his twelve season, 219 game VFL career. He captained the Kangaroos in 1988 and 1989, which proved to be his last two seasons in the game. |
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Barry Lawrence (Longford & St Kilda)
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| Barry
Lawrence is widely remembered as one of the best VFL defenders of the late
1960s and early 1970s, but he actually began his career with Longford
as a forward, and was selected as centre half forward in that club's
official 'Team of the Century'. A
member of Tasmania's carnival squad
in 1966 Lawrence won the Hec
Smith Memorial Medal the same year before leaving for the mainland,
and an eight season career in the 'big time' with St
Kilda, two years later.
Late in his first season with the Saints, after failing to perform at the expected standard as a forward, coach Allan Jeans tried him on the backlines, and a star was born. Lawrence was later again used in an attacking role - this time with success - on intermittent occasions. In the 1971 VFL grand final Barry Lawrence put in one of the performances for which he is best remembered when, faced by fellow Taswegian Peter Hudson of Hawthorn, he barely made a mistake all day in restricting the champion goalsneak to just 3 goals when 4 would have seen him break Bob Pratt's all time record of 150 VFL goals in a season. Sadly, Hudson had the last laugh, however, as the Hawks won the premiership. After 128 games with St Kilda Lawrence returned to Longford in 1977 and continued to perform to a high standard. In 1978 and 1979 he captained Tasmania, taking his total number of Tasmanian interstate appearances to 14 in the process. He had also earlier represented the VFL in representative football. Sadly, however, when he finally retired from football it was without a senior premiership to his name. In 2004, Barry Lawrence was named on a half back flank in the official Tasmanian 'Team of the Century'. |
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| Invariably known as 'Trizzie', Ron Lawrence served East Fremantle with distinction in 165 league games between 1956 and 1966. A hard working and tenacious rover who kicked plenty of goals while resting in a forward pocket, he was a member of Old Easts' 1957 premiership team, and also played in the losing grand finals of 1958 (as 20th man), 1962, 1963 and 1964. His best and most consistent football came during a 1964 season that saw him selected to represent Western Australia 3 times. Lawrence was East Fremantle's joint leading goal kicker in 1961 with 39 goals. |
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Stephen Lawrence (Morningside & Hawthorn)
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| As
a teenager, Steve Lawrence was Queensland's first winner, in 1986, of the Larke
Medal for best and fairest player at the Teal Cup national under 17
championships. Tall, mobile and athletic, he had many of the assets
necessary to become a truly great player. Sadly, after a highly
promising start to his senior career as a ruckman, he failed to 'kick on',
and perhaps the kindest assessment of his eleven season, 146 game V/AFL career
would be "could have done better".
Having said that, Steve Lawrence's best was very very good indeed, and this was never better exemplified than in 1991 when he was a key performer for the Hawks in both their night and day premiership successes, as well as the best player afield for Queensland in its 23.14 (152) to 15.18 (108) state of origin defeat of Victoria at the Gabba. Lawrence was also prominent in the Queensland/Northern Territory combined state of origin side's comfortable win over Tasmania at Bellerive a couple of seasons later. As the 1990s wore on, however, Hawthorn's decline in fortune was mirrored by that of its 200cm, 100kg South African-born stalwart whose primacy in the ruck ended after the arrival at Glenferrie of former Essendon great Paul Salmon in 1996. Forced to reinvent himself, the lanky, deceptively awkward looking Lawrence went on to play some of the most consistent football of his career over the next couple of years as a resolute, strong marking defender. After featuring in the Hawks' opening 4 games of the 1998 season, however, Lawrence was dropped to the reserves where he sustained back and cheek injuries which ultimately brought his senior AFL career to an end. |
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Victor Lawrence (North Melbourne)
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| After working his way through the ranks at North Melbourne Vic Lawrence made his senior debut in 1948. For three seasons or so he was only a fringe league player, but he eventually blossomed into a highly capable, adaptable footballer who gave the club some excellent service. A VFL representative player in 1952, he was capable of playing in any key position, but played most of his football at centre half back. In 1955 he was appointed club captain, but it was a disappointing year as North slumped from 4th place in 1954 to second from last with just 3 wins from 18 games. Lawrence retired at the end of the 1955 season having played 121 VFL games and kicked 21 goals. He had been 19th man for the losing grand final of 1950 against Essendon. |
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J.B. 'Ivo' Lawson (Williamstown, Collingwood, St Kilda, Richmond)
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| Invariably referred to as 'Ivo', Lawson began with Williamstown in the VFA before commencing his VFL career with a brief, 7 game stint at Collingwood in 1904. A strong, hard to beat defender, he then established himself as a league player of note with 30 games for St Kilda between 1905 and 1907. The 1908 season saw him lining up with VFL newcomer Richmond, and he added another 32 VFL games for the yellow and blacks over the ensuing couple of seasons. Lawson was Richmond's vice-captain in 1909. |
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| Joe Lawson was arguably the finest full back in Swan Districts' history. That, at any rate, was the opinion of the selectors who installed him in that position for the club's official 'Team of the Century'. Between 1955 and 1966 Lawson played a total of 235 WANFL games for Swans, winning a fairest and best award in 1958. These included the club's three successive winning grand finals of 1961-2-3, in the first two of which Lawson was rated high among the best players. Captain of his club for part of the 1959 season, Joe Lawson, perhaps surprisingly, made just one interstate appearance for Western Australia during his career. There can be little doubt, however, that overall he was one of the best and most consistent last line defenders in the league. |
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Harry Laxton (West Melbourne, Essendon, Brighton)
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| A dashing wingman, Harry Laxton gave good service to West Melbourne in 1902-3 before joining Essendon. He played 44 VFL games for the Same Old in 1904-5 and 1907, interspersed with another stint back at West Melbourne where he was a member of the 1906 grand final win over Footscray. Laxton's final port of call was Brighton where he spent the last two seasons of his senior career in 1909 and 1910. |
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Norman Le Brun (South Melbourne, Essendon, Collingwood, Carlton)
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| Although Norman Le Brun's VFL career only comprised 50 games, it was nevertheless noteworthy in that it saw him play for no fewer than four different clubs (the record is five). Indeed, it might easily have been five, as he began his career at Richmond, but was unable to crack it for a senior game. From the Tigers he moved to South Melbourne, where he played 3 games and kicked 2 goals in 1929. After spending the 1930 season with Sandhurst he returned to league action in 1931 with Essendon, where he was in and out of the side for two seasons, and ended up playing another 23 games and booting 4 goals. His other clubs were Collingwood (19 games and 23 goals in 1933-4) and Carlton (5 games, 2 goals, 1935). Norman Le Brun later died while on active military service during World War Two. |
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by Murray Bird and Peter Blucher |
| Keith Leach was a dominant and highly regarded tap ruckman with Wilston-Grange who might have enjoyed an even more distinguished career but for a serious knee injury in 1964. He won the Grogan Medal in 1961-62 after being runner-up in 1957. Leach had a stint in Sydney before returning 'home' to play in Grange's first premiership side in 1969 to finish his career. A regular Queensland representative from 1957-63, he later became a sponsor of the competition via Leach Motors. |
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Bernie Leahy (West Adelaide & North Adelaide)
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| Indisputably one of West Adelaide's early greats, Bernie Leahy played 60 games for the club between 1905 and 1909. An extremely resilient and reliable defender who was superb overhead, he had the distinction of captaining the red and blacks to their first ever premiership in 1908, courtesy of a 3 point challenge final victory over Norwood's 'oxygents'. Shortly afterwards he went one better by leading his team to a 12.9 (81) to 7.10 (52) defeat of Carlton in the championship of Australia play-off. Leahy also skippered Westies to the 1909 premiership, but in 1910 he joined his brother Tom and talented wingman Alby Klose in transferring to North Adelaide, where he once again assumed the mantle of captain. Although the red and whites tended to struggle during his time with them, Leahy gave them just over three years of exemplary service before a broken leg, sustained early in a 1913 season that would once again see the club emerge as a league power, forced his premature retirement from the game. He had played 6 interstate games for South Australia, and might conceivably have played several more had his career continued. |
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| Rex Leahy was a consummate clubman who played all over the ground during the course of his 128 game, 35 goal league career with Glenelg between 1952 and 1963. Typically called on to address perceived weaknesses in each week's line-up, he was seldom able to build momentum by playing in the same position for several weeks in succession. Sadly, this meant that his form suffered, and he played a fair number of games in the seconds as a result. Nevertheless, his value to the Bays was unquestioned, as was the fact that he was the type of versatile, wholly dedicated player every coach loves to have in his squad. |
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Tom Leahy (West Adelaide, North Adelaide, Norwood)
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| Known
throughout Australia as 'The Prince of Ruckmen' Tom Leahy was arguably the
most widely celebrated footballer produced in South Australia prior to the
onset of the television age. The reasons for his high reputation
were legion. In the first place, he possessed all the skills
necessary to succeed as a ruckman in the 'ruck shepherd era', a time when
the primary objective of the second player in a ruck combination (the
player who would later metamorphose into the ruck rover) was to impede and
interfere with the opposition's main ruckman in an effort to prevent him
contesting the knock. Leahy's strength, intelligence and athleticism
enabled him to counter these tactics better probably than anyone.
Secondly, despite being the object of unrestrained and often illegal vigour on the part of his opponents Tom Leahy always maintained a cheerful, unflustered demeanour, and never retaliated. This is not to suggest for a moment that his play lacked aggression; however, his aggression was always controlled, and seldom transcended standards of what was acceptable, both legally and morally. Tom Leahy remained in the upper echelon of the nation's footballers throughout his two decades in the game. One of his contemporaries, Vic Richardson of Sturt, when writing of Leahy half a century after his retirement as a player, paid him the ultimate accolade of suggesting that "had (he) played under the modern rules, which do not permit shepherding or interference at the bounce, no ruckman in Australia could have taken one knock from him. His tremendous power and wonderful judgement would have given him far too great an advantage" [see footnote 1]. This assessment may have been magnified somewhat by the rose-tinted lenses of nostalgia, but evaluations of the abilities of footballers are always subjective and it is at least arguable that the opinions of a player's contemporaries should count for rather more than the subsequent evaluations of so called 'experts' whose perceptions have, to all intents and purposes, been pre-packaged and delivered to them whole, albeit with scant regard for historical veracity. Tom Leahy played a total of 196 senior games, comprising 58 with West Adelaide, 111 with North Adelaide, and 27 for South Australia. In 1922 he was appointed non-playing coach of Norwood, and steered the club to two premierships and a 3rd place in his three seasons at the helm. |
Footnotes1. From The Vic Richardson Story by V.Y. Richardson, page 166. Back to Main Text |
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Lancelot Leak (Sturt, North Shore, Glenelg)
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| A brilliant rover with good evasive skills and a keen eye for goal, Lance Leak debuted with Sturt in 1922, and impressed from the start. A smooth ball handler, some of his best games were played when the going was heavy, and he was frequently described in terms like 'mud lark' and 'mud skipper'. He represented South Australia at the 1924 Hobart carnival, and was widely acknowledged as one of the premier small men in the state. His league career with the Double Blues was interrupted between 1926 and 1929 when he lived interstate, and as a result he missed the chance of participating in the club's premiership triumph of 1926. Leak played with North Shore in Sydney in 1926, and also represented both New South Wales and a Metropolitan Sydney representative side. Thereafter, his movements are unclear until his return to South Australia in 1930, when he resumed his SANFL career with the Double Blues. Two years later he finally got to achieve the main ambition of nearly all footballers when he played on a half forward flank in Sturt's 1932 grand final defeat of North Adelaide. Leak's final two seasons in league football were spent with Glenelg, and included participation in the club's boilover grand final victory over Port Adelaide in 1934 (reviewed here). Lance Leak's senior career at the top level comprised 102 games and 104 goals for Sturt, a season with North Shore, 22 games and 19 goals with Glenelg, 4 interstate appearances and 7 goals for South Australia, plus either 3 or 4 representative and interstate games (records are unclear) during the Sydney phase of his career. (See footnote 1) |
Footnotes1. I am indebted to Ian Granland for providing details of Lancelot Leak's season in Sydney football. Return to Main Text |
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Jack Leckie (Essendon, Fitzroy, Boulder City, Perth, South Fremantle, Subiaco, West Perth)
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| Born
in Victoria, Jack Leckie played his early football in the VFA with Essendon
and Fitzroy before following the well-worn
path westwards to the West Australian goldfields town of Coolgardie where,
in 1895, he was heavily instrumental in getting organised football
underway via the formation of the three team Yilgarn Football
Association. Initially a member of the Union team, he transferred in
1896 to newcomers Civil Service, and then in 1898 to Boulder
City, which
is the oldest surviving country club in Western Australia.
Leckie later ventured to the coast and was a member in 1907 of Perth's controversial premiership-winning team. His most memorable exploits were as a coach, however: in 1911-12 he coached South Fremantle; he led Subiaco in 1915-16, annexing a premiership in his first year; other brief stints were with West Perth in 1923 and Perth in 1930. Undoubtedly his greatest achievement though was masterminding Western Australia's historic carnival success on home soil in 1921. |
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Graeme Lee (Wynyard, St Kilda, Launceston, East Devonport)
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| Best remembered as a wingman, but capable of playing in a variety of positions, including half forward flank and even full forward, Graeme 'Gypsy' Lee commenced his senior career with Wynyard towards the end of the 1956 season, shortly after his seventeenth birthday. He had played 43 games for the club by the time he crossed to the mainland in 1960 in order to join St Kilda where he added 19 senior games in an injury affected three season spell. He returned to Tasmania in 1963 and joined Launceston as captain-coach. Between that year and 1967 he kept the Blues among the leading clubs in the NTFA, albeit without securing a premiership. A regular Tasmanian interstate representative during this phase of his career, Lee captained the state in 1965 as well as at the 1966 Hobart carnival. It was at that carnival that he produced some of the best football of his career, earning plaudits as Tasmania's best player of the series, finishing joint 3rd in the Tassie Medal voting, and gaining selection in the All Australian team. Pacy, clever and a superb drop kick, he proved beyond doubt that, when fit, he could match it with the very best footballers from Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia. In 1968, after 90 games for Launceston, Lee transferred to East Devonport as captain-coach, where he was immediately successful in steering the club to its first flag in twenty years. He remained with the Swans until 1975, playing a total of 127 NWFU games, and serving as captain-coach from 1968 to 1970 as well as in his last two seasons. In addition to his 279 senior club appearances, Lee represented Tasmania a total of 11 times, and played representative football for both the NTFA and the NWFU. In March 2001 he was selected on a half forward flank in Launceston's official 'Team of the Century'. |
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| Mark Lee was a talented ruckman who perhaps failed wholly to fulfill his potential. Richmond recruited him from Mildura, and he made his VFL debut in 1977. Mobile, athletic, and skilful, he was among the best players afield as the Tigers trounced Collingwood in the 1980 grand final, and for several years after that he could lay claim to being the most touted ruckman in the game. A triple All Australian, Lee won Richmond's best and fairest award in 1984, but after that, partly because of injury, his form declined. He retired from the game in 1991 after 233 V/AFL games and 94 goals. |
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Scott Lee (Central District & Adelaide)
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| After failing to make the grade at Hawthorn, where he played just one night game, Scott Lee was cleared to Central District. Tough, nuggety and always sublimely composed, he was a resounding success in South Australia, both with the Bulldogs, and with Adelaide, where he played 86 AFL games, mainly in the back pocket, between 1991 and 1995. At Centrals he played a total of 243 SANFL games and kicked 107 goals between 1985 and 1990, in 1992, and from 1994 to 2000. He won the club's best and fairest award in 1987 and 1990, and was chosen in a back pocket in the Bulldogs' official 'Best All Time Team 1964 to 2003'. Lee represented his adopted state of South Australia 5 times. |
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| One of
the first of the game's truly great full forwards, Walter 'Dick' Lee's VFL
career spanned 230 games over 17 seasons and spawned 707 goals. The
last of those 707 goals came with Lee's final kick in League football, in Collingwood's
losing 1922 challenge final against Fitzroy.
Small (175cm) and lightweight (70kg) by the standards of modern full
forwards Lee was nevertheless a commanding figure on the ground, and
"matched spectacular, high-flying aerobatics with superb ground-level
skills and unerring accuracy in front of goal, whether by punt or place
kick" (see footnote 1). Testimony to this
accuracy is afforded by the tale that Lee was a frequent visitor to an
amusement hall which had a game which required participants to kick at a
target from various difficult angles; in the end, the proprietors
allegedly had to bar Lee from participating owing to his near faultless
proficiency (see footnote 2).
Perhaps more than any other leading club, Collingwood has a tradition of producing full forwards of the highest quality - a tradition which originated almost a century ago with a lightweight place kicking genius whose exploits arguably did more than those of any one else to transform full forward into the glamorous, distinctive position it remains to this day. |
Footnotes1. The Encyclopedia of League Footballers by Jim Main and Russell Holmesby, page 276. Return to Main Text 2. The Clubs by Garrie Hutchinson and John Ross, page 80. Return to Main Text |
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John Leedham (North Hobart & North Launceston)
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| John
Leedham was the epitome of the socks down, no holds barred style of
footballer whose every gesture seems to make a tangible contribution to
the team effort. Known affectionately as 'John L.' Leedham
represented Tasmania in the 1947, 1953 and
1958 carnivals,
performing particularly creditably at Adelaide
in 1953 when, despite a disastrous winless series, he was chosen as
the sole Tasmanian representative in the inaugural All
Australian team.
Throughout his career Leedham tended to save his best performances for games against top class opposition or when the pressure was at its highest. He captain-coached Tasmania to wins over both South Australia and Western Australia at the 1958 Melbourne carnival, and invariably outplayed his direct opponent whenever Tasmania clashed with the 'Big V'. Too outspoken to attract many votes from umpires, his contribution to his team was arguably more telling than that of many so called 'superstars'. In the classic style of Ron Barassi, Mal Brown, Neil Kerley and Ted Whitten, Leedham was a 'stirrer', pre-eminently capable of unsettling an opponent by the use of psychological as much as physical methods of intimidation. Added to this he was a superbly gifted footballer who more than made up for what he lacked in grace and smoothness of movement with an innate, untutored knack of finding the ball and using it effectively. In June 2004, John Leedham was named as vice-captain and first ruck-rover in the official Tasmanian 'Team of the Century'. The following year saw his induction as an inaugural legend in Tasmanian Football's official Hall of Fame. |
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| Ted Leehane was a fast moving, strong marking key position forward who gave Essendon fine service in a war interrupted career. He joined the Dons in 1942 from East Brunswick, and played at full forward in that season's grand final win over Richmond. From late 1943 until late 1946 he was in the army and his league football career was put on hold. After playing a handful of games towards the end of the 1946 season he resumed full time in 1947, topping Essendon's goal kicking with 50 goals for the year. In 1948 he spent most of his time at centre half forward and played some of the best football of his career to finish second in the club's best and fairest award. His good form continued in 1949 when he was one of the Bombers' best in their 18.17 (125) to 6.16 (52) grand final annihilation of Carlton. During the 1950 season Leehane ruptured a kidney but recovered sufficiently to be named as 19th man for the grand final against North Melbourne, which Essendon won. It proved to be the last of Ted Leehane's 83 VFL games, during the course of which he booted 140 goals. |
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| Originally
from Preston Boys Club, where he played between 1946 and 1949, Geoff Leek
was residentially bound to Collingwood, but was cleared from that club to Essendon
in 1950. After spending his first season with the Bombers in the
Thirds he graduated to league ranks in 1952 where he belied his somewhat
ungainly style by developing into a knock ruckman par excellence. A
wholehearted team player, "he gave his rovers an armchair ride with
his clever and controlled palming from the packs" (see
footnote 1). He was also surprisingly quick and sure-footed for
his size (194cm, 96kg), making him a dominating presence all over the
ground, let down only by some slipshod kicking.
Leek played 191 VFL games and booted 98 goals for the Dons between 1951 and 1962. One of his finest performances came in his last ever game, the victorious grand final of 1962 against Carlton, when he took to the field with the aid of pain-killing injections whilst suffering from an ankle injury. He was vice-captain of Essendon for the final six seasons of his league career, which at the time was claimed to be a record. |
Footnotes1. Those Magnificent Men by Michael Maplestone, page 92. Return to Main Text |
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Ron Leishman (Preston & Box Hill)
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| A highly accomplished player during what was a predominantly inauspicious era for Preston, Ron Leishman played 98 games for the club in a war-interrupted career which began in 1941. He won the club's best and fairest award in 1947, before transferring in 1951 to VFA newcomers Box Hill. |
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Allan Leitch (New Town, Carlton, Hawthorn)
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| Allan
Leitch was the son of William Leitch, in whose honour the TANFL re-named its
annual best and fairest player award in 1930. Somewhat ironically,
Allan Leitch won the league's best and fairest trophy the very year before
the name change. Two years later he finished runner-up to former Collingwood
champion Albert
Collier. There is little doubt that he would have won a number
of club best and fairest awards had they been regularly on offer during
his career.
Leitch's senior career began in 1922 with New Town, which was in only its second season in the TFL. He went on to play 135 league games with the black and whites culminating in that runners-up spot in the 1931 Leitch Medal. In between, he embarked on two brief stints in the VFL: in 1925 he played 17 games with Carlton, primarily as a defender, and was also selected to represent the VFL on a couple of occasions; three years later he added another 4 VFL games with Hawthorn. Allan Leitch's main virtue was his consistency; he could be relied on seldom to put in a bad game, whilst simultaneously ensuring that his direct opponent did. As such, he was invariably one of the first players selected in both state and TANFL representative teams. He played a total of 13 interstate matches for Tasmania, including the 1924 Hobart and 1930 Adelaide carnivals; that tally would have been even greater had he been able to travel to the Melbourne carnival in 1927, for which he was also selected. He also represented the league on 24 occasions, including the noteworthy win over a South Australian combination in Adelaide in 1923. In the year 2000 Allan Leitch gained a berth in the back pocket in the official Glenorchy (formerly known as New Town) 'Team of the Twentieth Century'. |
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Jack Leith (Geelong & Melbourne)
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| Jack
Leith (sometimes mis-spelt 'Leath') began his senior football career in the VFA with Geelong,
but it was only after transferring to Melbourne
that he really rose to prominence. In the first season of the VFL he
was widely regarded as the most brilliant forward in the league, but some
observers questioned his attitude, suggesting that he sometimes failed to
give a hundred per cent. There could be no doubting his talent,
however, and when within range of goal he was deadly, with his place kicks
from set shots being renowned for their unwavering accuracy. In one
match against St Kilda in 1902, Leith
kicked 5 goals, all from place kicks. He topped Melbourne's goal
kicking list on four occasions, and was at centre half forward in the 1900
flag-winning team.
At the end of the 1908 season Leith retired, but three years later he made a comeback. This time around he played mainly in the backlines, with his extensive prior experience as a forward helping him to anticipate and stymie his opponents' endeavours. After two final seasons with the Redlegs, bringing his total of VFL games to 139, Leith retired for good. |
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Hubert Lenne (Fitzroy & St Kilda)
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| Solidly built at 183cm and 82kg, Hubert Lenne was a tough, occasionally ruthless defender whom Fitzroy recruited from Fitzroy Juniors. He made his VFL debut in 1910, and went on to spend thirteen seasons at the club, playing 157 games and kicking 6 goals. The highlights of his career came with his appearances at full back in the 'Roys grand final wins of 1913 and 1916 over St Kilda and Carlton respectively. The low point came in 1915, when he ran foul of the game's authorities, and was suspended for 14 matches. Overlooked for Fitzroy's grand final team of 1922 against Collingwood, Lenne promptly quit the club and joined St Kilda where, over the next couple of seasons, he added a final 21 VFL games to his career tally. |
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Trevor Leo (Cooee, Hobart, New Norfolk)
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| One
of the best of the many superb rovers to have graced Tasmanian football
since World War Two, Trevor Leo gave distinguished service to three
clubs as well as representing Tasmania in the interstate arena 18 times,
including games at the 1956, 1958
and 1961 carnivals. He began his career with
Cooee in 1953, where he gave immediate evidence
of his prowess by winning the club's best and fairest award. The
following season saw him at Hobart,
where he was a member of premiership teams in 1954, 1959 and 1960, won the
1957 William Leitch Medal,
and was a dual winner of the club's best and fairest award. After
124 games for the Tigers he crossed to New
Norfolk as captain-coach where, five years later, he made history by
steering the side to its first ever TANFL premiership courtesy of a 14.13
(97) to 9.14 (68) grand final defeat of North
Hobart. The Eagles later downed Scottsdale
to win their first and only Tasmanian
state premiership, after which Leo retired as a player. He
continued as non-playing coach of New Norfolk for one further season, and
also coached the Tasmanian team at the 1969
Adelaide carnival. His last involvement in league football came
as non-playing coach of his original club, Hobart, in 1974, but it proved
to be an unsavoury finale as the Tigers, who were reigning premiers,
missed the finals.
Trevor Leo, who away from football established a reputation as one of Tasmania's leading mathematicians, earned inclusion in both Hobart's official 'Greatest Team 1947 to 2002' and New Norfolk's equivalent combination for the period from 1947 to 2001. |
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John Leonard (Subiaco, South Melbourne, West Perth, Claremont)
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| Born
in England, Johnny Leonard was a prodigiously talented rover for
Subiaco during the 1920s. In 1926 he
won a Sandover Medal,
and was later awarded a retrospective Medal for the 1929 season after
initially finishing 2nd on a countback to East
Perth's 'Billy'
Thomas. Quick, intelligent and highly skilled,
he was an automatic choice for Western Australia for much of his career,
and made a near club record 26 interstate appearances (only Tom
Outridge, with 27, played for the state more times).
After playing a total of 146 games for Subiaco between 1922 and 1930, Johnny Leonard was enticed east to Ballarat, where he commenced what was to become an equally successful coaching career. His achievement in steering Maryborough to the 1931 Ballarat Football League premiership caught the attention of the powers-that-were at South Melbourne, and the 1932 season saw him replacing Paddy Scanlan as coach of the forward-thinking, ambitious Bloodstained Angels. Leonard's acute inside knowledge of the Western Australian football scene was a key factor in his success with South. By recruiting players of the calibre of former Subiaco team mates Brighton Diggins and Billy Faul, and former South Fremantle follower Bert Beard, Leonard - who remained no mean player himself - was able to bolster South Melbourne's playing ranks sufficiently to propel the club to its first finals campaign in almost a decade. In doing so, he laid the foundations for arguably South's greatest era of the twentieth century - the so called 'foreign legion years' - but Leonard's direct involvement with the team was limited to that one, 1932 season. The 1930s witnessed a severe economic depression and in 1933 Johnny Leonard, lured by the prospect of secure employment with Ross Faulkner Limited, returned home to Perth. His impact at the Lake Oval had, however, been significant: His legacy had been to lift the spirit at the Lake Oval and to forge a belief that success could be achieved despite the disappointments of the recent past. He had sensed the awesome potential of (Bob) Pratt, giving him space and responsibility up forward as well as providing opportunities and recognition to the skills of (Herbie) Matthews. (See footnote 1) Perhaps even more importantly, however, that legacy was destined to endure, for: Leonard played his part in settling the interstate newcomers into the passionate football environment of Melbourne, bringing the best out of Diggins and Faul almost immediately. Significantly, he discouraged his Western Australian colleagues from following him back home and ensured that his departure did not unsettle the development of the club. As a sign of his affection for South Melbourne, he continued to publicly support the club in its interstate trading activities. (See footnote 2) It may be a platitude, but loyalty of this nature tends to breed loyalty, and it may in small part help to explain Leonard's substantial success as a coach over the ensuing decade. If the seeds of that success were sown on Victorian soil, they germinated and grew in Western Australia. In 1934 and 1935, Leonard steered West Perth to an overall success rate of 71.1% and successive premierships. Always quintessentially a 'players' coach', Leonard "believed that training throughout the season should be enjoyable, brisk, and involve as much ball-handling as possible" (see footnote 3), a regime to which his charges responded with great energy and enthusiasm, both at the Cardinals, who Leonard coached for a third season in 1937, and even more so at Claremont, where he was to eke out a reputation for himself which placed him squarely and irrefutably amongst the immortals. Prior to Leonard's arrival at Claremont Oval in 1938 the Monts had failed to secure a single flag. During his first three seasons there they were indefatigable, managing an overall success rate of 72.6%, and winning every premiership on offer. Admittedly, Claremont had reached the 1936 and 1937 grand finals under Leonard's predecessor Dick Lawn, but there can be little doubt that Leonard's arrival const |
