WESTERN AUSTRALIAN TEAM OF THE 20TH CENTURY

Half Forward Line

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Right Half Forward Flank - 'Nicky' Winmar (South Fremantle, St Kilda, Western Bulldogs)

Narrowly missing selection in West Coast's inaugural VFL squad, South Fremantle's Neil Elvis Winmar - always referred to as 'Nicky' - ended up instead at St Kilda where, as the cliché has it, he became an overnight sensation.  Exquisitely skilled, and capable of the spectacular, Winmar also possessed an aggressive streak which made him an extraordinarily formidable opponent when he wasn't getting into trouble.

Voted the Saints' fairest and best player on 2 occasions, Winmar nevertheless often made life difficult for himself by failing to accord members of the club hierarchy the levels of respect they felt they warranted.  Ultimately, after one run in with authority too many, Winmar was off-loaded to the Western Bulldogs at the end of the 1998 season.  He gave the Bulldogs a serviceable season in 1999 before retiring.

Arguably possessed of sufficient talent to have been one of the few genuine all time greats of the game, Nicky Winmar was nevertheless worthy of a place in almost any team because of his ability to excite, enthrall, and come up with the unexpected.

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Centre Half Forward - Ross Glendinning (East Perth, North Melbourne, West Coast)

After joining East Perth under the father-son rule (Dad Angus played 69 games for the Royals between 1941 to 1951) Ross Glendinning made his WANFL debut on ANZAC Day 1974 against Subiaco, and immediately seemed right at home.  Solidly built, he was nevertheless extremely quick, could take a grab, and kicked beautifully with both feet.

In 1975 he finished as a runner up to team mate Alan Quartermaine in the Sandover Medal and VFL talent scouts began to take notice.  Courted by several Victorian clubs, Glendinning ultimately opted to join North Melbourne in time for the 1977 season, but East Perth, understandably, refused to clear him.  Having played only 46 WANFL games the Royals' hierarchy felt that Glendinning owed them at least another season, and so, after sitting out of the game until July, the prodigal son returned to play out the remainder of the year with East Perth.  The understanding was that, in return for this comparatively meagre display of loyalty, Glendinning would be cleared to the Kangaroos in 1978, and this indeed was what transpired.

Sadly for Glendinning, playing the 1977 season with East Perth instead of North Melbourne meant involvement in a losing WANFL grand final team rather than a VFL premiership.  Glendinning did get to front up at the MCG on that 'one day in September' the following year, but North lost to Hawthorn, and it would be the club's last grand final appearance for 2 decades.

Possessing all the physical attributes necessary to succeed, the only question mark was over his mental qualities.  Here, too, however, it soon emerged that North Melbourne had procured a winner.  If beaten early, he would almost invariably fight back with tenacity and resolve; only seldom was Glendinning comprehensively beaten over 4 quarters of football.

Twice North Melbourne's club champion, Glendinning also caught the eyes of the umpires, finishing 2nd in the 1982 Brownlow, and winning the award the following year.  He proved himself extremely versatile, playing in a number of positions with the 'Roos, although it would probably be fair to suggest that he was most widely renowned as a defender.

Ross Glendinning was a regular interstate representative, and, with 13 appearances, holds the record for the most state of origin games for Western Australia. 

In 1987 he returned to his home state to join the newly formed West Coast Football Club which would be participating in the VFL that year.  Playing mainly in key forward roles he topped the Eagles' goal kicking list in both 1987 and 1988, before retiring.

Ross Glendinning's auspicious League career involved a total of 286 games, 56 for East Perth, 190 for North Melbourne, and 40 with the Eagles.

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Left Half Forward Flank - Syd Jackson (East Perth, Carlton, Glenelg)

Originally from South Bunbury, Syd Jackson had already won two Hayward Medals as the fairest and best player in the South West National Football League by the time he arrived at East Perth as a nineteen year old in 1963.  Before long, he had acquired a reputations as one of the finest attacking centremen in the game, and, at the end of his debut season with the Royals, he finished joint first in the Sandover Medal voting.  However, having incurred a suspension earlier in the season, was ruled ineligible.  Voted his club's fairest and best player in 1966, Jackson was in the club's losing grand final teams both that year and in 1967. However, as early as 1965 he had been attracting attention from VFL clubs, most notably North Melbourne and Carlton.  In the end it was the persuasive talking of Carlton coach Ron Barassi which settled the issue, and Jackson duly signed for the Blues in time for the 1968 season.  Given that Jackson had given them more than 100 games service, the East Perth hierarchy were prepared to clear him, but the WANFL clearance board threw a spanner in the works by refusing to endorse the papers.  Jackson was forced to sit out the entire 1968 VFL season and watch as his new side won the premiership; towards the end of the season he busied himself by ferrying out the coach's messages to the players during games, an activity which must have given him useful insights into Barassi's thinking.

Under the rules of the time, a player who sat out an entire season was granted an automatic clearance, and so Jackson finally lined up with the Blues in the opening round of a 1969 season which saw the side again contest a grand final, only to lose to Richmond.

It would be fair to suggest that Victorian football in the 1960s was physically a good deal more robust and onerous than that being played elsewhere, and because of this, and particularly in view of Jackson's lightweight build, Carlton tended to use him on a half forward flank rather than in his favoured position of centre.  Such was Jackson's flair, however, he would probably have been a star wherever he played.  Certainly North Melbourne coach Keith McKenzie, who had come quite close to signing Jackson, felt that, as a centreman, the former East Perth superstar would have been an absolute sensation.

He came close to being an absolute sensation on the half forward line, starring for the Blues in their famous 1970 grand final defeat of Collingwood, and again doing well 2 years later as Carlton racked up a record score against Richmond.  With silky skills, the pace of a thoroughbred, and the ability to kick a ball prodigious distances, there have been few more exhilarating sights in football than that of Syd Jackson in full flight.

In 1977 Jackson transferred to Glenelg where, under old team mate and coach John Nicholls, he participated in the Bays' losing grand final team against Port Adelaide.  It was clear that the old pace had declined somewhat, however, and at the end of the season he decided to retire.

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