HAL L O F F AM E 2016 CONTENTS CEO'S MESSAGE 3 SELECTION CRITERIA 3 CALL FOR NOMINATIONS 2017 3 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME ICONS 4 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME LEGENDS 6 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES 10 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME GREAT CLUB 16 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME LEGENDARY TEAM 20 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME MEMORABLE GAME 22 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME LISTS 24 CEO'S MESSAGE It is with great pleasure that for the first time I welcome you to the 2016 Hall of Fame function and football round, which celebrates those who have made a significant and lasting contribution to our great game. As I look at the honour board from my office it is a reminder of the incredibly rich history of the game here for over 150 years. This year’s inductees, legends and icon are no exception. Beyond the individuals recognised, we also look to celebrate legendary games, teams and club. This extension to our Hall of Fame is a great way to recognise moments and groups from history. It seems fitting that this event coincides with a new chapter for Tasmanian football, a chance to look back before we take our game forward. My team and I look forward to working with the broader Tasmanian community, acknowledging those who have afforded us all a great football history we can be proud of and draw on. Enjoy this round of football and, for those attending the dinner, I hope it is a time to reconnect with old friends, rekindle memories and relish stories of the past. I also wish to recognise the efforts of the Hall of Fame selection panel CONTENTS and my team for their extraordinary efforts in coordinating this event. Thank you. Rob Auld Chief Executive Officer AFL Tasmania SELECTION CRITERIA CALL FOR NOMINATIONS 2017 1. The Committee shall consider a candidate’s outstanding services and overall AFL Tasmania is seeking the support of the Tasmanian football family for contribution to the game of Australian Football in determining a candidate’s Tasmanian football’s major recognition project. Members of the public may assist eligibility for induction in the Hall of Fame. by providing nominations in writing. The nomination should be provided as soon 2. Without limiting item (1) the Committee may consider a candidate’s individual as possible so that the selection committee may fully consider the submission. record, ability, integrity, sportsmanship and character. Where nominations are not accepted for induction in 2016 they may be 3. The number of football games played, coached or umpired or the years of considered for subsequent inductions into the Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame service provided shall only be a consideration and shall not be conclusive in that will occur annually. The selection criteria for players/coaches/umpires/ assessing a candidate’s eligibility. administrators or volunteers is: 4. A player, coach, umpire, administrator, volunteer or media representative Players, coaches, umpires, administrators/volunteers and media representatives involved at any level of Australian Football may be eligible for induction into will be considered eligible for induction into the Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame the Hall of Fame. based on a candidate’s outstanding services and overall contribution to the game 5. Candidates shall be adjudged on the basis of their overall contribution to of Australian Football. The selection committee may consider a candidate’s Australian Football as opposed to one specific aspect. individual record, ability, integrity, sportsmanship and character. Candidates currently participating in any aspect of the game of Australian Football may be 6. The Committee shall consider candidates from all parts of Tasmania and from inducted into the Tasmanian Football Hall of Fame. Nominations should include all Australian Football competitions affiliated with AFL Tasmania. the contact details of the person that is being nominated or their next of kin, 7. Players, coaches, umpires, administrators, volunteers and media including: name, address, phone contact. A picture of the person being representatives may be eligible for induction into the Hall of Fame even if they nominated is also required. Please return all nominations to: have not retired from active participation in Australian Football. • Confidential: Hall of Fame, AFL Tasmania, PO Box 405, Rosny Park TAS 7018. 8. A member of the Committee may be a candidate but shall not vote for his or her induction into the Hall of Fame. The closing date to receive nominations for consideration in 2017 is 9. There shall be no special order of precedence given to Hall of Fame inductees. 31 October 2017. 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME 3 2016 TASMANIAN FOOTBALL HALL OF FAME ICON PAUL SPROULE CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 60 games, 60 goals, Essendon, 1967-71 86 games, 93 goals, Richmond, 1972-75 99 games, Hobart, 1962-66 31 games, Sandy Bay, 1976-78 Three representative matches for Tasmania, 1976-77 Richmond coach, 1985 (22 games: 9 wins, 13 losses) Hobart coach, 1980-81 (38 games: 20 wins, 18 losses) Sandy Bay captain-coach, 1976-78; coach, 1983-84 (102 games: 72 wins, 29 losses, one draw) Richmond VFL premierships, 1973 and 1974 Hobart TANFL premierships, 1963 and 1966 (player) and 1980 (coach) Sandy Bay TANFL premierships, 1976, 1977 and 1978 Life member, Richmond Football Club, 2013 Named captain-coach in Hobart’s ‘Greatest Team, 1947-2002’ (half forward flank) 4 PAUL SPROULE HOBART/ESSENDON/RICHMOND/SANDY BAY MIDFIELDER, 1962-85 There have been a number of VFL/AFL greats who began their football journey with the Hobart Football Club; names such as Ian Stewart and Alastair Lynch come to mind. However few ‘Old Hobartians’ are as consistently overlooked as Paul Sproule, a ruggedly tough but supremely skilled player who carved out a successful playing career in Victoria before returning home as a coach and garnering a reputation as one of Tasmania’s finest ever football minds. Born in 1944, Sproule’s first appearance in senior football with Hobart came at the age of 17 in 1962 under the great Mal Pascoe. It did not take long for the talented teenager to cement himself in the senior team, and by 1966 he had been a member of two Tigers premiership sides. By this time word of Sproule’s obvious talent had reached the mainland, and the now 22-year-old headed across Bass Strait to join Essendon ahead of the 1967 season. After his first season at Windy Hill was ruined by a badly broken leg, Sproule made his first senior appearance for the Bombers in their opening match of 1968 against Hawthorn, booting five goals in a 73-point win. He would play only nine matches for the season after suffering a serious knee injury mid-year, however he recovered in time to be a member of the Bombers’ losing grand final team against Carlton. Sproule continued to give excellent service to Essendon for the next four years, playing 60 games and booting 60 goals. His last match for the club came in Round 14 1971, a match in which he suffered a severe groin injury that caused him to miss the rest of the season. He returned fully fit for Essendon’s 1972 pre-season training, however a falling out with the club’s new coaching staff led to Sproule’s departure from Windy Hill. This news soon reached Richmond general manager Alan Schwab, who invited Sproule to train with the club. Schwab had first seen Sproule playing for Hobart when on a recruiting mission for St. Kilda in 1965, and had subsequently (unsuccessfully) attempted to convince the Saints to recruit him. Schwab could not believe that Essendon were prepared to release a player of Sproule’s quality and wasted no time in approaching Sproule – along with coach Tom Hafey and secretary Graeme Richmond – about making a permanent move to Punt Road. Sproule eventually agreed, and was traded from the Bombers for a sign-on fee of just $2,000 – in hindsight, some of the best money Richmond ever spent. Debuting for the Tigers in Round 4 1972, Sproule soon became an indispensable member of the strong Richmond side of the period, with his second-to-none footy brain, incredible ability to find the football, and uncanny goal sense making him a huge asset to the talented Tigers midfield. He was a member of the Tigers’ back-to- back premiership teams in 1973-74, and the fact that he was named amongst his team’s best players in both matches is a testament to his ability to perform on the big stage. This was especially true in 1974; with North Melbourne 11 points up early in the second quarter Sproule was shifted into the middle of the ground. His impact at the centre bounces was immediate, and in the next 15 minutes Richmond piled on six goals and were never challenged again. Had the Norm Smith Medal been awarded at the time it is widely acknowledged that Sproule would have been heavily favoured to win it. After 86 games in four seasons with Richmond, Sproule returned home to Tasmania in 1976 to take on the captain-coach position with Sandy Bay. The Seagulls were in the middle of the greatest era in the club’s history, having contested every grand final since 1971, but had lost the last three. Under Sproule, however, the club rediscovered its spark, and the Bay waltzed to a hat trick of premierships from 1976-78, the first TANFL team to achieve the feat in 37 years. Sproule retired as a player during 1978 and resigned as coach after the 1978 triumph, and after spending a year away he returned to his roots in 1980, taking charge of his original side Hobart.