Bert Johnson (Australian footballer)

Bertram Harold "Bert" Johnson (born 8 June 1939) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with West Adelaide in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) and North Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL).[2][3]

Bert Johnson
Personal information
Full name Bertram Harold Johnson[1]
Date of birth (1939-06-08) 8 June 1939
Height 170 cm (5 ft 7 in)
Weight 71 kg (157 lb)
Position(s) Wingman
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1957–1964 West Adelaide 87 (36)
1965–1968 North Melbourne 31 0(5)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1968.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Biography

Johnson, an Indigenous Australian from the Nepabunna Mission in rural South Australia, has been described as one of the most exciting footballers of his generation.[4][5][6] He played mostly on the wing, but was also a capable centreman.[5]

After Johnson came to Adelaide he was taken by West Adelaide player Doug Thomas for a trial with the club and made his SANFL debut in the 1957 season.[4] On a wing in West Adelaide's 1961 Grand Final winning team, Johnson was the first indigenous footballer to play in a SANFL premiership.[7] He represented South Australia at interstate football in 1964.[8]

Johnson was cleared to North Melbourne just in time for the opening round of the 1965 VFL season and was rated his side's best player in what The Age described as a "brilliant debut".[9][10] Soon becoming a fan-favourite, Johnson made 16 appearances for North Melbourne in 1965.[5][11] He won the club's best first-year player award and Channel 9 named him VFL Recruit of the Year.[12][13]

Early in the 1966 VFL season he spoke to the media expressing his unhappiness after being dropped from the team and threatened to request a clearance back to South Australia.[14][15] In round three he had been omitted from the team to play St Kilda, but was a last minute inclusion when wingman Laurie Dwyer had to withdraw with injury.[14] These comments led to him being disciplined and cost him his spot in the side until round seven.[11][16] He ended up playing 10 games for the season.[11]

Johnson made only two senior appearances for North Melbourne in the 1967 season.[11] He was one of North Melbourne's best players in the 1967 reserves grand final win over Richmond.[17]

He played three further VFL games in 1968, then finished his career in the Victorian Football Association, at Williamstown and later Dandenong.[11][15]

References
  1. "Debut Dates". West Adelaide Football Club. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  2. "Know your players". The Canberra Times. 9 July 1966. p. 35. Retrieved 12 September 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. Gyss, Trevor (2011). South Australian Football in the Sixties. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781446799444.
  4. South Australian Football Budget, Grand Final Edition. Vol. 85. 3 October 2010.
  5. Devaney, John. Full Points Footy's SA Football Companion. Full Points Publications. ISBN 9780955689727.
  6. "Indigenous Identity". NMFC.com.au. 23 May 2013. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  7. Rucci, Michelangelo (29 June 2011). "Occasion to encourage education". The Advertiser. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  8. "Here's The Point of the Joke". The Age. 4 March 1965. p. 24. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  9. "North Still Trying to Get Johnson". The Age. 12 April 1965. p. 24. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  10. "Veteran S.A. Wingman in Brilliant Debut". The Age. 20 April 1965. p. 22. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  11. "AFL Tables – Bert Johnson – Games Played". AFL Tables. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  12. "1965 Major Trophy Winners". The Canberra Times. 9 July 1966. p. 35. Retrieved 12 September 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  13. "Radio and TV's football experts overlooked the Medallist". The Age. 2 September 1965. p. 17. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  14. Carter, Ron (12 May 1966). "Bert Johnson unhappy – will see North selectors". The Age. p. 24. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  15. Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia Of AFL Footballers. BAS Publishing. ISBN 9781920910785.
  16. Carter, Ron (16 February 1967). "Johnson to return to North". The Age. p. 30. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
  17. Fiddian, Marc (25 September 1967). "North sticks to schedule". The Age. p. 30. Retrieved 12 September 2015.
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