Bill A. Walker

William Armley "Johnnie" Walker (29 August 1886 – 8 November 1934)[1] was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon in the VFL.

Bill Walker
Personal information
Full name William Armley Walker
Date of birth 29 August 1886
Place of birth Essendon, Victoria
Date of death 8 November 1934(1934-11-08) (aged 48)
Place of death Fitzroy, Victoria
Original team(s) Collingwood Juniors
Debut Round 1, 1911, Essendon vs. Carlton, at East Melbourne
Height 183 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight 76 kg (168 lb)
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1911–1915 Essendon 66 (53)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1915.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Family

The son of William Walker, and Susannah Walker (1843–1912), née Kidd,[2][3] William Armley Walker was born in Essendon, Victoria on 29 August 1886.[4]

He married Josephine Harnett (?–1941) in 1916.[5] Josephine Harnett was the licensee of the Tankerville Arms Hotel, Nicholson Street, Fitzroy for twenty years.

Football

Essendon (VFL)

Walker, also known by his nickname 'Johnnie', was recruited from the Collingwood Juniors.[6]

A ruckman, he was a member of Essendon's 1911 and 1912 premiership teams. His 14 goals in 1915 was enough to top Essendon's goal-kicking. Although selected to represent the VFL in a match against a combined Bendigo Football League team, played in Bendigo on 3 July 1912, he did not play in the game.[7]

Although he missed the team's first match, against Collingwood, he played in the remaining eleven matches of the (truncated due to World War I) 1915 season.

Essendon did not compete in the VFL in 1916 and 1917. Walker did not resume his career in 1918, when Essendon re-entered the competition.

VFL Tribunal (30 July 1913)

In July 1913 Walker, who played in a long-sleeved guernsey, was reported by both Dan Feehan, the match steward, and Jack Elder, the central umpire, for striking (ex-Essendon) Fitzroy's Jim Martin with his elbow during the 26 July 1913 match against Fitzroy.

In the evidence given to the tribunal it was established that Mertin had, indeed, been elbowed by somebody; and that the perpetrator had been wearing a short-sleeve guernsey. Martin gave evidence that it was not Walker who had struck him, but it was Jack Woolley. Jack Woolley also appeared before the tribunal, stating that he had worn a short-sleeved guernsey, and that it was he, rather than Walker, who had had struck Martin with his elbow. The charge against Walker was dismissed.[8][9][10]

See also

Footnotes
  1. "Bill Walker - Player Bio". Australian Football. Retrieved 5 December 2014.
  2. Marriage: Walker—Kidd, The Argus, (Thursday, 10 March 1881), p.1.
  3. Deaths: Walker, The Age, (Tuesday, 23 January 1912), p.1.
  4. Note that although his official birth records have his name as "William Armley Walker", his official death records, his death notices in the newspapers and, also, the death notices for his wife all refer to him as "Armley William Walker".
  5. Deaths: Walker, The Age, (Monday, 17 March 1941), p.1.
  6. Gossip in General from All Quarters, The Herald, (Friday, 28 April 1911), p.2.
  7. Football, (Thursday, 4 July 1912), p.8.
  8. Rough Football: Charges of Elbowing, The Age, (Thursday, 31 July 1913), p.11.
  9. Football: League Players Reported: Mistaken Identity,The Argus, (Thursday, 31 July 1913), p.4.
  10. Elbow Room, The Herald, (Friday, 1 August 1913), p.3.

References
  • Holmesby, Russell and Main, Jim (2007). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers. 7th ed. Melbourne: Bas Publishing.
  • Maplestone, M., Flying Higher: History of the Essendon Football Club 1872–1996, Essendon Football Club, (Melbourne), 1996. ISBN 0-9591740-2-8
  • Ross, J. (ed), 100 Years of Australian Football 1897–1996: The Complete Story of the AFL, All the Big Stories, All the Great Pictures, All the Champions, Every AFL Season Reported, Viking, (Ringwood), 1996. ISBN 0-670-86814-0
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