Des Bethke

Desmond Norman Bethke OAM (born 19 August 1943) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL).[1]

Des Bethke
Personal information
Full name Desmond Norman Bethke
Date of birth (1943-08-19) 19 August 1943
Place of birth Netherby, Victoria
Original team(s) Horsham
Height 183 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Weight 83 kg (183 lb)
Position(s) Back Pocket
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
1963–68 South Melbourne 56 (43)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1968.
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

Family

The son of Eric Otto Bethke (1914-1985), and Phyllis Ada Bethke (1917-), née Love, Desmond Norman Bethke was born at Netherby (near Nhill) on 19 August 1943. He married Janet Ray Boucher (1943-).

Football

Recruited from the Horsham Football Club, he was granted six match permits in 1963 and, after playing with the South Melbourne First XVIII for the first six matches of the 1963 season, he returned to Horsham.[2]

He played all eighteen games for the South Melbourne First XVIII in the 1964 season, nine games in 1965, seven games in 1966, fourteen games in 1967, and two games in 1968.

Bethke's last senior game was against Carlton, on 18 May 1968, at the Lake Oval in round 6 of the 1968 season. It was a torrid match, eventually won by Carlton, 12.11 (83) to 10.11 (71) — which withstood a vigorous second half comeback from South Melbourne (South scoring 6.8 (44) to Carlton's 2.5 (17) — during which the controversial, and struggling-for-form Eric Sarich broke Bryan Quirk's jaw, with a kick to the head,[3] in the first quarter (Quirk was out for seven weeks as a consequence of the injury).[4][5][6][7]

Town Clerk

From 1980 to 1990, Bethke was the Town Clerk of the City of Melbourne.[8]

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal

He was one of 6,870 Australians awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal in 1977, and was awarded for his services to the South Melbourne City Council.[9]

Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM)

He was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia, in the General Division (OAM) on 26 January 1996, "for service to local government and the community".[10]

Footnotes
  1. Holmesby & Main (2014), p.64.
  2. Hobbs, Greg, "South Recruit to Stay in Country", The Age, (Thursday, 30 May 1963), p.22.
  3. Round 6, 1968: Match Review, Blueseum.com.
  4. Beames, P., "Barassi and Miller clash", The Age, (Monday, 20 May 1986), p.26.
  5. Sarich takes out Writ, The Age, (Wednesday, 22 May 1968), p.24.
  6. Barassi apologises, The Age, (Monday, 27 May 1968), p.22.
  7. Saturday, 18 May 1968 was also the day upon which Carlton refused to allow three of its selected players — Graeme Anderson, Billy Bennett, and Peter Jones — to play in its Reserves team due to their late arrival at the Lake Oval.
  8. Politics & Government: Melbourne City Council, eMelbourne: the city past & present.
  9. Silver Jubilee Medal: Victoria List, Commonwealth of Australia Gazette, No.P7, (Monday, 1 August 1977), p.30.
  10. Australia Day 1996 Honours: The Order of Australia: Awarded the Medal in the General Division (OAM), Commonwealth of Australia Gazette (Special), No.S12, (Friday, 26 January 1996), p.7.

References
  • Holmesby, Russell; Main, Jim (2014). The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers: every AFL/VFL player since 1897 (10th ed.). Seaford, Victoria: BAS Publishing. ISBN 978-1-921496-32-5.
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