Bill Madden (footballer)

Bill Madden
Personal information
Full nameWilliam Charles Madden
Date of birth18 November 1881
Date of death3 May 1917 (aged 35)
Place of deathFrance
Original teamWest Melbourne
Playing career1
YearsClubGames (Goals)
1908-1909St Kilda26 (14)
1 Playing statistics correct to end of 1909 season.

William Charles "Bill" Madden (18 November 1881 — 3 May 1917) was an Australian rules footballer who played with St Kilda. He was killed in action in France in 1917.

Family

He was married in 1904; and he and his wife, Dorothea Harriett Madden (?-1942),[1] née Surguy, had two children, Priscilla Victoria Madden, and William Leonard Madden.[2]

Footballer

At 26 years of age, he was cleared to St Kilda, from West Melbourne on 29 April 1908.[3] and played his first senior match, in the first round, against Carlton, at Princes Park on 2 May 1908. Of the three St Kilda debutants, Madden, Bismarck Kulpa, and Alby Landt, he was considered to be "the most promising" of all the new St Kilda players.[4] Although not a tall man,[5] he played as a backman, a forward, and a ruckman, with an equally high level of skill and performance during his senior VFL career.

In his first season at St Kilda (1908) he played in every senior match, including the Semi-Final against Carlton, at the M.C.G. on 19 September 1908. Carlton thrashed St Kilda, by 58 points (12.12 (84) to 3.8 (26), Madden was selected as the forward pocket resting ruckman for St Kilda.[6] The match was played in extremely wet and muddy conditions, and the umpiring was of such a poor standard that St Kilda lodged a complaint.[7]

In his second season (1909) he only played seven matches, the last of which, against Melbourne at the Junction Oval on 24 July 1908 (round thirteen) was only possible because he was needed to replace an unavailable player.[8]

Cricketer

He was also the wicket-keeper for the Brunswick Cricket Club.[9]

Soldier

Prior to enlisting in the First AIF on 30 March 1916, he had been employed as a tinsmith.

Death

He died in France on 3 May 1917.

He was declared "missing in action" in May 1917; and his name appeared in the list of missing issued in June 1917.[10]

He was finally (officially) declared "Killed in Action" on 26 November 1917 after a Court of Inquiry had conducted an investigation into his case,[11] although the relevant casualty list was not published until February 1918.[12]

See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Funeral Notices: Madden, The West Australian, (Monday, 30 March 1942), p.1.
  2. ↑ Service Record, p.21.
  3. ↑ Football: Permit Applications (W. Madden, West Melbourne to St. KiIda), The Argus, (Thursday, 30 April 1908), p.6.,
  4. ↑ Football: Carlton Unchanged: A Powerful Team, The Argus, (Monday 4 May 1908), p.8.
  5. ↑ He was measured at 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) on his enlistment with the AIF (Service Record, p.4).
  6. ↑ Football: The Match of the Day, The Argus, (Saturday, 19 September 1908), p.17.
  7. ↑ Football in the Rain: St. Kilda Badly Beaten: Carlton Win in Five Minutes, The Argus, (Monday, 21 September 1908), p.4.
  8. ↑ Football: Melbourne's Rushing Win: Good Form by St. Kilda, The Argus, (Monday, 26 July 1909), p.5.
  9. ↑ Deaths: On Active Service: Madden (inserted by "his comrades at the Brunswick Cricket Club"), The Age, (Saturday, 9 February 1918), p.7; Died on Service: Madden (inserted by "his comrades at the Brunswick Cricket Club"), The Argus, (Saturday, 9 February 1918), p.11; Cricket: Sub-District, The Argus, (Monday, 2 November 1914), p.6; Cricket: Sub-District: Brunswick v. Camberwell, The Argus, (Monday, 9 November 1914), p.5.
  10. ↑ Australian Casualties: List No. 310: Victoria: Missing (L.-Cpl. W. C. Madden, Brunswick), The Argus, (Thursday, 14 June 1917), p.5.
  11. ↑ Service Record, p.34.
  12. ↑ Australian Casualties: List No. (382): Victoria: Killed in Action (Madden, L.-Cpl. W. C., Brunswick, 3/5/17), The Argus, (Saturday, 9 February 1918), p.19 (Note: the newspaper, mistakenly has the list no.328 in its headline printed); Australia's Roll of Honor (sic): 382nd Casualty List: Victoria: Killed in Action (Madden, Lance-Corp. W. C., Brunswick), The Age, (Saturday, 9 February 1918), p.14.

External links