Lindsay Head

Lindsay Head
Personal information
Full nameLindsay Hudson Head
Date of birth16 September 1935
Place of birthNorth Adelaide, South Australia
Playing career1
YearsClubGames (Goals)
1952–1970West Torrens327 (494)
Representative team honours
YearsTeamGames (Goals)
1953–19??South Australia37
Coaching career
YearsClubGames (W–L–D)
1981West Torrens
1 Playing statistics correct to end of 1970 season.
Career highlights
  • West Torrens premiership player 1953
  • West Torrens leading goalkicker 1954
  • Magarey Medal 1955, 1958, 1963
  • West Torrens best and fairest 1955–56, 1958–59, 1962–63, 1966–67
  • All-Australian team 1956
  • West Torrens life member 1962
  • West Torrens president 1984–88
  • West Torrens chairman 1986–88
  • SANFL player life member
  • Australian Football Hall of Fame inaugural inductee 1996
  • South Australian Football Hall of Fame inaugural inductee 2002
  • Woodville-West Torrens life member
  • Woodville-West Torrens life governor

Lindsay Hudson Head MBE(C) (born 16 September 1935 in North Adelaide, South Australia) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with West Torrens in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). He was awarded three Magarey Medals during his career.

SANFL

Lindsay Head's first experience of state representation came in 1947, when he played in a state schoolboys carnival at the age of eleven. In 1953 he lined up in the senior South Australian state team to play Victoria. By the time he was nineteen he had won the first of his three Magarey Medals in only his third league season.

Head played for eighteen seasons at SANFL level – all with West Torrens. His list of achievements for his club was notable: he played the most games for the club (327); won the club best and fairest award eight times; was club leading goalkicker twice; was captain-coach from 1959–1960 and captain in 1961; coached the club in 1981; and was club president for five years. He was the first SANFL player to play more than 300 games. During his playing career he won the Magarey Medal – the highest individual award in the league – in 1955, 1958 and 1963.

At state level, he represented South Australia on 37 occasions. He captained the state side in 1960, and was named an All-Australian at the 1956 Perth Carnival.

The Australian Football Hall of Fame's description refers to his "magnificent skills on both sides of his body",[1] which is unfortunate as Head never learned to kick with his left foot. Instead he developed a check-side punt for passing and goal-shooting which was very accurate.

Head played in a premiership side in only his second ever season, but thereafter his side made the finals barely a handful of times in his remaining 16 seasons. His loyalty to his Eagles was therefore remarkable, particularly given that he was pursued not only by other SANFL clubs, but also from the wealthier Victorian Football League competition.

Other

Head played cricket for South Australia as a right-hand opening batsman (1957/58–1958/59). In nine matches he scored 425 runs at an average of 28.33.

He was awarded the MBE for services to football in 1964.

References

  1. ↑ http://new.afl.com.au/Season2007/Awards/HallofFame/Players/tabid/856/Default.aspx

External links