Fitzgerald started his career at Collingwood at the age of 15, in 1945. By 1950 he was an established key player with arguably the country's most illustrious sporting club.[1]
Move to SANFL
It was thus surprising that in 1951 he was lured to the Sturt Football Club in the South Australian competition.
Fitzgerald was clearly attracted to the offer of better paying employment proffered by Sturt.[1] One source has suggested however that the move was engineered by Collingwood powerbroker John Wren at the behest of a political ally in South Australia.[2]
SANFL career
Arriving at Sturt in 1951, Fitzgerald quickly made an impression, being appointed captain after three games, and took over the coaching role mid-season. In 1952 Fitzgerald dominated the League, winning his first Magarey Medal as the "fairest and most brilliant" player in the League. He was to win two more in 1954 and 1959.
Despite Fitzgerald's brilliance, Sturt was unable to secure a premiership. In 1955 Fitzgerald got Sturt to the preliminary final, but the club failed to honour a promise of a bonus.[2] Fitzgerald took himself to the Ovens and Murray League for the next three seasons, coaching and playing for Benalla.
When Fitzgerald returned to Sturt in 1959, he helped them to make the finals that year, the first time since his departure. Injuries began to take their toll on his playing and Fitzgerald finished his playing career in 1962 after playing 127 games for Sturt, kicking 201 goals and winning the club's best and fairest award three times. He represented his adopted State of South Australia 20 times and was named an All Australian in the 1953 Adelaide Carnival.
Fitzgerald coached Glenelg for three seasons after his retirement as a player, but with little success.
^ ab"Len Fitzgerald (Collingwood, Sturt, Glenelg)". Full Points Footy. Archived from the original on 20 August 2008. Retrieved 26 February 2011.
^ abRoss, John (1999). The Australian Football Hall of Fame. Australia: HarperCollinsPublishers. p. 65. ISBN0-7322-6426-X.
External links
Len Fitzgerald's playing statistics from AFL Tables
Len Fitzgerald at AustralianFootball.com
Rucci, Michelangelo (17 April 2007). . Archived from the original on 6 June 2007.
May 05, 2023
fitzgerald, 1929, april, 2007, australian, rules, footballer, exceptional, talent, victorian, football, league, south, australian, national, football, league, sanfl, various, time, played, positions, centre, half, forward, centre, half, back, ruck, rover, pers. Len Fitzgerald 7 May 1929 17 April 2007 was an Australian rules footballer of exceptional talent in the Victorian Football League VFL and South Australian National Football League SANFL At various time he played in the key positions of centre half forward centre half back and ruck rover Len FitzgeraldPersonal informationDate of birth 1929 05 07 7 May 1929Date of death17 April 2007 2007 04 17 aged 77 Place of deathAdelaideOriginal team s Collingwood Technical SchoolHeight183 cm 6 ft 0 in Weight86 kg 190 lb Playing career1YearsClubGames Goals 1945 1950Collingwood96 49 1951 1955 1959 1962Sturt125 201 Representative team honoursYearsTeamGames Goals Victoria2South Australia20Coaching career3YearsClubGames W L D 1951 1955Sturt1963 1966Glenelg1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 1962 3 Coaching statistics correct as of 1966 Career highlightsSturt captain 1952 1955 Sturt best and fairest 1952 1953 and 1954 Magarey Medallist 1952 1954 and 1959 All Australian 1953 Australian Football Hall of Fame inductee 1996 SANFL Hall of Fame inductee 2002Sources AFL Tables AustralianFootball com Contents 1 VFL career 2 Move to SANFL 3 SANFL career 4 References 5 External linksVFL career EditFitzgerald started his career at Collingwood at the age of 15 in 1945 By 1950 he was an established key player with arguably the country s most illustrious sporting club 1 Move to SANFL EditIt was thus surprising that in 1951 he was lured to the Sturt Football Club in the South Australian competition Fitzgerald was clearly attracted to the offer of better paying employment proffered by Sturt 1 One source has suggested however that the move was engineered by Collingwood powerbroker John Wren at the behest of a political ally in South Australia 2 SANFL career EditArriving at Sturt in 1951 Fitzgerald quickly made an impression being appointed captain after three games and took over the coaching role mid season In 1952 Fitzgerald dominated the League winning his first Magarey Medal as the fairest and most brilliant player in the League He was to win two more in 1954 and 1959 Despite Fitzgerald s brilliance Sturt was unable to secure a premiership In 1955 Fitzgerald got Sturt to the preliminary final but the club failed to honour a promise of a bonus 2 Fitzgerald took himself to the Ovens and Murray League for the next three seasons coaching and playing for Benalla When Fitzgerald returned to Sturt in 1959 he helped them to make the finals that year the first time since his departure Injuries began to take their toll on his playing and Fitzgerald finished his playing career in 1962 after playing 127 games for Sturt kicking 201 goals and winning the club s best and fairest award three times He represented his adopted State of South Australia 20 times and was named an All Australian in the 1953 Adelaide Carnival Fitzgerald coached Glenelg for three seasons after his retirement as a player but with little success He was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996 and the SANFL Hall of Fame in 2002 as one of the inaugural inductees in each References Edit a b Len Fitzgerald Collingwood Sturt Glenelg Full Points Footy Archived from the original on 20 August 2008 Retrieved 26 February 2011 a b Ross John 1999 The Australian Football Hall of Fame Australia HarperCollinsPublishers p 65 ISBN 0 7322 6426 X External links EditLen Fitzgerald s playing statistics from AFL Tables Len Fitzgerald at AustralianFootball com SANFL Hall of Fame Rucci Michelangelo 17 April 2007 Sturt legend Fitzgerald dies Archived from the original on 6 June 2007 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Len Fitzgerald amp oldid 1124709747, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
