SA Footy

Very open topic yes but i think it is good to look at.

In my eyes best player from the Eagles would be Matthew Pavlich. 230+ games 6 time All australian, 5 time best and fairest. I no people will throw up names such as Blight, Hank, Head, Bills. I never watched them play

schimma wrote:Very open topic yes but i think it is good to look at.

In my eyes best player from the Eagles would be Matthew Pavlich. 230+ games 6 time All australian, 5 time best and fairest. I no people will throw up names such as Blight, Hank, Head, Bills. I never watched them play

I never saw Hank play, but as good as Head was, the general consensus was that Hank was better. Until Robran and Ebert my father's generation generally rated Hank SAs number one player ever although coward and Kingston in their definitive 1976 rankings didn't have him quite so high. I saw plenty of Bills, a very honest toiler who won about 4 Best and Fairests for Torrens, but not in the same class as Hank, Head, Blight or Pavlich.

Who would be Woodville's second best player (after Blight)? Would it be Ray Huppatz or perhaps Ralph Sewer?

And who would be Torrens' best player since the retirement of Hank and Head? Bruce Lindsay must surely be very close to being their best footballer from the 20 or so years from the late 60's/early 70's to 1990.

GWW wrote:Who would be Woodville's second best player (after Blight)? Would it be Ray Huppatz or perhaps Ralph Sewer?

And who would be Torrens' best player since the retirement of Hank and Head? Bruce Lindsay must surely be very close to being their best footballer from the 20 or so years from the late 60's/early 70's to 1990.

I would have thought Bob Simunsen would have gone very close to being Woodville's second best player. It is a little known fact that he made the state squad whilst playing seconds for Woodville. He won two seconds Magarey medals whilst waiting for Woodville to become a league side and he was runner up in the 1966 Magarey Medal. He was Woodville's first state player. As an aside I once heard Simunsen asked whether he was disappointed that he was unable to play for Port during the time he was forced to play seconds for Woodville. He responded, no he was disappointed that he was unable to play for Torrens. Put him into the 1963 Torrens side and they would have been unbeatable.

Having said that Bills wasn't in the same class as the other players mentioned I would still have him just in front of Lindsay as Torrens best player post Hank and Head.

Does anyone know if either or both of Woodville or West Torrens did a "team of the century" before the amalgamation?

I've been married 18 years and my Mother-in-Law is a Torrens/Eagles supporter.

A while ago I asked her why she followed Torrens ... well my cousin is Bob Hank she said in that you're a dumbass tone.

Well I always side with her so Bob Hank it is then.

robranisgod wrote:

GWW wrote:Who would be Woodville's second best player (after Blight)? Would it be Ray Huppatz or perhaps Ralph Sewer?

And who would be Torrens' best player since the retirement of Hank and Head? Bruce Lindsay must surely be very close to being their best footballer from the 20 or so years from the late 60's/early 70's to 1990.

I would have thought Bob Simunsen would have gone very close to being Woodville's second best player. It is a little known fact that he made the state squad whilst playing seconds for Woodville. He won two seconds Magarey medals whilst waiting for Woodville to become a league side and he was runner up in the 1966 Magarey Medal. He was Woodville's first state player. As an aside I once heard Simunsen asked whether he was disappointed that he was unable to play for Port during the time he was forced to play seconds for Woodville. He responded, no he was disappointed that he was unable to play for Torrens. Put him into the 1963 Torrens side and they would have been unbeatable.

Having said that Bills wasn't in the same class as the other players mentioned I would still have him just in front of Lindsay as Torrens best player post Hank and Head.

what about buff tyrrell ? seriously though how about craig mackellar ?

bayman wrote:

robranisgod wrote:

GWW wrote:Who would be Woodville's second best player (after Blight)? Would it be Ray Huppatz or perhaps Ralph Sewer?

And who would be Torrens' best player since the retirement of Hank and Head? Bruce Lindsay must surely be very close to being their best footballer from the 20 or so years from the late 60's/early 70's to 1990.

I would have thought Bob Simunsen would have gone very close to being Woodville's second best player. It is a little known fact that he made the state squad whilst playing seconds for Woodville. He won two seconds Magarey medals whilst waiting for Woodville to become a league side and he was runner up in the 1966 Magarey Medal. He was Woodville's first state player. As an aside I once heard Simunsen asked whether he was disappointed that he was unable to play for Port during the time he was forced to play seconds for Woodville. He responded, no he was disappointed that he was unable to play for Torrens. Put him into the 1963 Torrens side and they would have been unbeatable.

Having said that Bills wasn't in the same class as the other players mentioned I would still have him just in front of Lindsay as Torrens best player post Hank and Head.

what about buff tyrrell ? seriously though how about craig mackellar ?

Craig MacKellar was a very, very good knock ruckman, but he wasn't that great around the ground. As a pure footballer he would have been well behind Simunsen, Huppatz, Sewer and probably John Cummins. He was certainly a state footballer here, probably Woodville's second home grown state player and had a maginificent seaon for Richmond in 1972 but his form plummeted after that.

Simunsen was great, Phil Maylin would also go close to being their best after Blight. It'd come from Simunsen, Huppatz, Maylin and Sewer I reckon.
How would Neville Roberts compare with Lindsay at Torrens?

Based purely on playing record whilst at Woodville, I would nominate Ray Huppatz as the greatest player at Woodville. Four B&Fs to Blighty's two, was State vice captain in an era of Robran/Ebert/Marker etc and always played well in State games.

Huppatz
Blight
Simunsen
Sewer

Bob Hank IMHO.

Max Parker

SAVE MAX!

McAlmanac wrote:Based purely on playing record whilst at Woodville, I would nominate Ray Huppatz as the greatest player at Woodville. Four B&Fs to Blighty's two, was State vice captain in an era of Robran/Ebert/Marker etc and always played well in State games.

Huppatz
Blight
Simunsen
Sewer

As an interested opposition supporter I reckon that you aren't far off the mark. We loved Terry von Bertouch as an honest interstate rover, but Ray Huppatz was usually too brilliant for him in our halcyon years. The von generally had every other rover covered but Huppatz usually had his measure.

Blighty certainly was brilliant, but like his VFL career, you never quite knew what you were going to get. His best was unbelievable, his worst was dreadful. A couple of Blighty's highs and lows include that brilliant screwie against Carlton to win the match in 1976 after the siren and then his out on the full shot to lose the match against Hawthorn in 1977. Also his two grand finals in 1977 summed him up. He was dreadful in the first, he was dragged at three quarter time and Barassi wanted to drop him for the replay! Yet when he won a reprieve his replay performance was brilliant.

nickname wrote:Simunsen was great, Phil Maylin would also go close to being their best after Blight. It'd come from Simunsen, Huppatz, Maylin and Sewer I reckon.
How would Neville Roberts compare with Lindsay at Torrens?

I forgot about Roberts. I would personally rate him above Lindsay, but I probably place too much credence on post-knee Lindsay. He played another 11 years after doing his knee, but I don't think he was ever the same player.

I would therefore rate Torrens best since WW2 as :

Hank
Head
Shearman
Roberts
Bills
Lindsay


but I have probably forgotten a few players.

Hank Head Shearman Roberts Bills Lindsay
Great half-dozen, but I always thought that the Norwood Roberts was a vast improvement on the Torrens Roberts and that the club's best forward of the last 50 years was Geoff Kingston, an all-Australian full forward after all. Kevin McSporran and John Birt would also be worthy of consideration.

robranisgod wrote:

nickname wrote:Simunsen was great, Phil Maylin would also go close to being their best after Blight. It'd come from Simunsen, Huppatz, Maylin and Sewer I reckon.
How would Neville Roberts compare with Lindsay at Torrens?

I forgot about Roberts. I would personally rate him above Lindsay, but I probably place too much credence on post-knee Lindsay. He played another 11 years after doing his knee, but I don't think he was ever the same player.

I would therefore rate Torrens best since WW2 as :

Hank
Head
Shearman
Roberts
Bills
Lindsay


but I have probably forgotten a few players.

Only heard about Hank Head and Shearman and Bills from my Dad.Although I was at Bills last game that 19 men on the ground game.

Roberts was there his first game back from Richmond.
Lindsay was a star pre injury.
Macsporin IMHO was a star as well and he finished his career with Woodville .
Steven Stretch and Aldo Floriana (spelling is not my strong point sorry)
Both were fantastic on a wing in their day.
Peter Philipou now he could shut down a player with a good old fashioned hip and shoulder .As did against Norwoods Galagher at footy park one day.

Lee Robson

Buff Tyrell

Rod Galt

Jeff Sarau