Australian Football

When he joined Footscray from Traralgon in 1974 Kelvin Templeton was already a league footballer in all but name. Possessing in substantial measure all the traditional skills of the top class key position forward - quick and combative at ground level, strong overhead, and a resplendent kick of the football over any distance up to 60 metres - Templeton was idolised by Bulldog fans throughout his nine-season, 143-game career with the club.

Those 143 games elicited 494 goals, including tallies of 118 in 1978 and 91 the following year to top the VFL's goal kicking ladder. Templeton also topped Footscray's goal-kicking list in 1976-7 and 1980. His greatest 'day out' came when Footscray kicked its record VFL score of 33.15 (213) against St Kilda in 1979, with Templeton contributing 15.9.

Kelvin Templeton's best season in football was undoubtedly 1980 when he not only won his second Footscray best and fairest award but the Brownlow Medal as well, the latter achievement being comparatively rare for a key forward. A regular 'Big V' representative, Templeton played in both the 1979 and 1980 state-of-origin championship series.

After captaining Footscray for the first time in 1982 Templeton was lured to Melbourne the following year in what was reputedly a big money transaction. Persistent niggling injuries undermined his effectiveness while with the Dees, but he still managed 99 goals in 34 games over two seasons, including 51 in 1984 to top Melbourne's list.

After retiring as a player, Templeton worked for Sydney for a time as a skills coach.

Templeton was named at centre half forward in the Bulldogs' official 'Team of the Twentieth Century'.

Author - John Devaney