Australian Football

Kevin Clarke was an outstanding ruckman and forward whose league career was badly hampered by injury, particularly early on. Between 1950 and 1954 he managed just 77  senior games for West Perth, the undoubted highlight among which would have been the victorious Grand Final of 1951 against South Fremantle. Clarke led the Cardinals' ruck division on that occasion, as he would do again in the unsuccessful grand final meeting with South two years later. 

The high general regard in which he was held was clearly evidenced by his selection in half a dozen West Australian interstate teams - no mean achievement when you consider the abundance of ruck talent available to the selectors at the time.

After the 1954 season Clarke was transferred in his employment to Melbourne, and he spent the remainder of his playing career in the VFL. In 1955 he played for Melbourne, but after only managing a single senior appearance for the year as he had been deemed not to have fulfilled the necessary residential requirements. Melbourne, blessed with a strong ruck division, cleared him to Carlton where he proved his worth, performing creditably over 57 games for the Blues over four seasons.

Author - John Devaney with additional material from Adam Cardosi