Australian Football

Alan Stoneham was aged just 15 years and 11 months when he made his senior VFA debut for Sunshine in round 18, 1971. He went on to play a total of 11 games for the Crows before crossing to Footscray during the 1972 season with several months to go before his 17th birthday. Great things were expected of the youngster, who obviously had copious amounts of talent, but although he managed 128 VFL games in eight seasons at the club, and represented Victoria twice, he never really established himself as a player of the highest quality.

In 1980, Stoneham switched to Essendon, where he added 72 senior games in four seasons, as well as captaining the reserves side to the 1983 flag. Stoneham played mainly as a centreman or half forward flanker while with Footscray, whereas he was primarily used as a defender by the Dons. He kicked a total of 62 goals during his league career, 42 with the Bulldogs, and 20 with the Bombers.

Author - John Devaney