Australian Football

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Key Facts

Full name
William Mahoney

Known as
Bill Mahoney

Born
1 January 1885

Died
26 November 1939 (aged 54)

Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 17y 122d
Last game: 35y 240d

Height and weight
Height: 163 cm
Weight: 67 kg

Senior clubs
Geelong; St. Kilda; Richmond; Port Adelaide

Jumper numbers
Richmond: 10

Recruited from
Geelong (1904); St. Kilda (1908); Richmond (1912); Port Adelaide (1913)

Bill Mahoney

ClubLeagueCareer spanGamesGoalsAvgWin %AKIAHBAMKBV
GeelongV/AFL190217110.6541%0
St. KildaV/AFL1904-19051790.5312%0
RichmondV/AFL1908-1911, 1913-1915, 1920114530.4639%0
Port AdelaideSAFL19121070.70
V/AFL1902, 1904-1905, 1908-1911, 1913-1915, 1920148730.4936%0
SAFL19121070.70
Total1902, 1904-1905, 1908-1915, 1920158800.51

AFL: 725th player to appear, 1,345th most games played, 1,487th most goals kickedGeelong: 78th player to appear, 589th most games played, 392nd most goals kickedSt. Kilda: 195th player to appear, 638th most games played, 444th most goals kickedRichmond: 11th player to appear, 125th most games played, 141st most goals kicked

Bill Mahoney was an ultra diminutive rover who began his league career at Geelong in 1902, but, despite showing promise, was released after just 17 games for being 'too small'. He spent the 1904 and 1905 seasons at St Kilda, but failed to win a regular place in the team. It was not until he joined Richmond in 1908 that he came into his own. 

Energetic to the point of being hyperactive, he thrived on being in the thick of the action, and was expert at guessing exactly where the ball would end up after a ruck contest. In three separate stints at Richmond, the last of which was in 1920, he played a total of 114 games and, particularly in the years leading up to the start of the First World War, he was widely acknowledged to be one of the game's finest players. Mahoney spent the 1912 season with Port Adelaide, and was chosen to represent South Australia against his home state. All told, he played a total of 148 VFL games over 11 seasons.

Author - John Devaney

Sources

Full Points Footy Publications

Footnotes

* Behinds calculated from the 1965 season on.
+ Score at the end of extra time.