Bath time for the Tricolours
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For a practical example of perfectly equipped football training quarters, one could not do better than pay a visit to the Footscray ground. Here in the spacious rooms are provided every convenience for which the most fastidious player could wish, under the management of an energetic secretary and a capable staff.
It was the secretary, Stan Thomas (who came to Footscray from North Melbourne three years ago), who conducted Dick Ovenden and me on a tour of these training rooms de luxe last Tuesday night; a tour which prompted Dick to remark that "the way they look after injured players at Footscray makes accidents a pleasure!"
Firstly there was the big training room itself, with its piano (for use when the room assumes a social aspect for club functions), upholstered training-tables (an innovation, indeed!) and its line of metal lockers for the players' own use. By the door as you enter is a small office, from which are issued to the men togs, towels, and other "props," and where is kept the book in which the players must "sign on" and "sign off" every training night.
Then we visited the long committee room, with its furnishings, a replica of those in the Victorian League rooms; then the room set apart for the umpires, with its own hot bath . . . and then the bathroom, with its King Kong among baths, specially installed to save the men a long trip to the seaside.
If ever there was an attempt to "bring the beach to Footscray," this is it, for in this outsize in tubs, filled to the brim with steaming water from the huge tank, with a capacity of 400 gallons (the water given a "briny” flavor by the introduction of a generous amount of bay salt), the players splash away to their hearts' content of a Sunday morn, effectively ridding themselves of the aches and bruises acquired on the previous afternoon.
The "torture chamber"
But the piece de resistance of the Footscray training quarters, that which is rightly the pride of all attached to the Footscray outfit, is the first-aid room (better known to the players as "the torture chamber"), presided over by Mr Fred Wren. In this miniature hospital (which cost £600 to outfit) all manner of injuries and complaints (including rheumatoid arthritis) can be treated by Mr Wren, and minor operations performed by either of the three doctors attached to the club—the ever cheerful Dr Kevin McCarthy (the president), Dr Griffith and Dr Burns. The Miracle Man (to use the name by which Mr Wren is popularly known around the club) disclosed all manner of weird instruments for our benefit and showed us the workings of the hot-air, the large ultra violet lamp, and the medical lamp.
"No more hospitals for me next time I want my appendix out," said Dick. "I'm coming down to Footscray."
The use of this first-aid room is not reserved solely for the Footscray players, for here Mr Wren treats men from other clubs as well. Ad Santel, the wrestler, was a patient of Mr Wren's for a troublesome shoulder during his visit here, and Ambrose Palmer, the boxer-footballer, has been in the Miracle Man's hands for some time.
Leaving Fred Wren to look at a leg injury of Alan Hopkins, I went with Coach Bill Cubbins (the ex-star full back of Footscray and St. Kilda) to meet some of the "boys".
The first one Bill introduced me to was the tall Roy McKay, who since 1930 has been giving the Tricolors great service at centre half-back. Roy told me that he was born at Illabarook 24 years ago and that he played his first football at the Colac High School. He came up to live in Williamstown and secured a job as a carriage builder in the Victorian railways, where he became friends with Len Murphy, now of Collingwood. “I hadn't thought of playing football," Roy told me, "until Len and I began kicking a ball around with some of the other fellows at lunch-time. Many of them were League players—and I felt that I could more than hold my own with them".
"So Len and I went down to the Williamstown ground one training night, and as we weren't very impressed with the talent we saw there, we didn't feel bashful in asking for a game—and we got one!"
Roy played with Williamstown at centre half-back from 1927 until the end of 1929 and was adjudged second in the Recorder Cup for best and fairest player in the Association in 1928. He threw in his lot with Footscray at the start of 1930, and after playing a couple of games at half-forward, was given Harry Baker's place at centre half-back, where he has remained ever since.
100 games
Harry Baker, sitting next to Roy McKay on the bench, is another worker for the Victorian Railways, in the engineering department. Harry was born at Camperdown, but played his first football at Foster, in high school and with the local team. He came to live in Footscray in 1923, and the next year played football with Kingsville Rovers in the Y.M.C.A. Competition.
Half way through 1925 Harry was invited to play with Footscray Seconds, and next year was promoted to the seniors. He played his 100th game for the Tricolors against Carlton a few weeks ago.
"This year the team has shown the best combination work since I have been with them," said Harry. "We're also very much smarter in attack."
Dressed in his fireman's uniform, Jack Vosti (who has come across from Essendon to reveal brilliant form for the Tricolors) was sitting swinging a leg from one of the training tables. Jack is an unusually reticent person, but I managed to glean the information from him that he was born in the town of Guildford, came to live in Moonee Ponds at the tender age of 9, and when 18 played football in the Essendon Churches Competition, first with the Ascot Vale Church of Christ, and then with Maribyrnong Presbyterians. Playing with the latter team in a premiership game on the Essendon ground in 1923, he played a game that brought him under the notice of the Association "scouts".
Thus in 1924 he played with Brunswick at half-forward, and next year was centre half-forward for Essendon. He played his first League game against Collingwood, on the same day that Albert Collier made his debut.
Jack played with Essendon at full forward right throughout 1926, when he kicked over 50 goals for the season. He played in the same position in 1927 until the last two games of the season, when he was moved to full back—the position in which Jack made his name. From 1928 until 1931 Jack played in every interstate team chosen.
Jack played the first game of last year with Essendon, but a knee injury that had been troubling him since 1929 cropped up, and he retired from the game for the rest of the season. As Essendon did not think his knee would stand up to it this year, they permitted him to transfer to Footscray; an action they must now regret, for Jack is revealing his very best form with the Tricolors and is displaying no symptoms of "cracking up." For the past four years he has played Wednesday League football with the Fire Brigade.
A musical family
Jack admits that football is NOT his favorite sport, for he would rather play tennis than anything else—and does so at every opportunity. He also plays the euphonium in the Kensington Band.
"All we Vostis have to play some instrument," Jack told me in explanation of his musical leanings. "Father was a great musician, and made all the children take an interest, too."
Two youthful champions were together in the room in 22-year-old Norman Ware (who has been chosen in the Carnival side) and Albert Morrison, who is 24. Norman is in his second year with Footscray, attracting the attention of the "scouts" when he played with the Gippsland League against the Wimmera on the M.C.G. in 1931. Born in Sale, he played two years junior football and three years with the seniors before coming to Melbourne.
Six-foot Albert Morrison, in his sixth year with Footscray, was born in Newport. Before taking up the Australian game, he played soccer in 1926 with Newport Juniors as goalkeeper—"where I could get my hands on the ball", he explained.
In 1927, Spotswood formed a junior Australian Rules team, so Albert joined up, and after playing three games as centre half-forward went across to kick goals for Kingsville—though Yarraville had expected him to strip for them. That same year he was given much of the credit for the Kingsville premiership, in which game he played at both centre half-back and centre half-forward and kicked five goals.
Living in unallotted territory, Albert was the object of offers from many League clubs, but he joined Footscray in 1928, and in his first match played full forward against South Melbourne. He did not prove the success anticipated, however, and was "dropped" two out of five games—only to reappear against St. Kilda and cover himself with glory by scoring seven goals. He finished up with 50 for the year, and was chosen in the League team that went to Bendigo.
Giant follower
The next man I chatted with was the much-discussed second eighteen player, Charlie Richards, who has been the subject of some heated arguments at recent committee meetings. The general committee recommended that he should be played in the firsts—but as the match committee have thought otherwise, so far Charlie has not played League football.
This veritable giant of a follower (he stands 6 feet 1 3/4 inches and weighs 15 stone 7 lbs.) was born at Erica, and played with that team in 1929. In 1930 he stripped for Moe, and last year was invited to town to strip for South Melbourne. He played with South seconds for the first half of the first round, then went back to Moe and was chosen to represent Central Gippsland in the combined game against Gippsland League. He was awarded the umpire's vote for the best and fairest in this match. This year he came up to Footscray seconds.
Charlie is a noted axeman and was a member of the axemen's team that visited Tasmania to compete at Ulverstone. He has chopped at the Dandenong Victorian Axemen's Association carnival for the past three years and has secured many prizes.
The last man I talked with before joining Dick Ovenden in running for one of those very rare trains they run from Footscray to town, was Alan Rait, the Tasmanian star goal-kicker, who is proving such a tower of strength in attack for the Tricolors this year. Alan is even more reticent about himself than is Jack Vosti, and so information did not altogether flow from this truly brilliant forward.
However, I discovered that Alan is 25 years old, that he played State school football in Hobart, and in 1925 kicked goals for West Hobart, playing in the Suburban Association of that city. In 1927 he stripped for North Hobart in the Tasmanian League competition, and in 1930 established a Tasmanian record by kicking 114 goals for the season.
The same year he played in the Carnival games in Adelaide when his performance of coming second to Mohr in goal-kicking (with 27 goals) brought him under the Victorian "scouts" in general—and the Footscray ones in particular!
Footnotes
Title: Round the training rooms. No. 8—FOOTSCRAY
Author: F. Keith Manzie
Publisher: Table Talk (Melbourne, Victoria: 1885-1939)
Date: Thursday, 27 July 1933, p.27
Web: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article149548279
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