Australian Football

Clarke was blessed with three Christian names - Edward Augustus Ansell - but was invariably known by the last of these. A fanatical Fitzroy supporter as a youngster, he ended up becoming one of the greatest small men in the history of the Carlton Football Club. After struggling to make his mark at first, and indeed asking for a clearance to Northcote at one point, Clarke broke into the Blues' senior line-up in 1929 and never looked back. He could be devastating when resting in a forward pocket - in one reserves match, for instance, he booted 13 goals - and was one of the most adept foot passers in the game.

Clarke's 144 VFL games in nine seasons at Carlton yielded 242 goals, and included the losing Grand Final of 1932 against Richmond. He won his club's best and fairest award in 1936, and was captain in his final season. He crossed to St Kilda as captain-coach in 1938, which ironically meant that he missed the chance to participate in the Blues' first premiership win since 1915. Nevertheless, he proved a success with the Saints, whom he steered as far as the Preliminary Final in the second of his three-season stint at the helm. When he retired in 1940, he had added a further 26 VFL games and 47 goals to his respective tallies. Ansell Clarke played carnival football for the victorious VFL interstate team at Sydney in 1933.

Author - John Devaney