Australian Football

Ruggedly relentless and inspirational, Arch Hosie was a lynch-pin of the Port Adelaide Football Club for 14 seasons, during which time it won three premierships and was runner-up on four occasions. He later had two brief stints as coach of the club, in 1909-10, and 1924-5.

As a player he was aggressive but fair, and boasted extraordinary versatility. Many of his finest performances came in the ruck, but he was almost equally effective in the centre or across half back. In 1901-2-3 he captained Port, and was state captain for a couple of years as well, leading South Australia to a famous victory over the VFL in Melbourne in 1902. In all, he played for South Australia six times.

In 1898, Hosie received a trophy from the club for ‘the best all round player’, as a result of which he is listed in the record books as one of Port Adelaide’s earliest known best and fairest award winners. He retired at the end of the 1903 season having just led his team to a 6.6 (42) to 5.5 (35) Challenge Final victory over South Adelaide.

Author - John Devaney