Australian Football

Originally from Geelong College, George Heinz made his VFL debut for Geelong, aged 18, in the opening round of the 1910 season against Melbourne. He made an immediately favourable impression, and quickly formed a damaging roving partnership with the equally talented Alec Eason. Cool, clever, and elusive, he was chosen to represent the VFL at the 1911 Adelaide carnival, and again at Sydney three years later when he received a Referee Medal as his state's best player. The last of his 87 games for Geelong was the 1914 semi final against South Melbourne, which the red and whites won by a single straight kick.

Owing to anti-German feeling during World War I, George Heinz felt constrained to change his surname to Haines, and it was under that name that he further exhibited his patriotism by joining the AIF. On the resumption of full scale football in 1919 he transferred to Melbourne, which appointed him as captain-coach. He topped the Fuchsias' goal kicking in his debut season at the club, albeit with only 15 goals in a very lean, winless year.

Heinz spent seven seasons altogether at Melbourne, including two as captain, and added another 106 VFL games to his ledger. After a year's break from the game, he returned to the VFL in 1927 as coach of St Kilda, adding one more senior game to his tally when the team was short of players, and steering the team to seventh position on the ladder with an 8-10 record. He later returned to Melbourne and took on the role of chairman of selectors.

Author - John Devaney, with additional information by Andrew Gigacz