Australian Football

Karl Langdon was a powerful, purposeful footballer whose general demeanour suggested that he relished the game’s more brutal aspects. Playing mainly across half forward his bleached white hair only served to enhance his flamboyant, larger than life image. Perhaps not surprisingly, he was a regular visitor to the Tribunal.

Langdon commenced his senior football career with Subiaco in 1986 when his fourth game for the year was the Lions’ grand final defeat of East Fremantle. At the beginning of the season he had been playing colts football.

In 1988 Langdon commenced what would develop into a noteworthy but injury-impeded V/AFL career with West Coast. He also played state of origin football for Western Australia at that year's Bicentennial carnival in Adelaide. In 1992 he was at centre half forward as the Eagles withstood the grand final challenge of Geelong to claim their first ever premiership. The day was sullied somewhat for Langdon in that he inured a knee during the match. He ended up missing the whole of the 1993 season with knee trouble. His last couple of seasons with the Eagles saw him in and out of the side and he was not selected in the club's 1994 grand final-winning team. He played precisely 100 V/AFL games and kicked 107 goals between 1988 and 1995 whilst his time with Subiaco, which to some extent ran parallel with his AFL career, comprised 64 WAFL games and 94 goals.

Following his retirement as a player Karl Langdon embarked on a sports media career, mainly on radio 6PR and in "The Sunday Times".

Author - John Devaney