Australian Football

One of many Essendon footballers to join the club from Ringwood, Neil Clarke gave the Bombers 135 VFL games worth of valuable service between 1977 and 1987, booting 35 goals. The sort of player who could be relied upon to perform at least serviceably regardless of the opposition or the position to which he was assigned, Clarke was a member of Essendon's 1984 and 1985 premiership teams as well as the 1981 and 1984 night flag-winning combinations. Often used as a tagger, he had the knack of being able to nullify an opponent's effectiveness whilst still collecting plenty of possessions himself. He played one state of origin match for Victoria , against South Australia at Football Park in 1983. Clarke died in March 2003 at the tragically young age of 45. 

Author - John Devaney