Australian Football

Originally from Bairnsdale, Brian Royal was an ardent Footscray fan as a youngster. Shortly after the Bulldogs recruited him he sustained a serious knee injury which kept him out of the game for 12 months. When he finally made his senior debut for the club in 1983 he had a pronounced and immediate impact. A livewire competitor who excelled when the going was tough, he won the club's best and fairest award in his debut season, and soon became a regular fixture in Victorian state of origin teams, making a total of eight appearances.

Highly skilled on both sides of the body, Royal excelled at getting rid of the ball quickly, usually to telling effect. When Footscray made a rare major round appearance in 1985, he was one of the main driving forces behind the team's push to the Preliminary Final. He achieved All Australian selection in 1986, and was named as first rover in the Bulldogs' official 'Team of the Century'. Brian Royal's career came to a peremptory and sad end when, having played 199 V/AFL games, he snapped his achilles tendon against Essendon at the MCG in round 20 1993. He had booted an impressive career tally of 299 goals, a legacy of his having played the majority of his last few seasons as a permanent forward pocket.

Author - John Devaney