Australian Football

Dave Moffatt was a kind of prototype Jack Dyer, who thrilled Richmond supporters, and terrorised opponents, in 95 VFL games between 1912 and 1920 (with a gap for war service in 1918). Like Dyer, he was rough, tough, courageous and relentless. However, unlike the greatest Tiger of them all, Moffatt occasionally became so consumed by 'white line fever' that he ceased to function in the best interests of the team. Opposition fans delighted in venting their anger at him, and the press came to be roundly critical of his unswervingly antagonistic approach. On one occasion, Moffatt conceded three free kicks inside the opening four minutes of a game, much to the delight of many spectators who believed that umpires were sometimes remiss in penalising bad behaviour.

When the mood took him, Moffatt was capable of playing excellent football, and when he applied his 92 kilos of weight intelligently and legally he became an awesome influence. His last ever VFL game, the 1920 Grand Final, brought arguably his most effective and significant performance: partnering his captain Dan Minogue in the ruck, Moffatt used both fair means and foul to eradicate almost completely the impact of Collingwood's normally highly influential ruckman Les 'Flapper' Hughes. The Collingwood supporters were incensed, but Moffatt's contribution was crucial to his team's eventual 17-point win.

Said to be thoroughly sick and tired of the constant harping criticism from the press, Dave Moffatt retired after the 1920 Grand Final.

Author - John Devaney