Australian Football

AustralianFootball.com Celebrating the history of the great Australian game

 

Key Facts

Full name
Edward Freyer

Known as
Ted Freyer

Born
20 May 1910

Died
22 April 1984 (aged 73)

Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 19y 82d
Last game: 27y 100d

Height and weight
Height: 185 cm
Weight: 76 kg

Senior clubs
Port Melbourne; Essendon

Jumper numbers
Essendon: 26

Recruited from
Port Melbourne (1929); Essendon (1938)

Family links
Bill Freyer (Brother)Rob Freyer (Son)

Ted Freyer

ClubLeagueCareer spanGamesGoalsAvgWin %AKIAHBAMKBV
Port MelbourneVFA1928, 1938-1941, 1945834645.59
EssendonV/AFL1929-19371243723.0040%12.004.007
Total1928-1941, 19452078364.04

Pre 1965 stats are for selected matches only

AFL: 3,607th player to appear, 1,804th most games played, 116th most goals kickedEssendon: 414th player to appear, 122nd most games played, 11th most goals kicked

After playing briefly with Port Melbourne as a teenager, Ted Freyer crossed to Essendon where he made his VFL debut in 1929. Tall and wiry, and possessing fine judgement, he habitually manned a forward pocket rather than the key attacking positions, and his deadly punt kicking for goal capped off many a Same Old forward thrust. Freyer played a total of 124 VFL games with Essendon, and his 372 goals including club leading tallies in five seasons. 

At the end of the 1937 season he controversially returned to Port Melbourne without a clearance, where in 1940 and '41 he at last had the satisfaction of playing in premiership-winning teams. During the period from 1938 to 1941, Ted Freyer, now playing mainly at the goalfront, was indisputably one of the VFA's top draw cards. He topped the Association goal kicking list in 1938 with 86 goals, and again two years later with 157. After a break for the war, he resumed for one last season in 1945 before finishing his career with Waterside Workers in the Saturday Morning League. In 83 VFA games, Freyer amassed an incredible tally of 464 goals at an average of 5.59 per match.

Ted Freyer's brother Billy played briefly for South Melbourne and Footscray in the mid-1920s while his son Robert played 109 VFA games for Port Melbourne between 1958 and 1965.

Author - John Devaney

Sources

Full Points Footy Publications

Footnotes

* Behinds calculated from the 1965 season on.
+ Score at the end of extra time.