Australian Football

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Key Facts

Full name
George Bennett

Known as
George Bennett

Born
22 September 1911

Died
10 October 1974 (aged 63)

Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 18y 223d
Last game: 32y 241d

Height and weight
Height: 184 cm
Weight: 78 kg

Senior clubs
Hawthorn; Footscray; Sandringham

Jumper numbers
Hawthorn: 27, 24, 18
Footscray: 5

Recruited from
Camberwell (1930); Hawthorn (1934); Footscray (1942); Hawthorn (1945)

George Bennett

ClubLeagueCareer spanGamesGoalsAvgWin %AKIAHBAMKBV
HawthornV/AFL1930-1933, 1942-19449290.1027%14.505.0013
FootscrayV/AFL1934-1940108140.1336%16.606.6031
SandringhamVFA1945-194622221.00
V/AFL1930-1940, 1942-1944200230.1232%16.006.1444
VFA1945-194622221.00
Total1930-1940, 1942-1946222450.20

Pre 1965 stats are for selected matches only

AFL: 3,628th player to appear, 651st most games played, 3,421st most goals kickedHawthorn: 119th player to appear, 166th most games played, 364th most goals kickedFootscray: 174th player to appear, 122nd most games played, 328th most goals kicked

George Bennett was a pacy high flier who began his senior career with Camberwell in the VFA during the late 1920s. He joined Hawthorn in 1930 and went on to put in many eye-catching performances during two separate stints with the club. The 1934 season saw him move to Footscray after refusing to adhere to Hawthorn coach Tom Lahiff's rule which dictated that any player who missed more than three senior games with injury or suspension had to resume in the reserves. Bennett went on to play a total of 108 games for the Tricolours, winning a best and fairest award in 1935, before resuming briefly with Camberwell in 1941.

Bennett finished his senior career back at Hawthorn, however, where he played between 1942 and 1944 to bring his final tally of VFL games with the club to 92, giving him a round 200 all told. He played a total of 13 VFA games with Camberwell. In 1945 he was appointed coach of VFA club Sandringham but oversaw a highly disappointing season which yielded just two wins from 20 matches, and saw the side miss the wooden spoon only on percentage. He remained at the helm for one more season by which time he had played a total of 22 games and kicked 22 goals for the Zebras.

Author - John Devaney

Sources

Full Points Footy Publications

Footnotes

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