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Key Facts

Full name
Gerald Francis Betts

Known as
Gerald Betts

Born
5 October 1954 (age 70)

Age at first & last AFL game
First game: 19y 267d
Last game: 24y 282d

Height and weight
Height: 187 cm
Weight: 85 kg

Senior clubs
Richmond; East Perth; Collingwood; Claremont

Jumper numbers
Richmond: 50
Collingwood: 11

Recruited from
Richmond (1976); East Perth (1977); Collingwood (1980)

Gerald Betts

Advanced stats
Club
League
Career span
Games
Goals
Avg
Win %
AKI
AHB
AMK
BV
RichmondV/AFL1974-19751000.0070%8.103.502.400
East PerthWANFL19762100.00—————
CollingwoodV/AFL1977-19792750.1970%6.192.191.960
ClaremontWAFL1980-19836520.03—————
V/AFL1974-1975, 1977-19793750.1470%6.702.542.080
WAFL1976, 1980-19838620.02—————
Total1974-198312370.06—————

AFL: 8,682nd player to appear, 5,073rd most games played, 6,391st most goals kickedRichmond: 764th player to appear, 701st most games played, 1,131st most goals kickedCollingwood: 769th player to appear, 488th most games played, 589th most goals kicked

A much travelled defender who is one of the most experienced players in the Claremont side. He has a steadying influence on the backline, playing at full back with precision.¹

Defender Gerald Betts enjoyed a creditworthy playing career with four League clubs in two states. He commenced with Richmond in 1974 but over the course of a two season stint was unable to secure a regular place in the team, managing just 10 appearances. His next port of call was East Perth where he had a solid 1976 season, playing 21 WANFL games, before making another attempt to establish himself in the VFL, this time with Collingwood. His 27 games in three seasons with the Magpies included appearances, as a reserve, in both the drawn 1977 grand final and the replay, which Collingwood lost.

The 1980 season saw Betts back in the West as he lined up at Claremont. The highlight of his four season, 65 game stint with the Tigers was occupying a back pocket in the 1981 grand final defeat of South Fremantle.

Author - John Devaney

Footnotes

1. Who’s Who in West Australian Football 1983, page 6.

Sources

Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers by Russell Holmesby & Jim Main; Wikipedia article; The Complete Book of VFL Finals by Graeme Atkinson, Crème de la Crème

Footnotes

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