Australian Football

An adaptable key position player, Ian Thomson commenced his senior league career in 1967 with East Perth. A fringe player in his first couple of seasons, he started to achieve regular selection in 1969, and was a member that year of the Royals’ losing grand final team against West Perth. Two seasons later history repeated itself as the Cardinals again accounted for Thomson’s East Perth on grand final day. Earlier in the year, Thomson had represented Western Australia in a loss to Victoria at Subiaco Oval.

The 1972 season saw the Royals break through to claim their first flag in 13 years but Thomson did not get to savour the sweet taste of success as he had transferred to South Melbourne, where he spent the next four seasons, playing 74 games and kicking 61 goals. He displayed particularly good form in 1974 when, playing mainly as a forward, he took a team high 120 marks for the year.

In 1977 he returned home to East Perth, where he played for the next couple of seasons, taking his final tally of games played with the club to 89, and the number of goals kicked to 76. His failure to achieve selection in the Royals’ 1978 winning grand final team may have contributed to his decision to cross to East Fremantle, a decision that was promptly vindicated as he contributed four goals from full forward to the Sharks’ 1979 grand final defeat of South Fremantle.

Thomson retired in 1982 after adding 45 games and 127 goals with East Fremantle to his respective career tallies. In 1981 he booted a club list-topping total of 48 goals.

Author - John Devaney