Australian Football

John 'Woosher' Worsfold played his early senior football at South Fremantle, but will forever be remembered as the man who captained the West Coast Eagles to their first two AFL premierships in 1992 and 1994. 

Quietly spoken and reserved off the field, Worsfold was a classic victim of 'white line fever' with his aggressive attacks on body and ball being almost awesome in their intensity. From 1987 to 1998 the man dubbed 'Clark Kent' by team mates played 209 games and kicked 37 goals for the Eagles, winning a best and fairest award in 1988. One of the most highly respected leaders in the AFL, he captained his club for the final eight seasons of his career. 

In 2002 John Worsfold replaced Ken Judge as non-playing coach of West Coast, and in 2005 he steered the Eagles to their first Grand Final in over a decade, only to see them fall short by just four points against Sydney. 12 months later, the same two sides played off for the premiership, with Worsfold's Eagles this time holding sway by the narrowest of margins, the first time in 40 years that the V/AFL Grand Final had been so closely contested. John Worsfold thus became only the sixth man to enjoy premiership success in the V/AFL as both a captain and a non-playing coach.

Worsfold's 12-year tenure as West Coast coach came to an end at the conclusion of a disappointing 2013 season but he returned to the fray when he took on the daunting task of coaching the beleaguered Essendon Football Club prior to the 2016 season.

Author - John Devaney