Australian Football

Of light build, fleet of foot, and elusive, full forward Rick Vidovich seldom accumulated many possessions during a match, but at his best he did not need to as his conversion rate was so impressive. Whether from a set shot or on the run, his trademark left foot drop punts were almost unwaveringly accurate, and he typically registered better than three goals to every behind. 

Vidovich made his league debut for Central District in 1967, but spent the majority of the season in the seconds, where his tally of 60 goals earned him the Wooley Trophy as that grade’s top goalkicker. He backed this up the following year by heading the league list with 62 goals which amounted to almost 30% of Centrals’ aggregate goal tally for the season. Nevertheless, he was dropped to the seconds for three games late in the year after losing form.

Vidovich was similarly blighted by inconsistency during his next stab at league football, which occurred in 1970 and 1971 at East Fremantle. Tallies of 12 goals against Perth and 10 against South Fremantle during the latter season emphasised his capabilities, and he ended up as his club’s top goalkicker with 65 goals. However, his form dipped alarmingly late in the year, and he was dropped to the seconds, thereby missing both of East Fremantle’s finals matches.

Vidovich’s last involvement in league football came in 1976 when he played one final game with Central District to take his tally with the club to 22 - exactly the same number of games he had managed with Old Easts.

Author - John Devaney