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Football Unlimited – Tim Hogan’s Guide to the Great Australian Game- Published At: 2018-06-15 15:28 - (379 Reads)
Rating:
(7.00/10)
It slowly dawned on me that Hogan’s book – a vast store of information emanating from a great variety of disparate sources, places and periods – was in fact a guide to Australian football’s collective memory.
Percy Leason- Published At: 2017-11-16 12:11 - (483 Reads)Percy Leason (23 February 1889 – 11 September 1959 was a cartoonist an painter who rose to prominence in the 1920’s and 1930’s. He was most widely known for cartoons and illustrations that appeared in many magazines including Punch and later Table Talk.
Charlie Davey -A Forgotten Star Of Interstate Football- Published At: 2017-11-10 11:44 - (858 Reads)Among those Victorian players who have been often overlooked for their significant contribution to interstate football is Carlton’s champion ruckman Charlie Davey. Charlie, who played 143 games for Carlton, represented Victoria on 17 occasions between 1929 and 1935. He is a classic example of a forgotten star of national football; and hopefully this story may serve as a reminder of Charlie’s undoubted ability and achievements in VFL and interstate football.
Stan Spinks - The Gallant Midfielder From Glenferrie- Published At: 2017-11-10 09:59 - (952 Reads)With the resounding recent success of Hawthorn; and the current abundance of Hawks stars, many younger fans may be unaware of the rocky road that Hawthorn travelled in the early years of the club’s history. One of the heroes of Hawthorn during its darkest years was Stan Spinks…this is his story.
Vic Lawrence- The Big Hearted Shinboner- Published At: 2017-10-19 12:18 - (1715 Reads)Victor (aka Vic) Lawrence (born: 1928) played more than 100 VFL games; and although a steadfast defender, club captain and Victorian representative, he appears to be another ‘forgotten man’ of VFL football. This story attempts to remind football followers of Vic’s achievements and the key role he played in rebuilding the NMFC during the 1950’s.
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Eric Zschech - The Minyip Tiger- Published At: 2015-09-12 15:52 - (5654 Reads)The only thing faster than the speed of thought is the speed of forgetfulness. Vera Narazin’s quote is most applicable in regard to how the football commentators have overlooked the brilliant exploits of former Richmond centre man Eric Zschech.
Hopefully, this story will shed new light on the accomplishments of a young man who left Minyip and became a champion of Victorian and Tasmanian football. A Record Streak: Geelong's 26 games without a loss- Published At: 2013-08-26 08:27 - (4847 Reads)Between Round 9 1952 and Round 13 1953, Geelong had a famous run of 26 games without a loss. This passed the previous record of 21 games by Collingwood's 1928/29 side and is still today a VFL/AFL record. This period in Geelong's history has been widely written about. This article attempts to describe the streak, demonstrate that it was more than a random fluke never to be repeated and finally fits the streak into a wider context within Australian football outside the VFL/AFL.
Ron Barassi’s First VFL Game- Published At: 2016-02-27 17:43 - (3169 Reads)In 1953, a 17 year old Ronald Dale Barassi entered the M.C.G. for his first ever VFL game, he would later become a legend of the game. The story of how Ron arrived at this first game in 1953, involves war, tragedy, rule changes and help from others. Ron was also not just the only youngster starting in 1953 and others came together to make the 1950's a golden era for the Melbourne Club. This is the story of Ron's first VFL steps.
Ken Mansell discussion with Harley Boyles, Tuesday October 16, 2012- Published At: 2012-11-02 13:04 - (2278 Reads)1933 - Round 5 St Kilda v North Melbourne - 15 men defeat 18- Published At: 2013-01-14 03:30 - (5936 Reads)St Kilda scored the most meritorious victory by any league side for some years. It was not so much the brilliance of the football, but rather the dogged determination and real Aussie fighting spirit that enabled them to see it out and win a glorious victory with only 15 men.- Football Record - Round 6 (June 5) 1933 p12
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Historical Articles (Reprinted)
Recent Articles
Great Football Dramas No. 10 - When Collingwood And Fitzroy Thrilled Sydney In 1903- Published At: 2017-11-10 12:49 - (399 Reads)In this, the tenth of a series of great football dramas, is described how, in 1903, Collingwood and Fitzroy made football history by contesting a League premiership match in Sydney, and how, in the Rugby stronghold, a crowd of 20,000, seeing a big Australian rules game for the first time, was thrilled by the fast, spectacular play.
Great Football Dramas No. 1 - DUNCAN’S MATCH- Published At: 2017-11-05 18:00 - (289 Reads)DUNCAN’S MATCH!” Two words, ablaze with imperishable fame, that stand out vividly in Australian football history.
Great Football Dramas No. 2 - Footscray's Dramatic Win Over Essendon Sensation of 1924- Published At: 2017-11-05 10:36 - (336 Reads)Re-told by an eye-witness, this, the second of a series of stories of stirring football dramas enacted on League grounds, describes how, in 1924, Footscray, Association premiers, paralysed Essendon, League premiers, in a memorable contest for the championship of Victoria.
Great Football Dramas—No.7 - Revolutionary Strategy That Won 1928 League Flag For Collingwood- Published At: 2017-11-04 13:13 - (944 Reads)Re-told by an eye-witness, this is the seventh of a series of great football dramas. It describes how, in the 1928 final against Richmond, Collingwood, with audacious match-winning strategy, set giant Percy Rowe to spoil Donald Don, dreaded champion full-back; and how, under Rowe’s clever protection, Gordon Coventry kicked nine goals – a record.
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Random Articles
Roy Cazaly Tells Of Football Ring-in with £500 at Stake- Published At: 2017-10-19 06:39 - (721 Reads)1920 Colbinabbin versus Elmore
League Footballers of 1950 – The Men In The Centre- Published At: 2016-09-04 09:15 - (2224 Reads)HAPPY is the football club with a good centre man. He can constantly put his team into attack. He can also be a defender. When the ball is bounced he often acts as a rover, and, as he and his immediate opponent stand on either side of the rucks, there are frequently openings in those periods. When the play moves on the two centre men watch each other closely, and frequently engage in hotly contested duels.
History of the Australian Game on the Goldfields from 1894 to 1912- Published At: 2017-08-11 15:57 - (660 Reads)Forty Years of Football- Published At: 2016-10-14 07:19 - (2130 Reads)Jack Worrall, (Fitzroy player, Carlton/Essendon Coach), Test Cricketer and journalist, looks back at forty years of football. The original articles from 1923-24 appear over a number of weeks. (Formatting and sub-headings have been added to make to article easier to read.)
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Article Archive...
An Introduction to Charles Boyles
Charles Boyles SLV2008.122/451 (Cropped) Source: State Library of Victoria Photographic Collection
The website is centred around the photos of Charles Boyles, a Melbourne-based photographer. Boyles primarily took photos of Australian Rules Football teams and players. He appears to have started this football work in the late twenties. He continued through the 1930's, the years of the Second World War, and then right up to his final photos in the early sixties. Unlike most commercial photographers, Charles Boyles did not wait for customers to come to him. Boyles set up his camera on training nights, and on game days took posed team photos after the players had run onto the ground. These were sold directly to the clubs, players and general public. On Saturdays, at the games, the photographer's son Harley Boyles (and others) would take a satchel of mixed photos and sell them throughout the game. Unlike newspaper photos, therefore, a Boyles photo was something you could own, take home, and treasure. There are no action shots or photos of games in progress. Boyles specialised in team photos and player portraits, with the players looking directly to camera. Today these photos are used by clubs, by family historians, and by those interested in football history. They often appear uncredited in football history books. Boyles did not restrict himself to the leading football competition of his era, the Victorian Football League. During his working life he attended many different competitions. He covered the VFA, Wartime Services matches, the various Victorian workplace competitions, the Sunday leagues, and other competitions. Learn More about the Life of Charles Boyles
Read Ken's article on the methods, motives and life of Charles Boyles. The article includes notes from an extensive interview with Harley Boyles about his father. See Charles Edward Boyles: From Tripod to Website. |
Website Aims and Objectives
This website contains work by two independent researchers, Ken Mansell and Michael Riley. Our objective is to share our own passion for history and provide a friendly resource for family historians, football buffs and others who have an interest in the Charles Boyles photos and more generally in football photography from the 1920's to 1960's.A Football History Website
This site has grown to cover more than just football photos. There is an amazing amount to explore. You can start with articles, player pages, ground pages, team and league pages as well as information on players careers outside football.All Football Photographers Not Just Charles Boyles Photos
This site contains photos from many of Boyles's contemporaries. These contrast Boyles's style, and add to an understanding of sport, photography, and the football of the time.Football Outside the VFL
Charles Boyles took photos of VFL teams, but also took photos of VFA teams, Workplace Teams and teams in Junior Leagues. Also, for many players the VFL was just a small part of their footballing story. This site attempts to build a picture of the football world during Boyle's working period. This world is worth explored through articles and the pages thoughout the website. Sources of Images on this Website
We are not associated with any library or institution. We have received permission from a variety of people and institutions to include their images on this particular website. Each photo is labelled as to it's source. Please contact the relevant source for permission to reproduce any images. The appearance of an image on this website does not mean that it is public domain. Although many (not all) photos are out of copyright, many images are available here under 'Terms of Use' agreements with the relevant organisation. We credit the photographer and the photo source wherever possible, |
Examples of Boyles Photos
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Kew Sub Districts 1939 - State Library of Victoria Photographic Collection
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North West Suburbs Police Team circa 1935 - State Library of Victoria Photographic Collection
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Carlton Seconds, 1956 - State Library of Victoria Photographic Collection
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Bob Wilkie - St Kilda - State Library of Victoria Photographic Collection
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