“I was born in what some city folk are pleased to call ‘the bush’, at Maldon. Later I went to Castlemaine Technical School. When about 14, I played centre half-forward in the school football team, and our captain was Perc Bentley. But if I, in my innocence, thought I was a footballer in those days, I had a rude shock coming in the not distant future.

I went to live in Richmond and at once became a Tiger barracker, never thinking that before long I’d actually be playing in my dream team. That day of days for me when I first played with the Richmond first 18 was early in 1926, the season after Bentley became a Tiger. It was against South at Richmond (Round 12). I was stationed at half-forward (and) on the wing. I could not have been a terrific success because I was dropped for the next game. I was brought back after missing three matches.

Richmond actually dropped me twice in my first years with them. Each time I just managed to escape back into the side by the skin of my teeth.  At the time I was one of the leanest figures you ever saw – just a wisp of 10-stone humanity, and I was actually tried out as a defender! Barrackers, in that kindly way they have, promptly nicknamed me ‘Skinny’.

In 1927 I had to swallow a bitter pill. I got a terrible drubbing on the Melbourne ground (his only game of the year). It was the blackest day of my career. Frail and thin, I was as helpless as a babe in that back pocket against such huskies as (Hughie) Dunbar, (Ivor) Warne-Smith and (Charles) Streeter in turn. Down to the seconds I went with a thud. Then came more misfortune. I dislocated a cartilage against St Kilda seconds and was eight weeks in hospital. I had plenty of time to reflect that the path to honour and glory in League football was hard and thorny.

I’m afraid Richmond were a bit dubious about sending me an invitation to train in 1928. A doctor said that I’d never be able to play football again unless I had a cartilage operation. Anyway, I received word to train and for a time was in and out of the side. Evidently despairing of me as a defender, they began to play me at half-forward and wing. That was the turning point of my football fortunes. Richmond had a trip to Mildura that season. There I got my first taste of goals, kicking seven from full-forward (July 21, Richmond 16.10 106 to Mildura 5.16 46).

After we returned, Jack Baggott broke a finger, so the put me at full-forward against Melbourne. Bill Tymms, the opposing full-back, was too good for me this day. In the last quarter my captain shifted me to centre half-forward up against the great centre half-back Bert Chadwick.

What pleased me most, however, was that Richmond won. The crowd who gave me the bird earlier in the game were sports enough to give me encouraging cheers at the finish. How thankful I am to them! That season set me firmly on my feet in the goal-kicking business. The next Saturday I got nine goals against Essendon, five the following Saturday and another six against Carlton in the semi-final. You must remember that teammates deliver the ball to the forward and are a big factor in his goals. On the field I try to get in front of my man or give him the slip. Any accuracy I get in kicking comes naturally rather than from assiduous practice.”