Almanac Footy: Vale Geoff Ablett – a great player in his own right

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A GREAT PLAYER IN HIS OWN RGHT

 

The death of Geoff Ablett through the insidious MND has closed a chapter on a former Hawthorn champion.

 

He was a champion player but unfortunately he and his brother Kevin lived under the shadow of one of the masters of the game, brother Gary Senior.

 

Different from the other Ablett brothers Len, Graeme, Kevin and Gary he pursued a teaching career as well as being the ‘fastest man in football’ during his day.

 

 

 

 

I have known Geoff since he was a schoolboy champion athlete and an outstanding footballer with Drouin Under age teams in the West Gippsland Football League.  Geoff, a trained primary physical education teacher, taught my children at the Pakenham Consolidated school and of course, was a hero to all the kids.

 

Geoff was one of the key players in the Hawthorn premiership years with his speed on the wing and his prodigious kicking with both aspects of his game leaving his opponents in his wake.  If they took this new ‘absurdity’ of metres gained in his day Ablett would have, on many occasions, knocked up 1000 points, or whatever.

 

He had short stints at Richmond and St.Kilda after his great career at Hawthorn and then went coaching in the bush. Moe and Beaconsfield come to mind with limited success. He then played with Lang Lang where brother Kevin was playing-coach and all the Ablett’s bar Gary played in the Grand Final that they lost to Pakenham.

 

He bred race-horses in later life and also turned to local government where he became Mayor in the Shire of  Casey.  He also stood for State Government but failed to win a seat.

 

The latter part of his life was spent in local community radio where he was a great success, particularly when it came to sport and talking horses.

 

He was more than just an outstanding footballer and gave a lot back to the community.

 

For the record he played 202 games with Hawthorn (1973-1986) 135 goals, Richmond (1983-84) 16 games, 12 goals and St.Kilda (1985) 11 games and 6 goals.  He was a member of Hawthorn’s 1976 and 78 premiership teams and played one game for Victoria B against Queensland.

 

Nephews Gary Jnr, Nathan, Luke and  Shane and Travis Tuck all played league football as did his uncle Len for Richmond. An outstanding contribution to the great game.

 

He also won the Grand Final sprint on four occassions which has not been bettered.

 

More stories from Citrus Bob Utber can be read Here.

 

 

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