1939 - YALLOURN WIN THE CGFL PREMIERSHIP
ACTION FROM THE 1939 GRAND FINAL AT TRAFALGAR
With the AFL Grand Final ‘just around the corner’, it was thought that the attached action photographs, from the 1939 Central Gippsland Grand Final, may be of interest to Virtual Yallourn readers.
These photographs were a chance discovery (i.e. serendipity); and were unearthed in ‘The Weekly Times’ when researching the career of Yallourn’s well-known coach and local personality, Bert Downs. The photos add a little more to the story of local football and the history of the township.
The Grand Final was played on Saturday 16th September 1939 at Trafalgar. A large crowd attended and the gate takings were £126 (pounds- $11, 250 in today’s currency). The field umpire was Jim Cummins and the match was broadcast by radio station 3UL.
The victorious 1939 Yallourn team was skippered by Bert Downs who played with Collingwood in 1933. Bert’s brother, Tommy, was a talented rover for Carlton. Tommy ‘hit the headlines’ following a incident with Richmond’s Maurie Hunter in Round: 12 in 1931.
Bert, who was a Fitter and later a Shift Foreman with the SEC, and his family lived across the road from State School 4085 at 30 Parkway. The photo (below) shows Bert proudly wearing his Yallourn jumper.
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