Fitzroy-Brisbane Lions Historical Society

03/09/2026

Good Evening Lions and Lionesses.

Renown Sports Author Bob Utber has recently written a book about one of our Fitzroy Football Club’s late 1890’s and early 1900’s star players, Chris Kiernan.

It’s a fabulous read about the dual sporting ability (VFL Football and Cricket) of our magical Chris Kiernan and the barriers he faced to represent our fantastic suburb of Fitzroy in the sporting world.

The book is now available for purchase.

Bob can be contacted via email on
[email protected] and via mobile # 0407 513 357 as well.

The book’s cost is $35.00 and the postage cost is roughly $10.35.

So a total of $45.35.

Payment can be received via bank transfer
as follows:

Bank - Bendigo Bank
BSB Number - 633000
Account Number - 111342051
Account Name - RJ UTBER & JA CARVER

Please consider purchasing one (or more) of Bob’s books.

You will certainly not be disappointed.

Not a lot is known about our Chris Kiernan and Bob has done an excellent job in documenting his personal life and wonderful and enigmatic sporting careeer.

Go Lions.

Brenden

02/09/2026

Good evening Lions and Lionesses.

Many thanks to Maidie Low, who has donated to our Museum a magical and fantastic Fitzroy FC Cheer Squad Centenary Puma Track-suit top (1883-1983).

This jacket has been donated in honour and remembrance by her recently passed away partner of 36 years Terry Breheny.

This item will be placed in our Museum in the coming weeks.

Thanks so much Maidie for your kind gesture in honour of Terry.

Go Lions.

Brenden

💛💙❤️😉👍🦁

02/09/2026

Good Evening Lions and Lionesses.

Upon visiting a Record Store last Saturday (Rare Records in Point Cook), I got into a conversation with the owner of the business by the name of Doug Bear.

Doug saw that I was wearing a Fitzroy FC Track-suit and we started to reminisce about our Fitzroy FC.

Doug is a memorabilia collector and whilst I was in his store, he presented me with his donation of a rare and fantastic 1970’s style Fitzroy Spray Jacket that he had in storage.

Many thanks to Doug for his awesome donation.

I mentioned to him that his jacket will be placed in our Museum in the coming weeks.

Go Lions.

Brenden

💙💛❤️🦁👍😉

21/08/2026

Good Evening Lions and Lionesses.

Approximately 217 Players played at least 1 game for our Fitzroy FC in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) from 1884 to 1896.

My co-researcher Connors Roberts and I have recently re-booted our hunt for photos of these 217 players to display on a single board at our Museum at Marvel Stadium (much like our 5 boards of our 1,157 VFL / AFL Fitzroy FC players that played at least 1 Senior games from 1897 to 1996).

As at today, we have 152 photographic images of our VFA players.

We have only 65 players to locate photos of.

Connors and I have quite a few leads for our 65 “missing men”.

It is on in earnest.

We owe it to these men and their families to celebrate their contribution to our great club.

Go Maroons.

Brenden and Connors

65 VFA Player Photos To Find:


A

ALLEN
1884
1 GAME
0 GOALS

1

B

HENRY BILLINGHAM
1884
1 GAME
0 GOALS

FREDERICK T BOFFEY
1886

BOWLIE
1886
2 GAMES
1 GOAL

C BROWN
1884
1 GOAL

J BROWN
1884
4-6 GAMES
0 GOALS

PATRICK JOSEPH BURKE
1889
2 GAMES
0 GOALS

6

C

T CAMERON
1885
1 GAME
0 GOALS

R CASEY
1888
4-5 GAMES
3 GOALS

CATION
1891
1 GAME
0 GOALS

H CAWLEY
1894
8 GAMES
2 GOALS

C CLOUGH
1889
3 GAMES
0 GOALS

CODY
1887
1 GAME

COOPER
1884-1885
18-23 GAMES
6 GOALS

CROBATH
1886
1 GAME
0 GOALS

8

D

LEWIS JOHN DAVIES
1889
7 GAMES
0 GOALS

WILLIAM DOCHERTY
1888
12-14 GAMES
8 GOALS

DUNN
1886
1-2 GAMES
0 GOALS

DUNNING
1885
1 GAME

DWYER
1886
1 GAME

4

E

T ELLIOTT
1888-1890
5-6 GAMES
0 GOALS

F

J FARLEY
1884
7-9 GAMES

FITZGERALD
1886
1 GAME
0 GOALS

J FITZPATRICK
1885-1886
8-14 GAMES
0 GOALS

FOTHERGILL
1885
4 GAMES
1 GOAL

FOX
1889
2 GAMES
0 GOALS

5

G

G WALTER GIFFORD
1890
3 GAMES
1 GOAL

PATRICK F GLEESON
1889
18 GAMES
3 GOALS

2

H

JAMES HOGG
1888-1889
15-16 GAMES
5 GOALS

HARRY HOWARD
1894
3 GAMES
0 GOALS

HUME
1887
1 GAME
0 GOALS

GEORGE HURST
1884
4-7 GAMES
0 GOALS

4

I

T IRWIN
1884-1885
7-10 GAMES
0 GOALS

1

J

J JAMIESON
1885
4-6 GAMES
0 GOALS

1

K

L

M

MADDEN
1887
6-11 GAMES
2 GOALS

CHARLES MAINON
1886
3-8 GAMES
0 GOALS

GEORGE MARTIN
1887
5-6 GAMES
1 GOAL

WILLIAM HENRY GEORGE MATTHEWS
1894
17 GAMES
2 GOALS

McFARLANE
1891
1 GAME
0 GOALS

McILROY
1886
2 GAMES
0 GOALS

McPHEE
1889
4 GAMES
0 GOALS

JACK MORRIS
1885
1 GAME
0 GOALS

JOHN ARCH MUIRHEAD ••• VFL AS WELL
1896
18 GAMES
5 GOALS

9

N

NEWING
1885
1 GAME
0 GOALS

1

O

O’SHANNESSY
1896
1 GAME
0 GOALS

1

P

AUGUSTE PAGNET
1886
2-4 GAMES
0 GOALS

JAMES PATTERSON
1891-1893, 1895
45-46 GAMES
15 GOALS

POWELL
1885
1-3 GAMES
0 GOALS

3

R

DAN ROBERTSON
1884-1885
14-26 GAMES
0 GOALS

JOSEPH ROJO
1891 & 1893
16 GAMES
1 GOAL

2

S

E SHAW
1884-1885
6-8 GAMES
0 GOALS

J SMALL
1886
6-12 GAMES
0 GOALS

ROBERT SMITH
1888
1 GAME

WILLIAM SPEAKMAN
1893
4 GAMES
1 GOAL

STEWART
1894
2 GAMES
0 GOALS

SWAN
1893-1894
15 GAMES
3 GOALS

6

T

TAYLOR
1884-1885
9-18 GAMES
0 GOALS

EDWARD TOBIN
1885, 1893
2 GAMES
1 GOAL

ERNEST TRATHEN
1888
2-4 GAMES
1 GOAL

TROTT
1884
3 GAMES

4

V

WILLIAM VALE
1886
1 GAME
0 GOALS

1

W

G WEBSTER
1893
1 GAME
1 GOAL

WILLIAMS
1893
1 GAME
0 GOALS

WILSON
1893-1894
4 GAMES
0 GOALS

LUKE WORRALL
1890
2 GAMES
0 GOALS

4


152 VFA Player Photos We Have:

A

Bill AHERN

1

B

Tom BANKS
James BEGGS
Teddy BEST
J BINGHAM
C BISHOP
H BLAIR
Nick BONNITCHA
Eddie BROOKS
E BROWN
Con BUCKLEY
William BUCKLEY
Robert BURGESS
Thomas BURKE
William BUSHBY

14

C

John CAFFREY
William CALLAGHAN
James CAMERON
Edward CAREW
James CARNEY
John CARROLL
Etienne CHAPMAN
H CHRISTIE
William CLEARY
Alfred CLEMENCE
Alfred CLIFT
Charles S C**K
Donald COLEMAN
George COLLOPY
Denis COTTER

15

D

Jack DALTON
Alex DAVIDSON
William DELAHUNTY
John DODD
John DOLPHIN
H DREW

6

E

Jack ELLIOTT
Robert EWING

2

F

Barney FLYNN
Charles FOLETTA
Johnny FRIBBS

3

G

James GRACE
Mick GRACE

2

H

George HALL
Francis HALLETT
William HANNAH
William HARRY
George HERON
Con HICKEY
Pat HICKEY
Thomas HILES
W Jack HUGHES

9

J

Charlie JENKINS
William JOHNSTON
Jack JOYCE

3

K

Thomas KEENAN
A KELLY
Louis KEOGH
Joe KERRIGAN
Chris KIERNAN
Arthur KING

6

L

Roger LAMLEY
John LECKIE
Thomas LEYDIN
Edward LINDSAY
James LOCKINGTON

5

M

John McKIE - MACKIE
Kenneth MacPHERSON
Jerry MAHER
T McCOY
John McGAFFIN
Alex McCRINDLE
A E McGREGOR
Tim McINERNEY
Peter McINTYRE
A JAMES McKEAN
Alex McKENZIE
Sam McMICHAEL
James McRAILE
Patrick McSHANE
Phil McSHANE
James McSPEERIN
William McSPEERIN
Thomas W MEATES
Ted MELLING
Percival MILLARD
J MITCHELL
Dan MORIARTY
Geoffrey MORIARTY
DR Herbert MORRISON
David MOYES
Alexander MUIR
James MUIR
William MUIR
Frank MUSGROVE

29

N

Ben NATHAN
Arthur NEALE
W NEATE
Alfred NEWLANDS
Ernest NICHOLLS
Fred NOMENS
Paddy NOONAN

7

O

J O’BRIEN
Patrick O’LAUGHLIN
John O’LEARY

3

P

Ben PAGE
Andrew PEART
John PEIRCE

3

R

Herbert RAPIPORT
Stanley REID
G REILLY
Edward REYNOLDS
Fred RICKARBY
J ROSS
S ROWE
John RUSSELL
Michael RYAN

9

S

SALLERY
Alex SALTON
William SCHMIDT
Abe SHEARWOOD
Patrick SHINE
James SIMPSON
Alex SLOAN
Ted STANILAND
Albert STRACHAN
John STRACHAN
Percy STUBBS
Richard SUMPTER

12

T

Henry TACKE
Robert THOMSON
Emil THONEMAN
John TIMOTHEE
George TOMS
Thomas TURNER
Jack TURPIE
D TYRELL

8

V

Thomas VEAL
William VICKERS

2

W

Bill WALTON
J WARD
T WARD
Goulburn WATSFORD
William WEIR
William WELSFORD
Jim WHELAN
Fred WHITELAW
Thomas WHYTE
J Rolls WILLIAMS
Henry WINNEKE
John WISEMAN
John WORRALL

13

28/07/2026

Past Fitzroy Players Geoff Austen and Ian McCrae will headline the Historical Society's next function in Melbourne, to be held on Thursday 6 August from 7pm.

Tickets are $15 (Historical Society members) and $20 (non-members and guests) and can be purchased at the door upon arrival.

If you plan on attending, please RSVP with your expected guest numbers to [email protected] so we can cater accordingly!

Full details below:

Historical Society Melbourne Function

DATE: Thursday 6 August 2026, 7pm – 9:30pm
NB: Meals unfortunately WON'T be available to purchase from the venue as their kitchen remains closed. A light supper will, however, be served in-between guests.

VENUE: Fitzroy Bowling Club - 578 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy North, Victoria

COST: $15 (for Historical Society members) and $20 (for non-members and guests), payable at the door on the night. Life Patrons are FREE!

Please email [email protected] to RSVP or if you have any queries surrounding the event.

27/07/2026

Good Afternoon Lions and Lionesses.

Saturday last I had the pleasure of speaking to Patrick Skene.

Patrick is a Freelance Journalist and Author and I assisted him with his story about our Champion Fitzroy VFA Captain, Victorian Intercolonial Captain, VFL Footballer and Fitzroy Administrator Thomas “Tom” Banks.

This story is also based on the struggle of our Tom Banks’ father Jourdan, who escaped Slavery in the United States of America to eventually settle in Australia and raise his children.

Jourdan passed away on Tom’s 20th Birthday in 1887, also being 1 year before his son Tom made his Fitzroy FC VFA debut in 1888

This story is a testament on the historical footprint that the Banks name made on our Fitzroy Football Club.

And still resonates today.

Please enjoy Patrick’s story on our own
Tom Banks.

It’s a fantastic and emotional read.

Brenden

His father escaped slavery on an Alabama cotton plantation, left two men crawling in the dust and put his own testimony into a published book.

26/07/2026

Good Morning Lions and Lionesses.

2 of the mainstays of our Fitzroy FC defence for many years.

Sera n Sticks.

Brenden

20/07/2026

Good Afternoon Lions and Lionesses.

How good was this man for our Fitzroy FC?

For 2 and a half years he was our protector.

A sensational mark and kick.

The heartbeat of our Lions.

RIP our “Sidey”.

Brenden

19/07/2026

Good Evening Lions and Lionesses.

Chris Smith.

What a fantastic player and loyal servant for our Fitzroy FC from 1973-1982:

163 Games
58 Goals

One of our greatest Centre-Half Backs of all time.

Led the 1980 Brownlow Medal deep into the count.

Our Fitzroy FC were Wooden Spooners in 1980.

So indeed a great effort.

Brenden

14/07/2026

Good Morning Lions and Lionesses.

Approximately 223 Players played at least 1 game for our Fitzroy FC in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) from 1884 to 1896.

My co-researcher Connors Roberts and I have recently re-booted our hunt for photos of these 223 players to display on a board at our Museum at Marvel Stadium (much like our 5 boards of our 1,157 VFL / AFL Fitzroy FC players that played at least 1 Senior games from 1897 to 1996).

As at today, we have 143 photographic images of our VFA players.

We have only 80 players to locate photos of.

Connors and I have quite a few leads for our 80 “missing men”.

It is on in earnest.

We owe it to these men and their families to celebrate their contribution to our great club.

Go Maroons.

Brenden and Connors

80 VFA Player Photos To Find:


A

ALLEN
1884

1

B

HENRY BILLINGHAM
1884

J BINGHAM
1892

FREDERICK T BOFFEY
1886

BOWLIE
1886

C BROWN
1884

J BROWN
1884

PJ BURKE
1889

7

C

T CAMERON
1885

JAMES CARNEY
1895

R CASEY
1888

CATION
1891

CAWLEY
1894

E CLEMENTS
1896

C CLOUGH
1889

CODY
1887

COOPER
1884-1885

CROBATH
1886

10

D

LOUIS JOHN DAVIES
1889

WILLIAM DOCHERTY
1888

DODD
1884

DUNN
1886

DUNNING
1885

DWYER
1886

6

E

T ELLIOTT
1887

1

F

J FARLEY
1884

FITZGERALD
1886

J FITZPATRICK
1885-1886

FORMAN
1887

FOTHERGILL
1885

FOX
1889

FRENCH
1887

7

G

G WALTER GIFFORD
1890

PATRICK F GLEESON
1889

GREY
1884

3

H

HAINES
1884

W C HARRY
1885

JAMES HOGG
1888-1889

HARRY HOWARD
1894

HUME
1887

GEORGE HURST
1884

6

I

T IRWIN
1884-1885

1

J

J JAMIESON
1885

W JOHNSTON
1884

2

K

KENNEDY
1889

1

M

MADDEN
1887

CHARLES MAINON
1886

GEORGE MARTIN
1887

MATTHEWS
1894

THOMAS McCOY
1893

McFARLANE
1891

McILROY
1886

McNICHOL
1884

McPHEE
1888

MORRIS
1885

JOHN ARCH MUIRHEAD ••• VFL AS WELL
1896

11

N

W NEATE
1890

NEWING
1885

2

O

O’SHANNESSEY
1896

1

P

AUGUSTE PAGNET
1886

JAMES PATTERSON
1891-1893, 1895

JOHN PIERCE
1886-1888

POWELL
1885

4

R

DAN ROBERTSON
1884-1885

JOSEPH ROJO
1891 & 1893

2

S

E SHAW
1884-1885

J SMALL
1886

R SMITH
1888

SPEAKMAN
1893

STEWART
1894

SWAN
1893-1894

6

T

TAYLOR
1884-1885

EDWARD TOBIN
1885, 1893

ERNEST TRATHEN
1888

TROTT
1884

4

V

WILLIAM VALE
1886

1

W

G WEBSTER
1893

WILLIAMS
1893

WILSON
1893-1894

LUKE WORRALL
1890

4