Doveton Football Club’s 1965 senior side, back row, B. Fletcher, A. McWilliams, B. Marshall, B. Edwards, Terry Martin, T. Cox, S. Johnson, B. Batten, B. Walker; middle row, B. McDonald, N. Harvey, J. Edwards (captain), T. Edwards (coach), S. Charles, D. Green, W. Gill; and front, B. Richards, B. Deas, D. Walker, W. Willaims, J. Rowe, G. Walker.By Brad Kingsbury
TRADITION has galvanised Doveton Football Club over 50 years.
On Saturday, 13 June, the club will honour those who have played a major role in building Doveton into the football powerhouse it is today at the 50th Anniversary Hall of Fame dinner to be held at the Grand Ballroom at the Grand International in Dandenong.
Highlights of the night will be many but one feature will be the announcement of a Doveton Aboriginal side of the half century.
Life-long member and one of the selectors of the side, Bert Batten, was a major driving force behind the concept and said that there would be very few, if any, local clubs in Victoria that could produce such a side over its history.
“I’ve never heard of any and it’s something I think is pretty unique,” he said.
“I just wanted to acknowledge all the boys who had played with us over the years. They are the most beautiful people and helped our club enormously with the ability and talent they had.”
Batten joined the club in its second season and played from 1960 to 1968 when coaching became his priority.
He coached the Doveton Youth Club in 1964/65 and then took the youngsters to the senior club and won the 1966, ’67, ’68 and ’69 premierships, became president in 1971 for two years and then went on to coach the reserves.
He has always held the club’s indigenous players and their families in high esteem and said that football life in the heady days of the 1960s and 1970s was a lot tougher for all players but especially so for the indigenous players. He added that he was proud that Doveton did not discriminate and fostered acceptance rather than segregation.
“We were one of the very few clubs that really made them welcome from the word go,” he said.
“And some of the stuff they had to put up with was unbelievable. It was absolutely shocking and if it happened today, well they’d probably own half the houses from Dingley to Beaconsfield!”
“It was really tough for those boys on the field but I can honestly say that in all my time at the club I never encountered any nastiness or racism and I’m very proud of that,” Batten said.
On the 50-year celebration Batten said that there had been many good players and good people pass through the club.
He named Ronnie O’Brien, Frank ‘Rocky’ Clifford, Alan Osborne, Stephen Henwood and Steven Charles among the best he had seen and added that the toughest included John Edwards, Tom Cantwell, Mark Mitchell and his son Stuart.
“They were blokes that didn’t need to throw the cheap ones behind the play. They were genuinely tough and if you were hit by them in a game you knew all about it,” he said.
Tickets to the 50th year anniversary event include a three-course meal plus beer, wine and soft drink, and are available from the club at $75 each. Contact Andrew Simpson for more information on 0438 800 202.
