Austin Patrick "Ocker" Robertson (21 November 1907 – 6 May 1988) was an

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

er who played for the South Melbourne Football Club in the

Victorian Football League The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

(VFL) and

West Perth Football Club The West Perth Football Club, nicknamed the Falcons, is an Australian rules football club located in Joondalup, Western Australia. West Perth competes in the West Australian Football League (WAFL) and WAFL Women's (WAFLW) and is the oldest exis ...

in the

Western Australian National Football League The West Australian Football League (WAFL) is an Australian rules football league based in Perth, Western Australia. The league currently consists of ten teams, which play each other in a 20-round season usually lasting from March to September, ...

(WANFL). Robertson debuted with South Melbourne at the age of 18 and played for the club between 1927 and 1937. He was well regarded as a key position player at both ends of the ground. He was one of the few players still adept at

place kick The place kick is a type of kicking play commonly used in American football, association football (soccer), Canadian football, rugby league, and rugby union. Gridiron football Place kicks are used in American football and Canadian football for ...

ing during the 1930s, noted for the length and accuracy of his kicks; he made several attempts over his career to break

Dave McNamara David John McNamara or M'Namara (22 January 1887 – 15 August 1967) was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Family The son of Michael McNamara (1844–1904), and Mary Margaret Mcnamara (1851–1929), née Qu ...

's record for longest kick, often topping 70 yards but never breaking McNamara's mark of 86yds. While at South Melbourne, he was also a world

champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, an ...

professional sprinter, winning the world title in 1930. He missed out on South Melbourne's 1933 premiership win because he was in America organising a head-to-head race with

Eddie Tolan Thomas Edward "Eddie" Tolan (September 29, 1908 – January 30/31, 1967), nicknamed the "Midnight Express", was an American track and field athlete who competed in sprints. He set world records in the 100-yard dash and 100 meters event and Olympi ...

at the Chicago World's Fair. However, when he arrived in the United States, Tolan was not in training and was unable to race. During the 1937 season, Robertson was transferred to Perth by his employer, General Motors-Holden. He was cleared to West Perth and played there for the rest of 1937. In 1938, he switched to

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, and served as its playing coach for the next two years. General Motors returned Robertson to Victoria in 1940 and, despite expectations that he would return to South Melbourne, he signed with

Victorian Football Association The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

club Port Melbourne for a reported £6 per week, and crossed without a clearance from South Melbourne. He played for Port Melbourne under the VFA's throw-pass rules until 1941. He was the youngest son of Mr and Mrs John Robertson, was educated at Xavier College Kew and married Dorothy McDonald in Elwood on 22 June 1940. His brother,

Harold Robertson Harold John Robertson (9 April 1895 – 19 March 1935) was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the VFL. Family The second child, and eldest son of John Christian "Chris" Robertson (1868-1949), and Mary Robertson ( ...

, and son,

Austin Robertson Jr. Austin Christopher Robertson (born 29 April 1943) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL). He is the son of former South Me ...

were also champion footballers. Robertson later served in the Australian Army during World War II.

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* 1907 births 1988 deaths People educated at Xavier College Australian male sprinters Athletes from Melbourne Australian rules footballers from Melbourne Australian Rules footballers: place kick exponents Sydney Swans players Port Melbourne Football Club players West Perth Football Club players Perth Football Club players Perth Football Club coaches People from Albert Park, Victoria Australian Army personnel of World War II Military personnel from Melbourne Australian twins Twin sportspeople Holden people {{AFL-bio-1907-stub

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