William Patrick Twomey Sr. (14 May 1899 - 25 March 1977) 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 Collingwood and

Hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

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).

Family

The son of Michael Twomey and Annie Twomey, née Carey, William Patrick Twomey was born in

Heidelberg, Victoria Heidelberg is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, northeast of Melbourne's central business district, located within the City of Banyule local government area. Heidelberg recorded a population of 7,360 at the 2021 census. Once a large ...

on 14 May 1899. He married Rose Ellen Lovett (1893-1984) in 1926. He died in

Balwyn, Victoria Balwyn () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 10 km east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Boroondara local government area. Balwyn recorded a population of 13,495 at the 2021 census. Whitehor ...

on 25 March 1977. Three of his four sons

Mick Mick is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Michael. Because of its popularity in Ireland, it is often used in England as a derogatory term for an Irish person or a person of Irish descent. In Australia the meaning broade ...

, Pat, and

Bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

, and his grandson,

David Twomey David Twomey (born 21 February 1961) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Collingwood in the Victorian Football League (VFL). A member of Collingwood's famous Twomey family, David is the grandson of Bill Twomey senior and ...

– the son of his fourth son, Peter – all played league football with Collingwood.

Football

Twomey possessed exceptional pace and was thus used mainly as a wingman although he also played occasionally as a centreman and half back. In five seasons with Collingwood he played 54 games, including their 1919 premiership as well as in three losing grand finals. He represented Victoria in an interstate match against South Australia in 1921. After leaving Collingwood at the end of the 1922 season to concentrate on an

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...

career, Twomey had success as a sprinter winning the 1924

Stawell Gift The Stawell Gift is Australia's oldest and richest short-distance running race. It is the main event in an annual carnival held on Easter weekend by the Stawell Athletic Club, with the main race finals on the holiday Monday, at Central Park, St ...

. He later turned to football, joining Hawthorn in 1933 as captain-coach. Hawthorn finished in 11th position for both of his seasons in charge, the latter in a non-playing capacity although he did appear in one match that year. He was also briefly a boundary umpire, officiating in three league games.

Footnotes

References

* Holmesby, Russell and Main, Jim (2007). ''The Encyclopedia of AFL Footballers''. 7th ed. Melbourne: Bas Publishing. * Ross, J. (ed), ''100 Years of Australian Football 1897–1996: The Complete Story of the AFL, All the Big Stories, All the Great Pictures, All the Champions, Every AFL Season Reported'', Viking, (Ringwood), 1996.

External links

*
Coaching record at AFL Tables

Profile at Collingwood Forever

''Boyles Football Photos'': Bill Twomey b1899.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Twomey, Bill Sr. 1899 births Australian rules footballers from Melbourne Collingwood Football Club players Collingwood Football Club premiership players Hawthorn Football Club players Hawthorn Football Club coaches Heidelberg Football Club players Australian Football League umpires Australian male sprinters Stawell Gift winners 1977 deaths VFL/AFL premiership players People from Heidelberg, Victoria Sportsmen from Victoria (state)