Frederick James Buttsworth (29 May 1927 – 12 May 2021) 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 West Perth 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) and briefly for

Essendon Essendon may refer to: Australia *Electoral district of Essendon *Electoral district of Essendon and Flemington *Essendon, Victoria **Essendon railway station **Essendon Airport *Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League United King ...

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). He was the younger brother of footballer

Wally Buttsworth Wallace Francis Buttsworth (21 January 1917 – 22 May 2002) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Family Wally had 2 younger brothers Fred and Brian Buttsworth. Fred Buttsworth was ...

. Buttsworth started his career with West Perth during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was their best and fairest winner in 1944. He joined the navy in 1945 and was posted in Melbourne which gave him a chance to play in the VFL with Essendon, playing eight games and kicking nine goals. In 1946 he returned to West Perth and established himself as one of the best centre half backs in the competition. He was a member of premiership sides in 1949 and again in 1951 when he won another best and fairest as well as a

Sandover Medal The Sandover Medal is an Australian rules football award, given annually since 1921 to the fairest and best player in the West Australian Football League. The award was donated by Alfred Sandover M.B.E., a prominent Perth hardware merchant and be ...

. Buttsworth regularly represented Western Australia at interstate football, winning a

Simpson Medal The Simpson Medal is an individual prize awarded for Australian rules football in Western Australia. The medal has been donated by Dr Fred Simpson and family since 1945. Simpson Medals are currently awarded to the following players: *The best pla ...

for his performance in the 1951 Carnival. He also represented his state at cricket, appearing in eight first class matches from 1947–48 to 1949–50. He was just 25 years of age when he retired, finishing with a tally of 182 WANFL games. Buttsworth died at the age of 93 on 12 May 2021.

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* * 1927 births 2021 deaths West Perth Football Club players Essendon Football Club players Sandover Medal winners Australian cricketers Western Australia cricketers Sportsmen from Western Australia Cricketers from Perth, Western Australia Australian rules footballers from Perth, Western Australia West Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees {{AFL-bio-1920s-stub