George Priaux Cochrane (25 September 1877 – 31 December 1914) 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

Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed the Bombers, is a professional Australian rules football club. The club plays in the Australian Football League (AFL), the game's premier competition. The club was formed by the McCracken family in their A ...

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). In the first year of competition, he became one of the club's and leagues first premiership players, during the

1897 VFL season The 1897 VFL season was the inaugural season of the Victorian Football League (1897–1989), Victorian Football League (VFL), the new highest-level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured eight clubs, ran fr ...

, under the captaincy of

George Stuckey George Stuckey (6 July 1871 – 15 March 1932) was an Australian rules footballer who played with and captained the Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Football Stuckey played as both a wingman and half back during ...

. Cochrane made his debut against in one of the finals of the season, at the

Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), also known locally as "The 'G", is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, Victoria. Founded and managed by the Melbourne Cricket Club, it is the largest stadiu ...

. He left the club at the end of the season to fight in the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

, before returning in 1901 to play 20 more games over four seasons. "Suicide" was the finding after an inquiry into the death of George Cochrane, 37, railway employee, of Pelham street, Carlton. Evidence was given that Cochrane was found hanging in an outhouse. He had been drinking heavily for about a week. He committed suicide by hanging on 31 December 1914.

References

External links

* * 1877 births 1914 suicides Suicides by hanging in Australia Essendon Football Club players Essendon Football Club premiership players Collegians Football Club players Australian rules footballers from Melbourne People educated at Wesley College (Victoria) 1914 deaths Australian military personnel of the Second Boer War VFL/AFL premiership players Suicides in Victoria (state) People from Collingwood, Victoria Military personnel from Melbourne {{AFL-bio-1870s-stub