Herbert Harry "Jim" Handby

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(1 September 1903 – 2 October 1991) 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 in the

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...

(SANFL) in the 1920s and 1930s, achieving several honours in recognition of his playing skills. He was later a federal

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

politician and businessman. Born Herbert Harry Handby in

Adelaide, South Australia Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

, Handby was invariably referred to simply as 'Jim'. Handby enjoyed a league football career at two SANFL clubs, achieving his greatest honours while featuring prominently in the development of the young Glenelg club. Handby commenced his career with South Adelaide in 1922. Although not a classically brilliant player, he displayed great perseverance and all round effectiveness. He was quickly recognised as one of the best defenders in South Australia, and in 1923 Handby made his debut at state-level football. Altogether he represented

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

29 times during his career. Handby joined Glenelg in 1925, and on debut featured prominently in the club's first ever win (breaking a 56-game losing streak). Handby won Glenelg's club champion award in 1925 and 1929. He won the SANFL's

Magarey Medal The Magarey Medal is an Australian rules football honour awarded annually since 1898 to the fairest and most brilliant player in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL), as judged by field umpires. The award was created by Willia ...

in 1928 as the fairest and most brilliant player in the competition. He was Glenelg's captain-

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

in 1926 and 1927 but then relinquished this role until 1930, when he started a further three-year period as captain-coach. The best result he achieved as a coach was 6th (in an 8 team competition) in 1931. After leaving football he became a

publican In antiquity, publicans (Greek τελώνης ''telōnēs'' (singular); Latin ''publicanus'' (singular); ''publicani'' (plural)) were public contractors, in whose official capacity they often supplied the Roman legions and military, managed the ...

and company director before being elected to

Glenelg Council The City of Holdfast Bay is a local government area in the south-western coastal suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. History The council was formed 1 January 1997, when the City of Glenelg and City of Brighton councils were amalgamated b ...

, and he served in the military from 1942 to 1945. In 1949, he was elected to the

Australian House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Senate. Its composition and powers are established in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. The term of members of the ...

as the

member for the new seat of Kingston, defeating

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

member for Boothby Thomas Sheehy for the notionally Labor seat. He was defeated in 1951 by Labor's

Pat Galvin Patrick Galvin (30 March 1911 – 24 September 1980) was an Australian politician. Biography Born in Quorn, South Australia, he was educated at Rostrevor College. Galvin was an engineer by profession, but became involved in the trade unio ...

and returned to his business career. He died in 1991.

Footnotes

External links

SANFL Hall of Fame
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Handby, Jim 1903 births 1991 deaths Australian rules footballers from South Australia South Adelaide Football Club players Glenelg Football Club players Glenelg Football Club coaches Magarey Medal winners South Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees Australian sportsperson-politicians Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Kingston Members of the Australian House of Representatives Officers of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century Australian politicians

See also

Footnotes

External links