John Ellis (born 20 September 1948) is a former

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 with

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). Ellis spent some time in the Essendon reserves, after coming to the club from

Keilor Keilor is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Brimbank and Hume local government areas. Keilor recorded a population of 5,906 at the 2021 census. Whi ...

. He made just four senior appearances in 1967 but didn't miss a game in 1968, playing all 20 home and away fixtures and three finals.AFL Tables: John Ellis
/ref> In the

1968 VFL Grand Final The 1968 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the Carlton Football Club and Essendon Football Club, held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Saturday, 28 September 1968. It was the 71st annual Grand Final o ...

, which Essendon lost, Ellis played as a centreman. He kicked 23 goals during 1968 season and also polled well in the Brownlow Medal, with eight votes, the second most by an Essendon player. Essendon cut Ellis from their list during the 1971 season after failing to have much of an impact in the previous three seasons. He had missed a lot of football in 1969 due to a serious knee injury and was unable to recapture the form he showed in 1968. After playing briefly for the Footscray reserves in 1971, Ellis ended the year with

WANFL 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, ...

club

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 ...

. Ellis made a total of 40 appearances for Perth and then, in 1974, went to Queensland, where he captain-coached Sandgate. He led them to the 1974 QAFL premiership and in 1976 he finished second in the Grogan Medal. He spent the 1977 season with

Cooee Cooee! () is a shout originated in Australia to attract attention, find missing people, or indicate one's own location. When done correctly—loudly and shrilly—a call of "cooee" can carry over a considerable distance. The distance one's cooe ...

in Tasmania, meaning he had played at highest level in four different states. In 1978 was appointed captain-coach of

Dandenong Dandenong is a southeastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, about from the Melbourne CBD. It is the council seat of the City of Greater Dandenong local government area, with a recorded population of 30,127 at the . Situated mainly ...

in the

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 ...

and steered them to fourth position on the ladder. He joined Watsonia in 1979 and won that year's Frank Smith Medal, as the "Best and Fairest" player in the Diamond Valley Football League.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellis, John 1948 births Australian rules footballers from Victoria (state) Essendon Football Club players Cooee Football Club players Dandenong Football Club players Dandenong Football Club coaches Sandgate Football Club players Keilor Football Club players Living people